After three dozen straight draws with no winner, the Powerball jackpot hit an estimated $441 million, giving players a chance to ring in the new year by winning big on Wednesday.

The massive pot becomes the third-highest figure of 2021. In October, a person in California won a $699.8 million jackpot, one of the largest such figures in U.S. history. 

According to Powerball, winners of the jackpot can choose to take their prize as a lump sum payment or receive an annuity of 30 graduated payments over 29 years. So if someone wins on Wednesday could be eligible for an approximated lump sum payment of $317 million. Both prize options are subject to local and federal taxes.

The largest-ever jackpot was set by Powerball in 2016, when a $1.586 billion prize was shared by winners in California, Florida and Tennessee.

Powerball is played in 45 states, plus Washington, D.C., Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands.

The odds of winning the Powerball jackpot are 1 in 292.2 million – meaning that a person has better odds of finding a four-leaf clover (1 in 10,000), finding a pearl in an oyster (1 in 12,000), being struck by lightning in an estimated 80-year lifetime (1 in 15,300) or being killed by a shark (1 in 3,748,067).

If you or someone you know has a gambling problem, the National Council on Problem Gambling offers help and hope: Call or text the National Problem Gambling Helpline 800-522-4700.