An estimated $1.4 billion lottery jackpot will be up for grabs Wednesday night thanks to dozens of drawings without a big winner.
The massive Powerball prize is the sixth-largest U.S. lottery jackpot. It's a result of 40 consecutive drawings stretching over the summer without anyone matching all of the game's six numbers.
No one has won the grand prize since May 31, and the 41st drawing on Wednesday will be just one fewer than the record set last year.
That doesn't mean nobody won money. There were six Minnesotans that got a piece of the pie, each winning $50,000.
Minnesota Lottery Director Adam Prock was on the WCCO Morning News with Vineeta Sawkar and said one ticket is all you need - but be careful with how much you are willing to spend on it.
"It's fun to play and it only takes one ticket to win," says Prock. "So you know, don't get carried away. One ticket to win, one ticket to dream, and you know, if you don't win, that money goes to a pretty good cause. What I will say is that there are lots of chances to win some smaller prizes along the way. Your odds of actually winning a prize are about 1 in 25."
Every state that participates in the Powerball puts that money back into state coffers in one form or another. Iowa puts money towards veterans causes. In Wisconsin, it is property tax relief. Michigan contributes money towards education. In Minnesota, it's the environment and outdoors.
"Whether it's clean air, clean water, building those new bike trails or hiking trails we all love," says Prock. "You can travel to any corner of the State in Minnesota and you will find great projects that wouldn't be there without dollars from the Minnesota lottery."
Prock says lottery proceeds have put over $4 billion towards causes in the state over its lifetime.
Winning it isn't easy though, and that's an understatement. All of that losing since May stems from Powerball's abysmal odds of 1 in 292.2 million. There are three drawings each week.
The $1.4 billion jackpot is for a winner who opts to receive 30 payments over 29 years through an annuity. Winners almost always choose the game's cash option, which for this drawing would be an estimated $634.3 million.
Powerball tickets cost $2, and the game is offered in 45 states plus Washington, D.C., Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Only Alabama, Alaska, Hawaii, Nevada and Utah don't participate.
The Associated Press contributed to this story.