If you happen to be walking around with a Powerball ticket that reads:
22, 24, 40, 52, 64 and the Powerball 10
You are on your way to becoming a very, very rich person.
According to Powerball, a single lottery ticket sold somewhere in California matched all six numbers drawn Wednesday night to win a jackpot worth $1.765 billion, or a lump sum of $756.6 million before taxes.
“Congratulations to the newest Powerball billionaire and the millions of Powerball players who won other cash prizes in last night’s drawing,” said Drew Svitko, Powerball Product Group Chair and Pennsylvania Lottery Executive Director.
Historic prize
The prize is the second-largest Powerball jackpot and U.S. lottery jackpot ever. The world record lottery jackpot was won by Edwin Castro on Nov. 7, 2022, also in California. Castro, who raked in a cool $2 billion, has gone on to buy numerous fancy homes across Los Angeles.
Before Wednesday’s drawing, there were 35 consecutive draws without someone claiming a major prize, a streak that started on July 19 when a player in California won $1.08 billion.
What is it about California and jackpots?
The lucky ticket holder of the current prize certainly defied the odds, which Powerball says is 1 in 292.2 million.
About Powerball
Powerball tickets are $2 per play. Tickets are sold in 45 states, DC, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands. According to Powerball, more than half of all proceeds from the sale of a Powerball ticket remain in the jurisdiction where the ticket was sold.
Tonight’s winner isn’t the only one celebrating. As part of California Powerball rules, the retailer who sells the winning ticket receives O.5% of the jackpot.