Despite odds, millions buy tickets for Powerball jackpot - 13abc.com Toledo (OH) News, Weather and Sports

It's the kind of money that turns ordinary people into dreamers. More than half a billion dollars was on the line Wednesday night, and local players weren't missing the opportunity.

"If I won, I would end probably end up taking my kids to Disneyworld because they've never been there before," says Angel Jones. 

"I'd probably try to save the world or something crazy like that," says Taylor Johnson, who didn't play the Powerball this time but said it was tempting.

Lotto novice Dave Sobzak bought ten tickets for him and his wife for the first time.  He said a brand new Ferrari and a retirement fund would be his first priorities with the new money.

"I don't have my retirement fund large enough yet, and this will do it," says Sobzak.

People were buying nearly eight million tickets every hour on Wednesday, and it's not hard to see why.  The Powerball jackpot of $580 million dollars grew throughout the day.  It started as $550 million Wednesday morning, and swelled to $580 by that night.  It's the second largest lotto prize in history, only second to the $656 Mega Million jackpot in March.

Experts say if one ticket has the right numbers, it's likely other winners are out there. Local players know their chances of winning are small, but say two bucks is a small price to pay for the dream of a lifetime.

"If the opportunity presents itself and God sees that I should win, that's what we'll do," says Larry Brazzel, who plans to invest money in his business if he gets the grand prize. 

The winning numbers are: 5 23 16 22 29 Powerball: 06