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Mega Millions & Powerball: A $609 million weekend

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Thu, Aug 3rd 2017 07:50 pm
Combined Mega Millions & Powerball jackpots = serious prizes for players
Friday's Mega Millions jackpot: $323M; Saturday's Powerball jackpot: $286M
Lottery players in New York and around the country will be chasing history this weekend as they purchase tickets for Mega Millions and Powerball for the chance to win more than $600 million combined.
The first of two massive jackpots up for grabs is Friday night's Mega Millions drawing, which, after rolling 27 times without a jackpot winner, has reached an estimated jackpot of $323 million. Saturday night's Powerball drawing is creating its own buzz among players, with an estimated jackpot of $286 million - building since June 14.
"This dueling multihundred-million-dollar jackpot scenario is an industry first," New York Lottery Director Gweneth Dean said. "We've never seen Mega Millions and Powerball go head-to-head with jackpots like this before. This weekend is a Lottery player's dream."
Friday's $323 Million Mega Millions Drawing
The $323 million Mega Millions puts Friday's jackpot in the top 10 list of all-time high jackpots for the game.
Tickets for Friday night's Mega Millions drawing cost $1 per game to play and may be purchased up until 10:45 p.m. The drawing will be televised during the 11 p.m. news on New York Lottery draw station channels.
To play Mega Millions, players choose five numbers from a field of 1 to 75 plus one additional number - the Mega Ball - from a separate field of one to 15.
The Mega Millions second prize for matching only the first five numbers drawn is $1 million. The current rollup has produced five $1 million-winning tickets so far. Those tickets were sold in Holbrook, Hicksville and Manhattan.
Saturday's $286 Million Powerball Drawing
The roll-up to Saturday night's Powerball drawing began June 14 and has since rolled 15 times without a top-prize winner.
Powerball tickets can be purchased up until 10 p.m. on the day of the drawing. Powerball costs $2 a game to play. Drawings are televised live at 10:59 p.m. on New York Lottery draw stations.
To play Powerball, players choose five numbers from a field of 1 to 69 and one additional number - the Power Ball - from a separate field of one to 26.
The July 22 Powerball drawing produced one second-prize winning ticket that matched the first five numbers drawn. The ticket, purchased in New Hyde Park, is worth $1 million and remains unclaimed to date.
Mega Millions Jackpot Winners
The largest Mega Millions jackpot in history is a $656 million payout won by three ticket holders in Illinois, Kansas and Maryland. There have been 31 jackpot-winning Mega Millions tickets purchased in New York since the game's debut in 2002.
Powerball Jackpot Winners
The largest Powerball payout in history was a $1.5 billion jackpot paid to ticketholders in Florida, Tennessee and California in 2016. New York, which joined Powerball in 2010, has sold six jackpot-winning Powerball tickets to date.

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