A combined $862 million in Mega Millions and Powerball jackpots await lucky winners this weekend. If not, the total is sure to zoon beyond $1 billion.
This is one of the highest total amounts ever and the race is one as lottery players scramble to purchase their tickets before the Mega Millions deadline of 10:45 p.m. ET on Friday and the Powerball deadline of Saturday at 9:45 p.m. ET, Newsweek reported.
The Mega Millions jackpot had risen steadily beyond $548 million on Thursday. The last jackpot win was claimed on July 24.
The lucky winners of that drawing were a California office pool of 11 co-workers who shared the $543 million jackpot, which was the largest prize ever won on a single ticket in the game, lottery officials said.
The Powerball jackpot jumped to an estimated $314 million, with a cash value of roughly $179.4 million, for Saturday’s drawing. The previous largest Powerball payout of $245 million was clinched in August.
Both the Powerball and Mega Millions are multistate lotteries and considered to be the two biggest jackpot games in the U.S. The burning question is, what are your odds of landing that lucky jackpot?
According to Newsweek, the odds with a $2 Powerball ticket are one in 292 million, while the odds of a $2 Mega Millions ticket are one in 303 million.
There are ways to increase your chances of winning though, noted Richard Lustig, author of "Learn How To Increase Your Chances Of Winning The Lottery.”
"The three things you can do to increase your chances of winning a lottery game is to pick your own numbers and stick with them every time; set a budget; and never spend rent or grocery money to play a lottery game," Lustig said, according to Forbes.
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