The Powerball jackpot is $1.5 billion, the largest US lottery jackpot ever. If taken as a lump-sum, and assuming you don’t share the pot, the after-tax payout would be about $531 million. The odds of winning: 292.2 million to one. Dividing $531 million/292.2 million = $1.81, less than the $2 ticket price. So, it’s not a fair bet. But if no one wins this drawing, next time it will be.