Powerball Jackpot Surge Reaches $1 Billion for Upcoming Drawing

Economy

Powerball Jackpot Surge Reaches $1 Billion for Upcoming Drawing

15 hours ago

News sources:

CBSNEWS

ABCNEWS

Powerball Jackpot Surge Reaches $1 Billion for Upcoming Drawing

Credited from: AA

Powerball jackpot rises to $1 billion for Saturday's drawing, the seventh-largest in history.
Jackpot offers a lump-sum payment option of $457.7 million before taxes.
There have been 41 consecutive drawings without a win, tying the game's longest drought.

The Powerball lottery jackpot has surged to $1 billion for Saturday's drawing, making it the seventh-largest prize in the game’s history. This marks the second time this year that the jackpot has reached the $1 billion threshold, as lottery officials noted that no ticket matched all six numbers in previous drawings, resulting in a drawdown of the prize over 41 consecutive times without a winner, tying the record for the game's longest winless streak, according to aa and cbsnews.

The estimated cash value of the jackpot is $457.7 million. Players have the option to receive this amount upfront or choose an annuitized prize worth approximately $1 billion. This follows a previous instance where a $1.787 billion jackpot was split between winning tickets in Missouri and Texas in September, according to abcnews and cbsnews.

Powerball tickets cost $2 and are available across 45 states, Washington D.C., Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands. However, the odds of winning the jackpot remain exceptionally low, currently set at about 1 in 292.2 million after changes to the game structure in 2015, according to abcnews and aa.