Powerball jackpot continues to rise

NEW YORK (FOX 5 NY) - The multi-state Powerball jackpot has hit an estimated $625 million for Saturday's drawing.  That is worth $380.6 million for a winner who takes the lump-sum cash option.

No one selected the winning numbers on Wednesday when the jackpot was worth an estimated $550 million.

Jackpot winners can either select their prize as an annuity or a lump-sum payment.

If the annuity option is selected, the winner is guaranteed to receive 30 graduated payments over 29 years.  The annual payments increase by 5% until the 30th and final payment.

The odds of winning any prize in a Powerball drawing are 1 in 24.9, according to Powerball.  The odds of winning the jackpot itself are less than one in 292 million.

The growing Powerball prize is now in the top 10 list of largest lottery jackpots in U.S. history. The largest single-winner prize was the $1.5 billion Mega Millions jackpot claimed by an anonymous individual in South Carolina this year. The take-home pay for that winner – who opted for the lump sum – was about $490.6 million.