Powerball jackpot climbs to $550 million

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Jacob Tierney | Tuesday, March 19, 2019 10:52 a.m.

Powerball players will be vying for the 10th-largest lottery jackpot in U.S.. history in Wednesday’s drawing.

The top prize has climbed to $550 million, or about $335 million if taken as a lump sum.

The winner will likely have to pay almost half the prize in state and federal taxes, according to CNBC.

The odds of winning are less than one in 292 million.

The biggest lotto jackpot ever was a $1.6 billion Powerball won by three players in January 2016.

The largest single-winner prize was October’s $1.5 billion mega-millions jackpot, claimed by an anonymous South Carolina resident.

Powerball tickets are sold in Pennsylvania and 43 other states, as well as Washington, D.C., Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands.

Wednesday night’s drawing is at 10:59 p.m. ET.