The Powerball jackpot has surged to $1.1 billion, a life‑changing sum that can turn a $3 ticket into generational wealth. The catch is that the math behind that dream is unforgiving, and the odds of hitting all six numbers are far worse than most players intuitively grasp.

ABC News’ Linsey Davis spoke with Davidson College professor Tim Chartier who says you're 20,000 times more likely to get hit by lightning than win Wednesday’s $1.7B Powerball jackpot.

Later tonight, America will be watching in anticipation as five white balls and one red Powerball are drawn from a Tallahassee, Florida, lottery machine.

Powerball has a jackpot of $420 million and Mega Millions is at $318 million this week. We did the math to see whether it's worth buying a ticket.

So far, it’s the 5th-largest jackpot in U.S. history after more than three months without a Powerball winner. The game’s long odds created a massive windfall that has enticed people to splurge on $2 tickets ahead of the live drawing at 10:59 p.m. ET Monday night.

FARGO, N.D. (Valley News Live) - Becoming President of the United States, being eaten by a shark (maybe not in North Dakota), or even having sextuplets, these might seem like random things, but the odds of them happening are more realistic than you winning ...

For those who match all five white balls and the red Powerball, the key numbers are the $1.5 billion jackpot, paid out over 29 years or as an immediate $930 million in cash payment. But 39.6 percent of the lump sum would go to federal income taxes.