Novato's 'Luckiest' Lottery Retailers: Where To Play Powerball

NOVATO, CA — Powerball Fever is growing, and with an approximate $1.9 billion prize on the line in Monday night's Powerball drawing, some are turning to places where winning tickets were previously sold.

The California Lottery has identified its so-called "luckiest places" to buy a ticket.

There three such locations in Novato:

• MIKE'S LIQUORS (1102 GRANT AVE)
• SAFEWAY (900 DIABLO AVE)
• SPECIALTY TOBACCO OUTLET (925 DIABLO AVE #A)

To play, you'll need to purchase your ticket by 7 p.m. at more than 23,000 retail locations across the Golden State, according to the

The California Lottery touts the $39 billion that have gone to schools since it began in 1985, but a recent Associated Press report presents a far less rosy picture of the socioeconomic impacts of the lottery.

Lotteries currently operate in all but five states and have been responsible for a “multibillion-dollar wealth transfer from low-income U.S. communities to powerful multinational companies,” The AP reports.

The assertion that lotteries benefit education has been called into question by Howard Center for Investigative Journalism at the University of Maryland study that notes “lotteries often compound inequities by disproportionately benefiting college students and wealthier school districts far from the neighborhoods where most tickets are sold.”

Lottery ticket retails are typically clustered in low-income communities, the study said.

To find one of the "luckiest places" near you, visit the California Lottery website.