Powerball jackpot rises to record $1.6B
DES MOINES, Iowa — Strong sales boosted a Powerball jackpot to an estimated $1.6 billion on Friday, making it the largest lottery prize in history.
A drawing will be held Saturday night for the Powerball prize, which hasn’t been won in more than three months. That string of 39 consecutive drawings without a winner is a reflection of the tough odds of winning a jackpot, at 1 in 292.2 million.
The advertised jackpot is the prize for a winner who chooses an annuity, paid annually over 29 years. Almost all winners instead opt for the cash prize, which for Saturday night’s drawing would be an estimated $782.4 million.
The new jackpot tops the previous record prize of $1.586 billion won in 2016 by three Powerball players in California, Florida and Tennessee.
Nevada is one of five states that does not offer Mega Millions or Powerball, but the Primm Valley Lotto Store sits just over the border on the California side about 45 miles from Las Vegas off Interstate 15.
Powerball is also played in Washington, D.C., Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
10 LARGEST US LOTTERY JACKPOTS
1. $1.586 billion, Powerball, Jan. 13, 2016 (three tickets, from California, Florida, Tennessee)
2. $1.537 billion, Mega Millions, Oct. 23, 2018 (one ticket, from South Carolina)
3. $1.337 billion, Mega Millions, July 29, 2022 (one ticket, from Illinois)
4. $1.05 billion, Mega Millions, Jan. 22, 2021 (one ticket, from Michigan)
5. $768.4 million, Powerball, March 27, 2019 (one ticket, from Wisconsin)
6. $758.7 million, Powerball, Aug. 23, 2017 (one ticket, from Massachusetts)
7. $731.1 million, Powerball, Jan. 20, 2021 (one ticket, from Maryland)
8. $699.8 million, Powerball, Oct. 4, 2021 (one ticket, from California)
9. $687.8 million, Powerball, Oct. 27, 2018 (two tickets, from Iowa and New York)
10. $656 million, Mega Millions, March 30, 2012 (three tickets, from Kansas, Illinois and Maryland)
