Record Powerball jackpot irresistible for many Americans

The Powerball jackpot starts at $40 million and grows until there’s a victor. As of 1 p.m. Saturday, Californians have already purchased $17.2 million worth of tickets.

Tickets were selling almost nonstop around 7 p.m.at Patel’s Yonkers Grocery & Convenience Store on Yonkers Avenue, which has a history for selling winning tickets. The prize money continues to rise, with the last 18 drawings resulting in no winning tickets. On Wednesday, when the jackpot was a mere $500 million, the state sold $6 million worth of tickets. If no one matches all the numbers, the next drawing, on Wednesday, is expected to soar to $1.3 billion.

The largest jackpot of any kind to this point has been the $656 million Mega Millions jackpot won on March 30, 2012.

THE largest jackpot in United States lottery history has climbed again, to a massive $900 million, as Americans dreaming of a life-changing windfall counted down the hours to Saturday’s eagerly anticipated draw.

“Everyone’s different. Some people will enjoy this five minutes in the spotlight”, Jason Kurland, an attorney for three Greenwich, Connecticut, wealth managers who split a $245 million Powerball prize in 2011, previously told NBC News.

“At this level of sales, we will have thousands of winners in New York at various prize levels”, Gardner Gurney, director of the New York Lottery, said in a statement.

“I’m going insane! I can’t take it anymore!” she said, burying her face in her hands but giggling uncontrollably as she turned to a lineup of customers.

The estimated jackpot is 9.8 million. The state’s largest Powerball jackpot victor, Claude G. from Rifle, claimed $90 million in August 2014. If the jackpot should rollover to $1.3 billion, the lump sum pay out would be $806 million.

“I never buy Powerball tickets and I wasn’t going to buy one, but some gentleman mentioned it so I said, ‘I have to now, ‘” said one man at Anania’s Variety Store on Congress Street in Portland.

“If I win, I’ll write you a check for $1 million”, he added.

“Yeah, I’ve got the winning tickets right here”, patron Richard Walker said. They are 32, 16,19, 57, 34, with a Powerball of 13.

While winning $900 million would ultimately grant you and your loved ones financial security, it’s important not to spend money you can’t afford to lose (i.e.: groceries, rent, etc.) on lottery tickets.