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The Powerball lottery has created a whole new category of cross-border shopper.

“We see Ontario plates on cars in our parking lot and on the street,” says Brian Mokhiber, the proprietor of the Wedge Discount Liquor Store on Pine Street in downtown Niagara Falls, N.Y.

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Just a few minutes’ drive from the border, his store is one of the first places visiting punters from Canada come for a chance at the top Powerball prize, currently sitting at US$1.5 billion. The next draw is Wednesday night at 10 EST.

“They all look the same, but we know there are some Canadian players,” Mokhiber says. “We’ve never had a frenzy to buy tickets like this before. It’s not just the people who play for a few bucks a week. Now we even get phone inquiries from Canada. So they come, because the tickets have to be bought in person.”

You can put a lot of money into the stock market and lose a lot or put a little into the Powerball and smile

The Powerball, like Canada’s 649, is an equal opportunity gamble. Canadians can play the U.S. lottery by showing up at a vendor and forking over US$2 for the usual run of prizes of US$4 to US$1 million. Adding another buck increases the potential payout for all prizes other than the big one. Lines snake around convenience store parking lots and gas stations selling chances at what is just about the longest of long shots.