With at least $685 million on the line, tonight’s Powerball jackpot is now the sixth-largest in the game’s history and the eighth-largest in U.S. history.
The odds of winning the grand prize are long, however: just 1 in 292.2 million, according to Powerball officials.
USA Today offered a few experiences everyday folks are more likely to enjoy:
“To put it more bluntly: You are more than 1,000 times as likely to find a pearl in an oyster shell, get struck by lightning or date a supermodel. And you are twice as likely to be killed by a vending machine,” the newspaper reported.
The last time a Powerball winner matched the six drawn numbers was on June 5, CNN reported. Since then, the jackpot has slowly grown from $20 million to its current level, a figure that could swell even higher before Monday night’s drawing, depending on the volume of last-minute “lottery fever” purchases.
“A jackpot of this magnitude doesn’t happen very often, and when it does, we see an influx of new players to the game which drives the jackpot even higher,” May Scheve Reardon, Powerball product group chair and Missouri Lottery executive director, said in a statement.
According to The Associated Press, the largest Powerball jackpot before this one was $731.1 million, which was won on Jan. 20, according to the AP.
Lottery officials are quick to note, however, that the lack of a grand prize winner in the past 40 drawings does not mean no one is winning. Some 2.8 million players in Saturday’s drawing, alone, won prizes ranging from $4 to $1 million, NPR reported.
“More than 90% of the time we would expect a Powerball Grand Prize winner on the 40th draw or before,” the Multi-State Lottery Association told USA Today, adding, “Every jackpot cycle is unique and dependent on sales and the current interest rate environment.”
Powerball is played in 45 states plus Washington, D.C., the U.S. Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico.
The drawings are broadcast live every Monday, Wednesday and Saturday at 10:59 p.m. ET and are livestreamed at Powerball.com.
