Canadians had a slim shot at a huge Lotto 6/49 jackpot this evening -- $39 million.

And it appears no winning tickets were sold, as the jackpot has been raised to an estimated $48 million on Saturday, according to the Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corp. website.

If true, that would make it the second-biggest lottery jackpot prize in 6/49 history.

The winning numbers, as posted on the OLG website Wednesday night, were 11, 17, 34, 37, 41 and 49 -- with a bonus number of 5. However, double-check those numbers against an official list.

OLG had said Wednesday's prize would have been the seventh largest in Canadian lottery history.

When no tickets win, the prize rolls over into the next draw.

The biggest payout ever occurred in October 2005. A group of 17 oil and gas workers from central Alberta split a pot of $54.3 million. In late January, a $44.3-million prize split three ways.

Playing the lottery costs two dollars per selection. OLG said retailers can't validate a ticket unless it's been signed. The odds against winning the jackpot are about 14 million to one.

In a huge jackpot such as Wednesday's, drawing all six numbers earns the player 40 per cent of the pools fund (normally 80.5 per cent), which is the money left over after paying for the $5 and $10 winners.

Here are the other payouts for $30 million-plus jackpots (the normal percentage for sub-$30-million jackpots in brackets) and the odds of winning:

  • 5/6 plus bonus - 16 per cent (5.75 per cent); approx. one in 2.3 million
  • 5/6 - 15 per cent (4.75 per cent); one in approx. 55,500
  • 4/6 - 29 per cent (9 per cent); one in 1,033
  • 3/6 - $10; one in 57
  • 2/6 plus bonus - $5; one in 81
  • Any prize - one in 32

"Any amount not won in the 6/6 or 5/6 + Bonus prize categories is added to the 6/6 Jackpot prize for the next draw," the OLG said on its website.

Cynics might say you're spending two dollars to buy a chance to live vicariously for a few days or hours, as the chance of winning the big prize are so miniscule.

Some people go for the so-called Quick Pick, where the machine spits out your numbers, while others have arcane formulas and combinations based on relatives' birthdates.

University of Toronto statistics professor Jeffrey Rosenthal has said the technique doesn't matter.

To put the odds of winning in context, "if you pick a Canadian at random, then it's about four times more likely that Canadian will be the prime minister of Canada than it is that you will win the jackpot with one ticket," he told CTV Toronto in January.

OLG said Ontarians have won more than $8.6 billion in prizes since June 1982, including 1,145 jackpot wins.

With files from The Canadian Press