Powerball fever hits Central Florida as jackpot reaches $403M

ORLANDO, Fla. — Powerball fever is heating up.

The jackpot for Wednesday’s Powerball lottery grew to $403 million after no one matched all six numbers in Saturday’s drawing.

For the next drawing, the one-time cash payoff is estimated to be at $243.9 million. Wednesday's jackpot is the 10th largest in the game's history.

Motorists who fill their gas tanks Wednesday might notice long lines at area convenience stores.

Lottery player David Goslin said he bought tickets in hopes he strikes it rich.

“All it takes is one,” he said. “I only spent $6. I feel lucky.”

Should he strike it big, Goslin said he’ll put family first.

“I’d make sure my family was taken care of, that's for sure,” he said. “And then I'd have to really give it some thought.”

The game, played in 44 states, costs $2 per ticket.

At Manila Express on East Colonial Drive in Orlando, customer Paul Basiliadis bought three tickets, one for each of his family members.

When a jackpot gets as big as this one, people who never play Powerball will drop a few dollars for a ticket, he said.

"When it gets to this point, even if you don't gamble ever, it's worth a $3 ticket," he said. "Four hundred million dollars (is) life changing."

Players may purchase a ticket for $3 that allows them the chance to win an extra $1 million or $2 million prize.

Lottery players choose the five numbers from a set of 69 white balls and the Powerball number from a set of 26 red balls.

To win the jackpot, one’s ticket must match all five white ball numbers drawn in addition to the red Powerball.

If no one wins Wednesday's drawing, the jackpot will grow in size.

“I’ll be in next week for that too then if it rolls over,” Goslin said.

Cox Media Group