KIRKSVILLE, MO. -- Missouri Lottery is raising the price of a Powerball ticket to two dollars Sunday.
Lottery organizers hope the increase will entice more people to play because the odds of winning are improving.
According to Missouri Lottery, the starting jackpot will double to $40million and the match five prize will increase five times to one million. Also, they're changing the Power Play multiplier feature to a fixed prize structure.
KTVO stopped by Hy-Vee in Kirksville to see if people were still going to play. We talked to about a dozen people; most said they didn't play Powerball. But, the handful that said they played had mixed feelings about the changes.
"As far as I'm concerned, if I win a couple million dollars, $2 is worth the price of admission," said John Crocitti, of Syracuse, NY.
"It doesn't hurt spending another $1," said Janine Whitt, of Novinger, Mo. "It really doesn't. People have wasted more money on more ridiculous things. 'So you'll keep playing?' Probably, yea."
"As long as they really stick with the fact that it's going to be double the amount, I don't really have a problem with it," said Sal Costa, of Kirksville, Mo. "I think a lot of people will be affected by it. So, they're probably not going to take it as frequently. I know my family in St. Louis, my mom used to take it every week. She said I'll only take it when it way way up there now."
In Iowa, Powerball ticket prices rose to $2 a piece Saturday.