Powerball jackpot rises ahead of Monday night drawing

1 year ago 9

The Powerball jackpot is the ninth largest prize in the game's history.

WASHINGTON — An estimated $675 million will be at stake for tonight's Powerball drawing after game leaders increased the jackpot Monday due to strong ticket sales. The jackpot currently ranks as the ninth largest in Powerball history.

A combined $1.1 billion is on the line between Monday night's Powerball jackpot and Tuesday night's Mega Millions jackpot, which is sitting at $480 million.

While there wasn't a Powerball jackpot winner on Saturday night, three tickets sold in California, Colorado and Illinois matched all five white balls to win $1 million each.

When is the Powerball drawing?

The Powerball drawing takes place live at 10:59 p.m. Eastern every Monday, Wednesday and Saturday.

The $675 million jackpot is for winners who opt for an annuity, paid over 29 years. Most winners prefer cash, which for Monday night’s drawing would be $340.9 million. The game’s abysmal odds of 1 in 292.2 million are designed to build big prizes that draw more players. The all-time largest Powerball jackpot was $2.04 billion Powerball last November.

Can you buy a Powerball ticket online?

While Powerball tickets are sold in all but five states, buying tickets online is much more restrictive.

Whether or not you're able to buy a Powerball ticket online depends on your location.

Currently, the lotteries in just nine states and the District of Columbia offer ways to purchase Powerball tickets online or through their lottery's mobile app. Those states include: Georgia, Illinois, Kentucky, Michigan, New Hampshire, North Carolina, North Dakota, Pennsylvania and Virginia.

If you don't live in one of those states, you may not be out of luck completely.

Another option that's popped up in recent years is courier services, like Lotto.com and Jackpocket, which allow players to order lottery tickets via a mobile app or website. Those companies go and buy the ticket on the player's behalf from a licensed retailer in their state, then upload an image of it on the app and securely store the physical ticket.

But location is again key, because these courier services are not available everywhere.

Jackpocket is currently available in Arkansas, Arizona, Colorado, Idaho, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Montana, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Ohio, Oregon, Texas, Washington, DC, and West Virginia.

Lotto.com currently operates in Arkansas, Colorado, Minnesota, New Jersey, New York and Texas.