The jackpots for the Mega Millions and Powerball are climbing to record numbers with no big winners this weekend.

The Powerball jackpot is advancing to $730 million with a lump sum payout of $546 million, which ranks it as the #6 on the list of largest jackpots ever.  The Mega Millions jackpot climbs to $850 million which is now #3 on the top 20 list.

I know I can't be the only casual lottery players playing these numbers.  I usually don't start playing the quick picks until the jackpots are huge, which is why last week I bought two tickets.  The odds are so stacked against me I never spend a lot of tickets, I figure somebody's got to win it eventually, it might as well be me.  Plus I figure in the large scheme of things, buying 20 tickets won't increase my odds of winning when you look at the figures below.

Odds of winning the lottery jackpots:

  • Powerball - 1 in 292,201,338
  • Mega Millions - 1 in 302,575,350

If I did win, I would like to think my life wouldn't change too much.  I would, of course, retire but other than that I live a simple life and I don't want or need for much.  I would invest a lot of the money for my kids and make sure we had wealth that would last for generations.  I would also teach my kids how to invest their money when they get it so the cycle of generational wealth won't be broken, and I would hope they would do the same with their children. The only big purchases I can think of that I would buy, would be a new house and two new vehicles. I would also bless family members with money, so they can pay off bills and be debt free.

Here’s a list of the top 20 prizes from Powerball and Mega Millions:

  1. $1.586 billion Powerball January 13, 2016. There were 3 winning tickets for this prize. These tickets were purchased in Tennessee, Florida, and California. Each had the option to take a lump sum of $327.8 million.
  2. $1.537 billion Mega Millions October 2018. There was one winning ticket purchased in South Carolina. The ticket was sold at a KC Mart convenience store in the town of Simpsonville. This is the largest single-ticket jackpot in U.S. history.
  3. $850 million Mega Millions, next drawing is Tuesday Jan 19. The cash option payout is $628 million.
  4. $768.4 million, Powerball won by a single ticket in Wisconsin. Cash: $477 million.
  5. $758 million, Powerball won August 24, 2018, by Mavis Wanczyk of Massachusets. She chose the lump sum payment of $480 million.
  6. $730 million Powerball, is up for grabs Wednesday January 20. The cash option is $546 million.
  7. $687.8 million, Powerball won Oct. 27, 2018. There were two winning tickets. One in Iowa and another in New York.
  8. $656 million, Mega Millions, won March 30, 2012, by three tickets, sold in Maryland, Illinois and Kansas. Cash: $471 million
  9. $648 million, Mega Millions, won Dec. 17, 2013, in Georgia and California. Cash: $347.6 million.
  10. $590.5 million, Powerball, won May 18, 2013, in Florida. Cash: $370.9 million.
  11. $587.5 million, Powerball, won Nov. 28, 2012, by two tickets, sold in Missouri and Arizona. Cash: $384.7 million
  12. $564 million, Powerball jackpot was won by one ticket in New Hampshire in the drawing on Saturday, January 6, 2018.
  13. $559.7 million Powerball, A single ticket was sold at Reeds Ferry Market in Merrimack, NH. The winning ticket holder wants to remain anonymous.
  14. $543 million Mega Millions. There was one winning ticket sold in California in the July 2018 drawing.
  15. $536 million Mega Millions, a single ticket was sold in Indiana on July 8, 2016.
  16. $530 million Mega Millions, jackpot for Friday, June 7, 2019.
  17. $487 million Powerball, winning ticket was sold in New Hampshire on July 30, 2016.
  18. $455 million, Powerball, winning ticket was sold in Pennsylvania on March 17, 2018.
  19. $450 million, Mega Millions ticket was sold in Florida for the January 5th, 2018 drawing.
  20. $448.4 million, Powerball, for Aug. 7, 2013, drawing, won by 3 tickets, 2 of them in New Jersey, one in Minnesota. Cash: $258.2 million.
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