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Powerball And Mega Millions Jackpots Roll

By Charisse Van Horn
Published on: 13:09 PST, Apr 17, 2016

America’s largest jackpot lottery games have rolled this past week. Both Powerball and Mega Millions have seen their jackpots climb and anticipation is growing as people play both games. Powerball is the nation’s most popular lottery game, followed by Mega Millions. Both games have two drawings held each week, meaning there’s plenty of opportunity for the faithful lottery player to strike it rich. Powerball drawings are held ever Wednesday and Saturday, while Mega Millions drawings take place each Tuesday and Friday. All drawings occur at 11:00 p.m. ET. The current Powerball jackpot is at $227 million, and the Mega Millions jackpot is $89 million.

Powerball has drawn national attention after on Jan. 13, 2016, the largest jackpot in all history was won. The Powerball jackpot rose to $1.58 billion and three winning tickets in three states were sold. One ticket was sold in Florida, one in Tennessee and another in California. To this date, the California winner has yet to come forward and claim their prize. The Florida and Tennessee Powerball winners have come forward.

The last Mega Millions jackpot was won on March 8, 2016. Following all Mega Millions’ jackpot wins, the jackpot resets to $15 million. Powerball jackpots reset to $40 million. This is partially why Powerball is the most popular game and tends to have larger jackpots than Mega Millions. Powerball tickets cost $2 per play while Mega Millions tickets cost $1 per play. Whether playing Powerball or Mega Millions, it’s a good idea to check with your local state lottery for state rules regarding the lottery, information that pertains to winners, and updates and news on possible lottery scams and fraud. You can find information for your state lottery at the official Powerball site.

Those who are playing Powerball and Mega Millions should make certain they understand the rules of the game. You can find this information at your local state lottery site. Always sign the back of your lottery tickets as soon as you purchase them. This is one of the most important steps you can take to ensure that, if you are a winner, you can make your claim. Unfortunately, there have been instances where people have played lottery games, didn’t sign the back of their winning tickets, then lost them or had them stolen. By signing the tickets immediately, you can ensure that, if someone takes them or steals them, they won’t be able to claim them as their own. Additionally, store your lottery tickets in a safe place so they won’t become damaged.

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The odds of winning the Powerball or Mega Millions jackpots aren’t very good for the individual player. For Powerball, the odds are 1 in 292,201,338 million, and for Mega Millions they are 1 in 258,890,850 million. There are nine ways to win both Powerball and Mega Millions and those who match both the Powerball or Megaball always win a prize. Check with your local state lottery to see if your state offers a multiplier option. Most states do, and this can increase the amount of non-jackpot winning prizes.

Are you playing Powerball and Mega Millions this week? Are you excited for higher jackpots now that both are on a roll and continuing to climb?

[Photo by PathDoc/Shutterstock]

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