Powerball fever strikes again, jackpot swells to 403 million
If you're feeling lucky, Wednesday may be a good night to buy a Powerball ticket as the jackpot has surged to 403 million dollars.
It pales in comparison to the record-shattering 1.6 billion dollar prize split three ways last year; however, local stores are still reaping the benefits.
Tickets print at two dollars a piece, each with the potential of winning big.
"More money to spend, more money to win," says Delmar, Maryland resident Cameron Maddox.
47ABC caught up with Maddox as he was purchasing five tickets from Wetcher Whistle, a beer and wine store in Salisbury, on Wednesday.
"Anytime that the jackpot gets…seems like over 100 million, more people play," says store cashier Linda Dodson.
Carole Gentry, communications director with Maryland Lottery and Gaming, says this jackpot is in the top 10 highest of Powerball history. It's been rolling since December with a base of 40 million dollars.
"People don't get excited about that. They used to be excited when the jackpot hit around 60 or 70 million," says Gentry. "Now, you have to get into the 200's, the 300 million dollar range before things really start getting exciting.
That sort of excitement brought waves of new customers to some stores like Wetcher Whistle.
Dodson says for about a week now, she has typically sold Powerball tickets anywhere from 20 to 40 people during her six hour shift. Normally, she would sell about 10 or 15.
"Once we get them in here for Powerball, we're hoping they're going to see some good wine or some good beer and then they'll be coming back because we have the coldest beer in town," says Dodson.
Gaming officials admit the odds of winning the Powerball jackpot in its entirety are long , 292 million to 1; however, the odds of winning any prize are 1 in 25.
"There are other prizes which are small as four dollars up to 50 thousand dollars and in this last drawing, Maryland had over 40,500 winners of some kind in the drawing," says Gentry.
The drawing will take place Wednesday at 11 p.m. We're told tickets must be purchased by 10 p.m.
Whoever wins the jackpot can choose to take their winnings either in a lump sum cash payment, or an annuity paid over 29 years. In Wednesday's case, the lump sum payment after taxes is nearly 244 million dollars.
