BOISE, Idaho ÔÇô It's the largest lottery jackpot ever offered in the United States and one of the largest ever in the history of the World. With no nationwide jackpot winner for last night's Powerball draw, the new estimated annuity prize for Saturday night's Powerball draw is $700,000,000.

"One ticket can change everything. But we want to remind everyone participating that it does only take one ticket to win," said Jeff Anderson, Idaho Lottery Director. "We have done research and we know without a shadow of a doubt that every winner has purchased at least one ticket for that game."

"Buying more tickets doesn't necessarily increase your odds of winning the jackpot," explained Anderson further. "Each ticket purchased has an equal chance of winning as every other ticket. You have to be in it to win it.We encourage everyone who would like to participate, to play and have the opportunity to imagine what they would do with their winnings, but to please play responsibly and only play what you can afford, not to go overboard."

Ticket sales for Wednesday night's draw were brisk in Idaho, with last night's draw alone generating as much as $530,000 in benefit dividends for Idaho's Public Schools and the State's Permanent Building Fund. There were a total of 30,834 winning tickets in Idaho Wednesday night for a total of $181,193.

Players have until 7:55 PM Mountain Time on Saturday evening, January 9, 2016 to purchase tickets for this historic draw. The Idaho Lottery encourages everyone who wishes to participate not to wait until the last minute to buy their tickets as there may be lengthy lines at busy retail locations.

To bring perspective to the size of the Powerball jackpot for Saturday night, here are few items players could consider:

• A private Gulf Stream jet with a personal pilot is estimated at $21.5 million. The winner though could upgrade to a Boeing 777 Dreamliner for $320 million.
• A 33-acre private island in the Bahamas, Lighthouse Cay, a 765 parcel of paradise, is $33.3 million. Perhaps Omfori Island in the Greek archipelago for $60 million would be nice. The most expensive island in the world, and for 98% ownership, is Lanai Island, Hawai'i at $610 million.
• A few high-end priced homes in the Ketchum ÔÇô Sun Valley area range from $14 million to $18 million. A residence next door to Prince William and the Duchess of Cambridge Kate Middleton at Kensington Palace, London, could cost upwards of $222 million.
• For the sports savvy, if these franchises were for sale the winner could purchase the Kansas City Royals for about $700 million or the French Ligue 1 Soccer Club, Paris Saint-Germain, for $643 million.
• Perhaps sailing around the world on your own private cruise ship would be ideal. The Royal Caribbean Sovereign-class ships Monarch and Majesty cost $150 million each.
• Of course, a nice hotel stay in Switzerland could be ideal. The most expensive hotel room in the world is the $57,000 a night Royal Penthouse Suite at the President Wilson Hotel in Geneva, overlooking Lake Geneva. For $700 million, the winner could stay for 12,281 nights or 33 ┬¢ years.
  

The Idaho Lottery also encourages everyone to sign their tickets and keep them in a safe place until claiming any prizes they may win.

"Good luck, Idaho!" added Anderson.

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ABOUT THE IDAHO LOTTERY
The Idaho Lottery responsibly provides a variety of entertaining games featuring Powerball, Mega Millions, Scratch Games^TM, and PullTabs with a high degree of integrity to maximize the dividend for Idaho public schools and the permanent building fund. Since their inception in 1989, the Idaho Lottery has sold over $2.95 billion in products, awarded over $1.77 billion in prizes to players, returned more than $172.6 million in retail commissions, and distributed $694.5 million in Lottery dividends to Idaho public schools and the Permanent Building Fund. To learn more, please visit www.idaholottery.com.