An estimated $700 million is up for grabs after no one matched Powerball’s six numbers for the giant prize Monday on Christmas Day.
The $700 million prize is for a sole winner who is paid through an annuity, with annual checks over 29 years. Most jackpot winners opt for cash, which would be an estimated $352.3 million, before taxes.
The winning numbers are 4, 11, 38, 51, 68 and a red Powerball of 5. The Power Play is 3 x.
This is the fourth Powerball jackpot to exceed half a billion dollars this calendar year. The Powerball jackpot was previously won on Oct. 11 when a ticket in California won a $1.765 billion grand prize. That winner has yet to come forward.
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Since then, there have been 33 consecutive drawings without a jackpot winner. The winless streak is due to the abysmal odds of winning: one in 292.2 million.
The jackpot rose to $685 million on Monday after there were no winners for the Christmas Day drawing — and that number rose again Wednesday due to "strong ticket sales," according to lottery officials. Historically, there have been only three Powerball jackpots won on Christmas: The last time was ten years ago, on Dec. 25, 2013, when a ticket in Missouri won the $71.5 million jackpot.
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The largest lottery jackpot in U.S. history stands at $2.04 billion and was won by a single Powerball ticket in California on Nov. 7, 2022. The winner, Edwin Castro, came forward earlier this year after months of speculation.
Powerball is played in 45 states, as well as Washington, D.C., Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Drawings are held every Monday, Wednesday and Friday.
