Powerball
A worker rings up a lottery ticket, Feb. 11, 2015. Getty Images

It’s been nearly a year, but the Powerball jackpot has risen to an estimated $500 million as hopeful lotto players threw their hats into the ring for the biggest prize of 2016. The cash value is listed at $306 million. Optimists buying last-minute tickets helped raise the jackpot $50 million within one day in anticipation for Wednesday’s drawing, CBS News reported Wednesday.

The winning numbers from the Powerball jackpot drawing will be picked at 11 p.m. EST Wednesday. For those who have a stake in the game, live-stream footage is available through a free app from Powerball. Depending on one’s device, it can be downloaded from the Apple Store and Google Play.

Viewers who are going to tune it though cable might have a hard time finding the correct channel because Powerball is on a different channel and station in almost every state. Most residents in Los Angeles and Houston can watch on CBS, people in New York City and Philadelphia can watch on ABC and locals in Chicago can watch on WGN. For a full list, check out Powerball.com.

The worst state to win the grand prize is in New York because state taxes will gobble more than half of the winnings to $202,510,800, USAMega.com wrote. Contrariwise, Delaware, Pennsylvania, South Dakota, California, Florida, New Hampshire, Texas, Wyoming and Washington are the best states to win the lotto since they are taxed the least. Still, no matter where the potential winner lives, there is a 25 percent federal withholding tax, where the $306 million number for the cash value comes from. Powerball is played in 44 states, Puerto Rico, the District of Columbia and the U.S. Virgin Islands.

So what’s the chance of winning a potential $300 million plus payout? Oh, just a slim one in 292 million. It’s really unlikely. In fact, someone is more likely to be struck by lightning. Those odds are 960,000. However, there’s a much better chance of winning the lottery if you buy a ticket. So, there’s always that.

Good luck, everyone.

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