Powerball jackpot climbs to $1.1B, fifth-largest in game’s history

Aug. 31 (UPI) — The Powerball prize has risen to a massive $1.1 billion jackpot after no tickets matched all six numbers in Saturday’s drawing, the Multi-State Lottery Association said Sunday.

Saturday night’s winning numbers were white balls 3, 18, 22, 27, 33, and red Powerball 17, with a Power Play multiplier of 3.

The next drawing is set for Monday, which falls on Labor Day. It will mark the fifth-largest prize in the history of the Powerball, the association noted in a news release. The largest jackpot won in the game’s history since it began in 1992 was $2.04 billion in November 2022.

While no one won the grand prize, more than 2.4 million tickets claimed smaller prizes. The majority of other winners were awarded $4 for correctly guessing the Powerball.

Nine tickets matched all five white balls to win $1 million each, and three of those were worth $2 million because the players added the $1 Power Play option. Power Play multiplies non-jackpot prizes by up to five times and guarantees $2 million for the second-tier prize.

The overall odds of winning a prize are 1 in 24.9. The odds of winning the jackpot are 1 in 292.2 million.

If a player wins the jackpot Monday, the winner can choose between the $1.1 billion annuity paid out over three decades or they can choose a lump sum payment of $498.4 million before taxes.

Powerball tickets cost $2 and are sold in 45 states as well as Washington, DC, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands.

Funds raised from lotteries like the Powerball often go towards state education departments for funding programs like the arts or to vocational programs and responsible gambling initiatives.

But the Powerball is not without its critics who have raised concerns about gambling addiction or criticized lotteries, including the Powerball, for disproportionately burden lower-income and minority communities while essentially functioning as a regressive form of taxation.