It seems like hundreds of millions of dollars just isn't enough to get people excited these days. But $1.5 billion has people going nuts and stores like the Hollister Oasis Stop'n Go on the Idaho border with Nevada are reaping the benefits.
"I got em in bags and everywhere. I got em all over," said one Powerball ticket purchaser.
When you're on the border with two states that don't allow the Powerball you see a lot of Nevada and Utah license plates.
One man who traveled to Idaho to buy tickets said 50 people asked him to buy tickets for them when they found out he was headed to the Gem State. He spent around $1,000 on tickets.
"Oh it's probably 10 times as busy," said Becky Farrell, a clerk at the store in Hollister, when asked about demand for tickets for the jackpot.
The pot is so big thanks in part to changes in Powerball rules making the odds even greater but bringing along added excitement to match.
"Since they changed the matrix they seem to get bigger and there's less winners,” Farrell said.
With people at this border store buying $50 to $150 dollars in tickets, business is booming and even if someone from Nevada or Utah wins it all at least we can thank the others for spending their cash in the Gem State and helping fund Idaho schools through dreams of being a billionaire.
