Six missing numbers
The US Powerball lottery jackpot has reached a record $1.9bn after nobody won Saturday night’s $1.6bn drawing, according to lottery officials.
The Powerball requires players to correctly guess five numbers and the final Powerball number. Nobody was able to produce the correct sequence of 8, 45, 53, 56, 69 and a Powerball of 20 for Saturday’s drawing, adding even more money into the pot.
The new jackpot is the largest in the history of the world; the previous $1.6bn was also a record, but is now nothing more than a thing of the past.
Powerball lottery keeps growing
The next drawing will take place Monday night. Players will have to overcome humble odds of one in 292.2 million, which translates to 88% of the United States population or over 2.6x the populations of Texas, Florida, California, and New York combined. Then again, when have the odds ever been this profitable? The answer is, historically speaking, never.
There has not been a Powerball jackpot winner since a Pennsylvania resident claimed $206.9m on August 3. That was 40 drawings ago, which levels the record for most draws without a winner, according to the Multi-State Lottery Association.
The prize money has ballooned despite tickets only costing $2 a pop at gas stations, corner shops, and convenience stores in the 45 states that offer Powerball, along with Puerto Rico and the US Virgin Islands.
paid out annually or in one fell swoop
Lottery winners can choose whether they want their prize money to be paid out annually or in one fell swoop, but for a lower price than they would receive if they took the first option, as the time value of money is factored in.
If anyone wins Monday night’s Powerball draw, they will have the option to use the one-time cash out for $929.1m.
How payouts work
Winning the lottery is life-changing, no doubt about that. However, it is important to understand the full financial ramifications.
The IRS takes 24% of lottery jackpot winnings right off the bat. From there, the rest of the jackpot would be taxed in the top bracket which, for 2022, is 37% for any single filers claiming more than $539,900 and joint filers claiming at least $647,850.
Powerball drawings are held every Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday at 10:50pm ET. If nobody comes forward with a winning ticket after Monday’s drawing, the prize money will blossom to a figure in excess of $2bn, which would set another world record.
Players can try their luck at picking numbers or receive a randomly generated ticket, called a “Quik Pik.”
The current world record for the largest lottery win is nearly $1.6bn, which three Powerball players split in 2016.
