Skyrocketing ticket sales helped smash lottery records this week and have players eyeing an enormous Powerball jackpot drawing Saturday night.

Pennsylvania Lottery officials said the jackpot has hit a record $800 million. The drawing takes place at 11 p.m. Saturday.

That has caused lottery outlets around Butler County to be inundated by people looking for a chance to claim the record jackpot.

“I know I have customers I've never seen before coming in here,” said Ruth Bester, the manager of 3 B's Tobacco in Butler Township's Pointe Plaza. “It does make it difficult to take care of (things) throughout the day. I don't even get out of here on time because we get slammed.”

Bester said the store had its longest lines on Wednesday, when the lottery announced what was already the largest jackpot ever. Bester said most people have been buying between five and 10 Powerball tickets at a time and pay the extra $1 for the game's “power play,” which multiplies lower-tier cash prizes by various factors but doesn't affect the game's jackpot.

On Friday the store still was dealing with a lunchtime crowds as a mix of regular players and first-timers rushed to get their tickets.

Butler resident Anna Marie Mackowski was among those first-timers on Friday. Mackowski bought three tickets on the chance she would win and be able to donate money to charities for veterans and the homeless.

“I've never played in my whole life,” she said as Bester helped her through the process of selecting numbers. “If I would win it, I'd give them (charities) all $20 million.”

The jackpot also has attracted groups of co-workers and friends who band together to buy tickets. Nurses Tina Denardo of Ford City and Hilary Williams of Karns City on Friday were buying 12 tickets for an office pool.

The pair jokingly said they were only sure of one thing: if a member of their group won, they'd have a heart attack.

“I don't know what I'd do. I wouldn't want it to change my life,” Williams said.

Longtime player Mark McCaw of Butler said he intended to play his single ticket, like normal, despite the “ridiculous” jackpot.

“If somebody wins, I hope it's a group,” he said. “With that much money, you can make a lot of people happy.”

At the Kwik Fill store on Franklin Street in Slippery Rock, manager Justin Brown said the spike in ticket sales has mostly come from regular players buying at least three times the number of tickets they normally do. He said the store has about an even split of players choosing “quick picks” where a computer selects a ticket's numbers, and those who want to pick their own number combinations.

Brown said thinking about winning the game's record jackpot is a surreal exercise for many customers.

“Half of them can't believe that it's as high as it is,” Brown said. “They're pretty excited when they think about what they would do with it if they win.”

The hunt for the jackpot is also on in Petrolia. Cashier Georgie Barton of the Uni-Mart convenience store on Jamison Street said she's seen a days-long rush for Powerball tickets, and continues to see new players in the store.

“They all want that winning ticket,” said Barton, who was working behind the counter Friday morning. “I say, 'Good luck. So do I.'”

Kristen Szypulski, an employee at Planet Mart in Mars, said working behind the counter when the Powerball jackpot is inflated makes for a fun but exhausting day.

“I've been trying to ice these cinnamon rolls for the past two-and-a-half hours,” Szypulski said as she ran a forearm across her brow on Thursday afternoon.

She said the shop's Powerball sales more than quadrupled on Wednesday. Many of the players who won a lesser amount in the drawing came in on Thursday to cash their tickets and roll their winnings over for the big drawing.

She said others come for gas or other items, and then play the Powerball because they know the jackpot is so high.

“We get a lot of new players,” Szypulski said.

A customer in that category who bought a Powerball on Thursday was Aimee Maiure of Mars, who bought a $10 quick pick from Szypulski.

Maiure said she has played the Powerball fewer than 10 times, and only when the jackpot is an exorbitant amount.

“I would probably put a down payment on a house and pay off the credit cards,” Maiure said if she won, “and the kids are going to go to college someday.”

Heather Maruscak of Cranberry Township also stopped at the Planet Mart to get two Powerball tickets.

She said she would end the daily nagging of her 4-year-old son if she hit the big money.

“We would go to Disney World,” Maruscak said. “And I'm driving a 2000 Explorer now that's not going to last that long.”

In Zelienople, Ric Casella, Valero store manager and a borough resident, has seen the excited faces of customers walking in to buy a lottery ticket and a chance at millions.

Hundreds are buying each day.

“People who never gambled come in and do an impulse buy for $2,” Casella said. “It's also a way for them to keep up with the Jones.”

Customers have definitely taken notice of the jackpot.

Marla Bennett, 65, of Zelienople has been playing the lottery for five years.

She said she usually plays the three and four-digit number lotteries and has won a $2,000 prize before.

Another Zelienople resident, Chuck Krievle, 49, has been playing for 25 years. He said he has won a $2,500 prize “a couple of times.”

He said one of the first things he would to do if he wins the jackpot is hire an immigration lawyer to help move his fiance, Jean Camilon, from the Philippines to the United States. He said he spent two weeks there during the Christmas season.

“It makes you realize how blessed we are to live in America,” he said.

He also said if he wins the grand prize, he will donate to charity and churches.

“It's too big for me,” Krievle said about the jackpot. “I only play when it's big.

Eagle staff writers Paula Grubbs and Amerigo Allegretto contributed to this report.W