Powerball adding 3rd weekly drawing to build bigger jackpots

By SCOTT McFETRIDGE
Associated Press

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Lottery players will get more chances to win giant jackpots as the Powerball game shifts to three drawings a week in an effort to build larger prizes and boost sales. The expansion will begin Monday, Aug. 23, marking the first time the game will expand beyond two weekly drawings since it was launched 29 years ago. May Scheve Reardon, the Missouri Lottery executive director and current leader of Powerball, says the change is intended to create consistently larger prizes. Although plenty of people play Powerball when prizes are lower, she says sales typically take off when jackpots reach $400 million or more. MegaMillions, the other lottery game offered throughout the country, doesn’t plan to add more drawings.