State lottery officials were expecting to see a swell of public interest in their games of chance regardless of what happened Saturday night.
If someone holds a winning ticket for the jackpot estimated at $415 million, the public will get excited. And if no one wins, the jackpot will increase to $525 million.
"We're definitely getting buzz," said Carole Everett, directions of communications for the Maryland State Lottery & Gaming Control Agency, "though not as much buzz as we had in January with the world record jackpot."
Everett said it's interesting that the public reserves its excitement for the very largest sums, when in reality, all the sums are large.
"It's not like it was years ago when people got excited when the jackpot hit $100 million," she said. "The jackpots keep getting bigger, and that raises the bar. But, our jackpots all start at $40 million – and that's enough to change anyone's life."