Powerball and Mega Millions jackpots are engaged in a back-and-forth contest to offer the largest jackpot for someone in North Carolina to win, totaling together more than half a billion dollars.

Tuesday’s Mega Millions jackpot stands at a $247 million annuity that is worth $140.6 million in cash. The Powerball jackpot stands at a $258 million annuity that is worth $147.4 million in cash for Wednesday’s drawing.

The two jackpots have run a neck-and-neck race for weeks to see which could offer the highest stakes, with the leads changing back and forth between drawings. After no one won Monday’s Powerball jackpot, Powerball jumped ahead of Mega Millions by $11 million for Wednesday’s drawing.

“It is pretty cool when Mega Millions and Powerball both are heating up at the same time,” said Mark Michalko, executive director of the N.C. Education Lottery. “We are watching both jackpots closely as they continue to vie for the lead. Good luck to all our North Carolina players.”

As North Carolinians play for the jackpot, some are winning other big prizes. A $2 Powerball ticket sold in Guilford County won $50,000 in Monday’s Powerball drawing. The winner purchased the ticket at the Sheetz on Sandy Ridge Road in Colfax.

The odds of winning the Powerball jackpot are 1 in 292 million. The odds of winning a Mega Millions jackpot are 1 in 302.5 million.

Players can buy Powerball or Mega Millions tickets at any lottery retail location or through Online Play on the lottery’s website, www.nclottery.com.

Ticket sales from draw games make it possible for the lottery to raise more than $900 million a year for education. For details on how lottery funds have made a difference in all of North Carolina’s 100 counties, click on the “Impact” section of the lottery’s website.