Florida In $325M Powerball Frenzy
MIAMI (CBSMiami) – What would you do if you won the $325 million Powerball jackpot? That's what a lot of people across Florida and 41 other states are asking themselves after the jackpot for Saturday's drawing grew by another $15 million.
This is the largest Powerball jackpot since June 2010 and since $2 Powerball launched on January 15. It's also the largest Powerball jackpot since Florida joined the game more than three years ago and it's more than three times larger than the biggest Florida Lotto jackpot.
South Floridians are dreaming big about what they would do if they won.
"I don't know, buy houses for my family and friends, share it," said Betty Moreno.
"Family, give some to the family and invest it," said Roberto Moreno.
"Go to Disney World," said Sandra Gomez. "No, I'll quit my job for sure."
Gomez usually doesn't play the lottery but she couldn't resist this giant jackpot.
"It's amazing, I just got notified today that it was this big and it's exciting."
If someone wins Saturday's jackpot, they would have the choice of getting paid out over 30 years or taking the lump sum payment of $202.9 million, which is the record largest cash jackpot in Powerball history.
If this jackpot doesn't get hit, expect to see history because the jackpot will jump to $400 million.
Powerball's record jackpot is $365 million.
The odds of winning any lottery prize is about 1 in 32, but the odds of winning the jackpot is about 1 in 175 million, officials said.
The odds of winning are one to just over 175 million.
The biggest jackpot won to date in the game was a $365 million prize split by eight co-workers at a Nebraska meat-packing plant in February 2006 but since they chose the lump sum payment, the pay-out was $177 million.
Powerball is played in 42 states, Washington, D.C., and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
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