Powerball jackpot will hit $2 billion if victor isn’t drawn

Another brisk day of ticket sales around the country has pushed the jackpot for Wednesday night’s multi-state Powerball drawing to $1.5 billion, by far the biggest jackpot in US lottery history.

But- will anyone win?

The odds of matching all six numbers to win the jackpot are one in 292.2 million. Odds of winning the jackpot are around 1 in 292 million. The jackpot estimate is reviewed daily, so it could increase before Wednesday night’s drawing if ticket sales continue to exceed expectations. The top IRS tax bracket is 39.6 percent so the victor would start with almost $562 million after taxes – not even enough to put them on the Forbes 400 Wealthiest list. You can watch it on TV or get updates with the LotteryHub app. What you’ll really win.

Almost 400 Powerball fans will get a free chance at $1.5 billion at one Nicholasville grocery. No one matched Tuesday’s winning numbers of 15, 27, 29, 31 and 48 with the Mega Ball of 15, so the jackpot for Friday’s drawing has jumped to $22 million. If a victor takes a one-time lump sum, which is generally the case, the jackpot is “only” $930 million.

Entrepreneurs in the United States are using Chinese e-commerce sites to sell the $2 tickets to anyone in China who feels lucky.

The record breaking jackpot will see more lines stretched for miles on end before the draw on Wednesday. They simply have to send the numbers they want to play along with between $3 and $4.60.

“Buy 10 tickets in a row of the same game”. The drawing is at 11 p.m., but they stop selling tickets around 9:45 this evening. You can also view the drawing online at http://www.powerballlive.com/powerball, but the website warns viewers to log on early because of high demand.

Disclaimer: The victor won’t take home the full $1.5 billion.

Fame and fortune (but mostly fortune) are luring some Albertans across the border this week to snap up Powerball lottery tickets.