Common 'trend' ahead of $80 million Powerball jackpot
A common trend leading up to major lottery draws has been revealed as Aussies vie for a chance in Thursday's $80 million Powerball.
It is the largest jackpot in any lottery game in Australia since July 2020, with The Lott revealing up to one in four adults are expected to buy a ticket in Powerball draw 1301.
Spokeswoman Lauren Cooney said ahead of the $80 million draw last July, ticket sales peaked at 5.27pm on the Thursday, with 4367 tickets sold in store and online in just one minute.
A similar peak is expected again this Thursday, with the time coinciding with people finishing work for the day and dreaming of not going back tomorrow.
"It's a trend we certainly see in the lead-up to every big jackpot, ticket sales peaking in the afternoon of the draw, just as people are knocking off work fo the day," Ms Cooney said in a statement on Thursday morning.
"I imagine there are a few people out there who have pre-written their resignation letters in their minds in the hope that their numbers are the ones drawn tonight.
"Others will spend today dreaming about what homes they might buy, the holidays they might enjoy and who they might share their prize with if they become Australia's newest multimillionaire."
Ms Cooney advised people to avoid the late-afternoon rush in stores and online, adding the draw would close at 7.30pm AEST.
"Our advice is to get in early and make sure you register your tickets to a player card or an online account," she said.
Victorian couple scooped previous $80m jackpot
The Powerball draw jackpotted to a whopping $80 million last week after those with an entry failed to take home the division-one prize four weeks in a row.
The last $80 million Powerball winners were in July 2020 when a single entry scored the entire jackpot.
The winners, a couple from Dromana on Victoria's Mornington Peninsula, were told of their win four days after the July 9 draw.
They became Australia's third-largest lottery winner.
In March last year, a farmer, from the Port Macquarie region in NSW, also pocketed an $80 million prize after battling the drought and bushfires.
There have been four division-one Powerball winners in 2021, two from Queensland and two from NSW, collectively winning $120 million.
The $80 million jackpot amount is the third largest in Australian history.
In 2019, a mum from Sydney won a $107 million Powerball prize.
Also in 2019, a dad from Chatswood, in Sydney's north, won $96 million in Lucky Lotteries Mega Jackpot.
If gambling is a problem for you visit Gambling Help Online or call 1800 858 858.
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