$360 MILLION: Powerball jackpot raised on huge sales

May 14, 2013, 12:46 pm (69 comments)

Powerball

Now 5th-largest cash value in history

By Todd Northrop

Due to larger than expected sales volume, the Multi-State Lottery Association (MUSL) has raised the official Powerball lottery jackpot estimate for Wednesday's drawing to $360 million.

The all-important lump-sum cash value of the jackpot has been raised to $229.2 million — now the 5th-largest cash jackpot ever offered in a United States lottery.

"This jackpot has started a buzz across New Mexico and it's bringing out a flood of people hoping to win big," said Tom Romero, New Mexico Lottery CEO. "We might see ticket sales push the jackpot to an even higher sum before Wednesday night's drawing."

Lottery players seeking to check the winning numbers Wednesday night are urged to use USA Mega (www.usamega.com). State lottery Web sites are normally brought to a standstill during busy periods, while USA Mega normally remains responsive.

Powerball drawing results will be posted immediately after the 10:59 pm drawing at USA Mega. The number of winners and new jackpot will be announced after all participating Powerball states have reported their data, which normally occurs within a couple of hours after the drawing.

Tickets will remain on sale typically until 10:45 pm Eastern Time on Wednesday, although players should check with a lottery retailer in their state for the exact sales cutoff time. Players are advised not to wait until the last minute.

The odds of winning the jackpot are approximately 1 in 175 million. The odds of winning any of the Powerball prizes are approximately 1 in 32.

Powerball tickets cost $2 each.

Lottery players can see an after-tax analysis of the current Powerball jackpot by visiting USA Mega's Jackpot Analysis page.

Powerball features nine different prize levels, ranging from $4 all the way up to the jackpot. Players can win even if they just match one number — the Powerball number.

All states except California also offer the Power Play option for an extra $1 per ticket purchased. The Power Play multiplies any non-jackpot prizes won by a fixed amount, depending on the prize level won.

Players who purchase the Power Play and win second prize will automatically have their prize increased by 2x to $2 million.

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Lottery Post Staff

Comments

rock_nc's avatarrock_nc

Just rolled out some numbers from my pill bottle! Hope they will be winners! 10 bucks is all I can play! Good Luck to all of you!

sully16's avatarsully16

Thats Awesome, good luck everyone.Cheers

helpmewin's avatarhelpmewin

count me in I Agree! Good Luck everyone Hurray!

Piaceri

Hurray!

Good luck everybody! You gotta play if you wanna win! White Bounce

dallascowboyfan's avatardallascowboyfan

Woo Hoo BananaHurray!Dance

helpmewin's avatarhelpmewin

Quote: Originally posted by Piaceri on May 14, 2013

Hurray!

Good luck everybody! You gotta play if you wanna win! White Bounce

I Agree! you can't win if you don't play

hearsetrax's avatarhearsetrax

Skepticalwhelp ... I just put in my $2

hope I win Twitch

CLETU$

All it takes is one ticket to win!

tymack

Time to do the Lotto Dance........Banana Oh Yeah!!!!! May the best numbers win.

MadGeniusDude's avatarMadGeniusDude

Quote: Originally posted by tymack on May 14, 2013

Time to do the Lotto Dance........Banana Oh Yeah!!!!! May the best numbers win.

 Banana

Jill34786's avatarJill34786

I find it quite humorous that so many large lottery jackpot winners think it will be just fine to stay in their current home while still working...even if it's only for a few days. A large windfall is life changing, NOTHING will ever be the same. If the winner(s) doesn't take the appropriate steps prior to claiming their prize then they have no one to blame but themselves for the chaos that is now facing them.

I don't think it really matters how "close knit" of a community you live in because neighbors and strangers will look at you in a totally different light. Granted if you already reside in a private, heavily guarded community you might be fine but chances are you're not.

Prior to claiming your prize, you need to assemble a group of trusted advisors/attorneys to form your trust as well as get you an advance loan to move you and your entire family. No need to pack up the entire house, just take your important documents and anything with sentimental value along with some clothing and LEAVE. You can arrange to have movers come in and take the rest of your belongings to a storage facility.

This is just the start. I can't stress enough how critical it is to take at least 3-4 weeks if not more to get everything in order prior to having one of your attorneys claim your prize. If you are insolvent and feel you need to claim your prize as quickly as possible in order to get some funds then you are mistaken. Your payout usually takes at least several weeks for all the participating states to fund the jackpot. One of your advisors and/or attorneys should have no issues getting you a few hundred thousand to keep you afloat until your main payout gets wired into your financial institution.

Good luck to whomever wins and I hope it's one of you from LP but please take your time and tell no ONE other than your spouse...this means keeping a secret from your in-laws, neighbors, co-workers, friends and children.

miss dee45

oooohhhh,yyyeeesss,now that is real money!

easygoing123go

I agree 100% trust no one, I've thinking its going to roll again to $560 for Saturday Night. Be Cautious, PO Box for your mail, and tell no one....Trust and go from there.... Good Luck..

ressuccess's avatarressuccess

Good luck to the people participating in this game.

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