How to Play Powerball

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Everyone knows this popular American lottery game! This entertainment is available in 21 states, as well as in Puerto Rico, the District of Columbia and the U.S. Virgin Islands. It’s staggering minimum $40 million jackpot is the most alluring thing for those who want to try their chances and buy a ticket. Held every Wednesday and Saturday evening, this lottery game brings thrills and dreams to many U.S. households. You may ask yourself, “What are the chances of winning?” but there is no reason to waste your time thinking it over. Buy your lucky ticket now and enjoy the game!

Rules

So, how do you play? First, you need a playslip from an official lottery retailer. The cost of each play is $2, or $3 with the Power Play option. Each ticket contains 5 panels with one game per panel. Every game requires the player to choose five numbers out of 69 white balls and only one out of 26 red balls. The red balls are called Powerballs. The numbers of the red balls can repeat the ones of the white balls.

The white ball area is in the upper section on the playslip. You can choose the five numbers by yourself or mark the Quick Pick box letting the terminal generate them randomly. The lower area is dedicated to the Powerball numbers. The process of selecting them is similar to the one in the upper playing area. When the draw game starts, the lucky numbers are generated with the help of two ball machines: they contain white balls and red balls, accordingly. The machines draw five white and one red ball. Tickets that match at least three white balls or the red one are considered to be winners.

Selecting the Power Play will multiply your winnings, except for the jackpot. To get Power Play, you have to pay an extra $1, and it may increase your non-jackpot prize by 2x, 3x, 4x, 5x, when the jackpot is over $150 million, or by 10x if the jackpot is near $150 million. Additionally, the Power Play is not drawn together with the regular 6 numbers. The balls for the Power Play are drawn separately. In cases when Power Play is activated, the 5+0 prize is usually doubled to $2 million. This only happens when you match five white balls.

Note that you can play the numbers you have chosen on several draws. For that, you need to proceed to the Advance Play section. Remember to notify your retailer before starting the game. Also, there is a multi-drawing function that allows you to play different numbers up to 10 times. For that, you need to tick the relevant box in the “Multi-draw” section and play from section “A” to “E”, paying $2 for each section.

What Are the Chances?

If your bias towards the lottery games makes you doubt about their trustworthiness, there is no reason to doubt. The machines that draw the balls are produced by Smartplay International in New Jersey. There are four sets of balls for the white color and four sets of balls for the red one. The sets are randomly selected before the game. The turntable mixes the balls at the bottom of the machine, and then they are delivered to display by a special shaft.

The main Powerball jackpot can be won when all of the six numbers match. This is called the Grand Prize. What is more, if more than one person has the winning numbers, the prize will be divided among all of the participants holding the winning tickets. There are other lucky combinations that can bring you lavish winnings:

• If you get all 5 white balls, you win $1 million
• If you match 4 white balls and the red one, you get $10,000
• Matching 4 white balls pays $100
• Matching 3 white and one red pays $100
• Matching 3 white is a $7 win
• Matching 2 white and the red pays $7
• Matching one white and the red pays $4
• Matching only the red pays $4

The average calculated odds of getting the Grand Prize in the state lottery are 1 in 292,201,338. Of course, you can increase them, if you purchase more tickets, but taking into account that there are 292 million different combinations, the chances of getting lucky are pretty slim. So, no matter how many tickets purchased, there is still a huge influence of Lady Luck. Other odds to beat this multi-state lottery:

Searching for the strategy on how to win Powerball is pretty pointless, due to the fact that is that the draws are completely random, there is no use in dealing with any mathematical approaches towards the game. Don’t try to look for some kind of trends whatsoever. It’s utterly unknown which winning numbers will pop out the next day, so relax and just buy your Powerball ticket!

Jackpot Prizes

When you find yourself in the list of the jackpot winners, there will be several options offered to you in terms of withdrawing the cash. One can be done in two installments, both from the jurisdiction in which you purchased the ticket and another one from the combined funds. The other way is to get the 30-year annuity so that you will get portions of the total sum each year. Many people prefer the second option over the first one because the tax is lower and each annuity payment that you receive will be 5% higher compared to the previous year.

The option to get the instant check is very complicated, and the whole sum will be much lower than the original jackpot. If you add taxes, the outcome will be quite upsetting. You will be given 60 days to make a decision on the preferred payment type. Also, the same term is given to the players to claim the prize within the jurisdiction where the prize was won.

For a long time, Powerball has been major national entertainment that brings people a chance to change their lives for better. So, do you feel lucky? Take your chances and buy your lottery tickets today!