Powerball Winnings Could Reach Over Projected $600 Million

Powerball winnings are expected to tally over $600 million by the time the big numbers are drawn on Saturday, despite lottery officials sticking with $600 as the advertised number. That’s a number that has been able to be reached thanks to no one winning the game, which is played in 43 states, as well as Washington, D.C. and the Virgin Islands, for over two months. While a winner is expected during Saturday’s big draw, if no one does win this time around, the jackpot for next Wednesday would reach a record-shattering $925 million.

There’s still a little time to buy into the dream. According to Reuters, plenty of citizens are making last minute purchases, including those who don’t mind spending a couple of bucks to dream about the big prize and those who only bother buying tickets whenever the jackpot gets big. This isn’t the second time in recent memory the jackpot has been really high. Back in March of 2012, a Mega Millions drawing hit $656 million, before going to a few lucky winners.

Powerball tickets only cost buyers $2. Numbers on the tickets can be chosen at random, or buyers can pick specific numbers, choosing five numbers between 1 and 59, as well as the Powerball number, which runs between 1 and 35. Saturday’s big drawing will be held late tonight in Tallahassee, Florida, so if you want to buy into the Powerball dream, there’s still a little time left. Winning the lottery can be an intensely emotional experience, and for some, having a shot is worth the cost of a soda pop.

Photo Credit@ Shutterstock/Anne Kitzman