TAIPEI (CNA) — Players of Taiwan’s Power Lottery will be vying for a top prize expected to reach NT$1.65 billion (US$52 million) on Monday, which would be the biggest Power Lottery jackpot this year, according to Taiwan Lottery Co.

Nobody has won the Power Lottery’s top prize in 44 draws, the second longest drought in the game’s history, meaning that prize money has built up over that time and should yield a jackpot of about NT$1.65 billion for people with winning tickets to share, Taiwan Lottery said Monday.

If only one person wins the jackpot, it would be the fifth highest payout to a winning ticket holder in Taiwan’s Power Lottery history, the company said.

Because there were also no winners of the second prize in the most recent Power Lottery drawing, the second prize for Monday’s drawing will reach an estimated NT$33 million.

A Power Lottery ticket consists of a total of seven numbers — a first group of six numbers chosen from between 1 and 38 and seventh add-on number ranging from 1 to 8. To win the top prize, all seven numbers must match the numbers drawn.

Taiwan Lottery suggested that players who want to improve their odds of winning the jackpot buy eight tickets with the same first six numbers and different seventh numbers (from 1 to 8).

That will increase the probability of taking the grand prize from one in 22 million to one in 2.76 million, the company said.

That strategy would also enable the holder of the tickets to have seven second prize tickets because the second prize is awarded to tickets matching the first six numbers drawn, the company said.

According to Taiwan Lottery statistics, 11 people won second prizes in July, averaging payouts of NT$7 million.

By Wu Chia-jung and intern Hsieh Meng-jun