Billboard changed to show Powerball jackpot is more than $1 billion

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Wednesday, January 13, 2016
Lottery officials in Atlanta changed a sign to reflect that the Powerball jackpot is a billion on Tuesday, January 12, 2016.
Lottery officials in Atlanta changed a sign to reflect that the Powerball jackpot is a billion on Tuesday, January 12, 2016.
KGO-TV

ATLANTA (KGO) -- Powerball is officially out of control. On Tuesday the jackpot jumped to an estimated $1.5 billion. This comes after the latest surge in ticket sales, which you can bet will be even larger when the drawing is held Wednesday night.

The odds of matching all six numbers aren't good. In fact, they're awful!

It's 1 in 292 million. That's why there's been no Powerball winner since November. But those odds mean nothing to the people standing in line, who are dreaming big.

VIDEO: When lottery pools go bad: Lawyer shares advice if you win

And since the lottery signs don't go up to a billion, lottery officials in Georgia took matters into their own hands.

They placed a big sticky note letter "B" over the "M" on a sign in Atlanta.

READ MORE: 5 things to consider when playing Powerball

The change came with plenty of fanfare, including armed guards and a display of cash.

At this point, the cash payout for a $1.5 billion jackpot will be about $868 million.

To get Wednesday night's numbers the moment they're drawn, download the ABC7 News App. Make sure you enable push notifications for immediate notifications!

Click here for full coverage on Powerball fever.

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