The Powerball jackpot rose to an estimated $925 million after no players won a major jackpot Wednesday night, continuing a period of futile lottery play that has lasted more than two months.
The winning numbers were: 1, 7, 46, 47, 63 and red Powerball 7.
The jackpot for the next drawing on Saturday night remains the ninth-largest lottery prize of all time in the world, behind previous prizes in the Powerball and Mega Millions games that all exceeded $1 billion.
The jackpot has become so big because there have now been 30 consecutive draws without a big winner, dating back to July 19. Powerball’s abysmal odds of 1 in 292.2 million are designed to generate large jackpots, with prizes increasing as they are rolled over repeatedly. if no one wins.
The largest jackpot was a $2.04 billion Powerball prize won by a player in California in November 2022.
In most states, a Powerball ticket costs $2 and players can select their own numbers or leave that task to a computer.
The $925 million jackpot is for one winner who chooses to be paid via an annuity, paid out over 30 years. Winners almost always choose the cash option, which would amount to an estimated $432.4 million for Saturday night’s drawing.
Those winnings would be subject to federal taxes, and many states also tax lottery winnings.
Powerball is played in 45 states, as well as Washington, DC, Puerto Rico and the US Virgin Islands.