Powerball ticket giveaway on South Side held ahead of $1B Halloween night drawing

CHICAGO – It was no trick and all treat Monday morning for Powerball jackpot hopefuls on Chicago’s Side.

The Illinois Lottery celebrated Halloween by giving away more than 500 free Powerball tickets ahead of Monday night’s billion-dollar drawing. Held at the Lucky Mart in the 2900 block of W 87th St from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m., lottery players entered a money machine full of Powerball tickets.

The goal was simple: grab as many tickets as possible.

The Chicago Lucky Mart is one of the state’s luckiest locations, with winning tickets totaling more than $3 million.

Monday’s estimated $1 billion jackpot is the fifth-largest jackpot in U.S. history and the second-largest Powerball jackpot. In September, two Illinois winners claimed the historic $1.34 billion Mega Millions jackpot drawn in July. It was the nation’s third-largest lottery prize.