Drawing set for a Powerball jackpot that has ballooned to $1.8 billion

DES MOINES Iowa AP A Powerball drawing will be held Saturday for what would be second highest lottery jackpot on record an estimated billion The prize ballooned after the lottery held more than consecutive drawings without anyone matching all of the encounter s six numbers Whenever a drawing fails to get a winner the lottery rolls over the winnings The competition s terrible odds of in million are designed to generate big jackpots and ever-larger prizes There are three drawings each week The largest jackpot on record billion was drawn in and went to a California ticket buyer No one has won the grand prize since May The billion jackpot is for a winner who opts to receive payments over years through an annuity Winners almost consistently choose the competition s cash option which for this drawing would be an estimated million Powerball tickets cost and the battle is offered in states plus Washington D C Puerto Rico and the U S Virgin Islands