Powerball Swells to $1.4 Billion — The Third-Largest Pot

The Powerball jackpot is now at an estimated $1.4 billion — the third-largest amount in the game's history — after there were no grand prize winners in the Wednesday, October 4, drawing.

The next drawing is Saturday, October 7, which will have a lump-sum cash payment option of about $643.7 million after taxes.

The numbers drawn on Wednesday were 9, 35, 54, 63, and 64. The red Powerball was 1.

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Three tickets – one in Kentucky, one in Pennsylvania and one in Texas – matched all five white balls with the added Match 5 and Power Play of 2x, and won $2 million in prizes. Seven additional tickets — two in California, one in Colorado, one in New York, one in Pennsylvania and two in Texas — matched all five white balls for the Match 5 prize of $1 million each.

Wednesday marked the 33rd consecutive drawing without a grand prize winner. The jackpot was previously won on July 19 when a grand prize winner in California took home $1.08 billion.

According to Powerball, the odds of winning the Jackpot stands at one in 292.2 million.

How Powerball works

The drawings are held on Mondays, Wednesdays and Saturdays. To win the jackpot, players must match all six numbers. The five white balls are numbered between one and 69 and the one red Powerball is numbered between one and 26. 

Powerball tickets are sold for $2 each, and the game is offered in 45 states, Washington D.C., Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. For an additional $1 per play, the Power Play feature can multiply non-jackpot prizes by 2, 3, 4, 5 or 10 times.

However, the 10x multiplier is only in play when the advertised jackpot annuity is $150 million or less, and the Match 5 prize with Power Play is always $2 million. 

A portion of each ticket sold during the jackpot run is slated for public programs and services in communities, Powerball said. Powerball holds the current world record for the largest national lottery jackpot at $2.04 billion, it added.

Jackpot winners can choose one of two options when receiving their prize. They can take the payout in a lump sum, the most common choice, or they can opt for an annuity. The annuity is paid in 30 graduated payments over 29 years.

Mega Millions on the way up

While Powerball’s $1.4 billion grand prize is making headlines now, you might also want to take a look at the Mega Millions jackpot, which has reached $350 million. The next Mega Millions drawing is scheduled for Friday, October 6, at 11pm ET.

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