DES MOINES, Iowa — A Powerball player in Oregon won a jackpot worth more than $1.3 billion on Sunday, ending a winless streak that had stretched more than three months.
The single ticket matched all six numbers drawn to win the jackpot worth $1.326 billion, Powerball said in a statement.
The jackpot has a cash value of $621 million if the winner chooses to take a lump sum rather than an annuity paid over 30 years, with an immediate payout followed by 29 annual installments. The prize is subject to federal taxes, while many states also tax lottery winnings.
The winning numbers drawn early Sunday morning were: 22, 27, 44, 52, 69 and the red Powerball 9.
Until the latest drawing, no one had won Powerball’s top prize since New Year’s Day, amounting to 41 consecutive drawings without a jackpot winner, tying a streak set twice before in 2022 and 2021.
The $1.326 billion prize ranks as the eighth largest in U.S. lottery history. As the prizes grow, the drawings attract more ticket sales and the jackpots subsequently become harder to hit. The game’s long odds for the weekend drawing were 1 in 292.2 million.
Saturday night’s scheduled drawing was held up and took place in the Florida Lottery studio just before 2:30 a.m. Sunday to enable one of the organizers to complete required procedures before the scheduled time of 10:59 p.m., Powerball said in a statement.
“Powerball game rules require that every single ticket sold nationwide be checked and verified against two different computer systems before the winning numbers are drawn,” the statement said. “This is done to ensure that every ticket sold for the Powerball drawing has been accounted for and has an equal chance to win. Tonight, we have one jurisdiction that needs extra time to complete that pre-draw process.”
Powerball is played in 45 states plus Washington, D.C., Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
How do I play Powerball?
Players can buy tickets for $2 per play. In Idaho and Montana, Powerball is bundled with Power Play for $3 per play.
Select five numbers between 1 and 69 for the white balls, then select one number between 1 and 26 for the red Powerball.
People can pick their own numbers — and some play the same numbers each time — but most players opt for the quick pick option, which lets a computer generate random numbers.
Drawings are held every Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday at 10:59 p.m. EST at the Florida Lottery draw studio in Tallahassee.
Players can win a prize by matching one of the 9 ways to win. The jackpot is won by matching all five white balls in any order and the red Powerball.
Who runs the lottery games?
Powerball, and Mega Millions, the other big lottery game, are run separately but both are overseen by state lotteries. Powerball operates in 45 states plus Washington, D.C., Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Mega Millions is played in 45 states as well as Washington, D.C., and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
The games don't operate in Alabama, Alaska, Hawaii, Nevada or Utah.
Both of the games raise money for the jurisdictions where they operate along with profits from other lottery games, such as scratch tickets. Some states shift the money into their general funds while others use it for specific purposes, such as funding college scholarships or state parks.
What are the odds?
The odds of winning the Powerball jackpot are 1 in 292.2 million, and it's those low odds that enable the game to trundle along without a winner for months. If the odds were better, people would win jackpots more frequently, so the top prizes wouldn't grow so large — and entice so many people to play.
That said, lottery officials note there have been millions of winning tickets during that span, with prizes ranging from $2 to $1 million. The overall odds of winning a prize are 1 in 24.87.
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A Powerball advertisement displays $999 million as tickets are sold Monday at the Las Palmitas Mini Market in in the Fashion District downtown Los Angeles.