Global Courant
The ninth largest lottery jackpot is on the line when numbers are drawn for a $785 million Powerball prize
By means ofThe Associated Press
September 25, 2023, 8:53 am
FILE – A display panel advertises tickets for a Powerball drawing at a grocery store, Nov. 7, 2022, in Renfrew, Pennsylvania. The ninth largest lottery jackpot is on the line when numbers are drawn for a $785 million Powerball prize. The payout for the Monday, September 25, 2023 draw has become so big because it has been building for more than two months, since a player in California matched all six numbers on July 19. (AP Photo/Keith Srakocic, File)
The Associated Press
DES MOINES, Iowa — The ninth-largest lottery jackpot is on the line Monday night when the numbers are drawn for a $785 million Powerball prize.
The payout has become so big because it has been building for more than two months, since a player in California matched all six numbers on July 19 and won $1.08 billion. That’s 28 consecutive draws without a big winner.
That winless streak is thanks to the miserable odds of winning the Powerball jackpot, which are 1 in 292.2 million. It’s those long, long odds that result in such big top prizes, because they keep the jackpot rolling week after week.
The jackpot is the ninth largest in the world, behind top prizes in the Powerball and Mega Millions games which all exceeded $1 billion. The largest jackpot was a $2.04 billion Powerball prize won in California in November 2022.
Although the game highlights the $785 million prize, that is for a winner paid through an annuity over 30 years. Winners almost always choose the cash payout option, which would be $367 million for Monday night’s drawing.
The massive jackpot would also be subject to federal taxes, and some states also tax lottery winnings.
Powerball is played in 45 states, as well as Washington, DC, Puerto Rico and the US Virgin Islands.
