By JIM SALTER (Associated Press)
ST. LOUIS (AP) — After 35 straight drawings with out a large winner, Powerball gamers on Wednesday are lining up for a shot at a near-record jackpot price an estimated $1.73 billion.
If successful numbers are drawn, it will be the second largest U.S. lottery prize, topped solely by the $2.04 billion Powerball gained by a participant in California final November. The earlier No. 2 was a $1.586 billion Powerball with three winners in California, Florida and Tennessee on Jan. 13, 2016.
Powerball’s horrible odds of 1 in 292.2 million are designed to generate large jackpots, with prizes turning into ever bigger as they repeatedly roll over when nobody wins. And wins in current months have been few and much between.
That didn’t trouble these wanting to plunk down their cash for a long-shot probability at immediate wealth.
Robert Salvato Jr., a 60-year-old electrician, purchased 40 Powerball tickets at a ironmongery shop in Billerica, Massachusetts.
“I would take care of family and give my cat that extra leg that she needs and make her a good kitty,” mentioned Salvato, who received married on Saturday.
“I could give her a ring on every finger, I guess,” Salvato mentioned of his new spouse.
Nevada is among the many 5 states with out Powerball, so pals Tamara Carter and Denise Davis drove from Las Vegas throughout the state line into California to purchase tickets. But the road was so lengthy at their first cease that they gave up and went in the hunt for one other retailer.
“The line was about three hours long,” Carter estimated. “I was waiting for maybe a half hour, and it didn’t move.”
The jackpot has grown monumental as a result of a protracted dry spell. The earlier successful Powerball ticket was offered on July 19, and it was price $1.08 billion after 39 drawings with out a jackpot win.
At the identical ironmongery shop as Salvato, Kevin Button appeared to grasp the lengthy odds as he purchased a ticket.
“I only buy them usually when the jackpot’s high,” Button mentioned. “Seems to have been pretty high quite often lately. So I’ve tried quite a few times and haven’t even won a free ticket. But maybe tonight’s the night.”
In most states, a Powerball ticket prices $2 and gamers can choose their very own numbers or depart that process to a pc.
The $1.73 billion jackpot is for a sole winner who opts for cost by means of an annuity, doled out over 30 years. Winners virtually at all times take the money choice, which for Wednesday night time’s drawing is estimated at $756.6 million.
Winnings can be topic to federal taxes, and lots of states additionally tax lottery winnings.
Powerball is performed in 45 states, in addition to Washington, D.C., Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
___
Rodrique Ngowi in Billerica, Massachusetts, and Ty O’Neil in California, close to Primm, Nevada, contributed to this report.
Source: www.bostonherald.com”