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 winning numbers drawn Wednesday night for a $1.2 billion jackpot were: 2, 11, 22, 35, 60 and the red Powerball 23.
The Powerball jackpot climbed to $1.6 billion, setting a new lottery prize record ahead of Saturday’s drawing.
The prize keeps growing after nobody won the massive jackpot in Wednesday night’s drawing.
While no one won the top prize, there were a number of smaller winners. Tickets that won a $2 million prize were sold in Arkansas, Montana and New Jersey. Tickets worth $1 million were sold in Arizona, California, Colorado, Georgia, Maryland, Minnesota, North Carolina, New Jersey, New York, Oregon, Texas and Virginia.
The biggest all-time lottery jackpot was a $1.5863 billion Powerball prize in 2016, with the top prize shared by three winners in California, Florida and Tennessee.
Powerball is played in 45 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Odds of winning the Powerball jackpot is 1 in 292 million and tickets are $2 apiece.
10 biggest Mega Millions, Powerball jackpots won in US lottery history
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)
Powerball tickets are $2 per play. Tickets are sold in 45 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands.