Record $1.9 billion prize sparks rush in U.S. for lottery tickets

“My first advice would be to take a picture of you with the ticket, put it in a safe, and don’t tell anybody about it for a while”, said Thomas Meyer, chief executive of Meyer Capital Group. “A billion dollars. Wow”, he remarked to SFGate, the sister website of the San Francisco Chronicle. Not as long as the last time $1 billion was offered, back when Warren Buffett offered the B-sum a few years ago for anyone who predicted a flawless NCAA men’s basketball tournament bracket.

All estimated team values are according to Forbes. In New York, Powerball sales plunged 44 percent, by $217 million. A ticket holder would only get $1.4 billion if he took the payout in the form of an annual payment.

“You can do more exotic stuff like asset protection trusts and charitable remainder trusts, but when my one ticket wins, I’ll do the simple equity-muni bond mix and take my million a month at a tax rate of about 11.9%”.

Terry Barley, director of Cumberland County’s Department of Aging and Community Services, knows well what a difference a supersized Powerball jackpots can mean for the lottery and its support of senior programs. Players pick five numbers between one and 69, as well as one Powerball number from digits one to 26 – so six numbers total.

With the giant jackpot on his mind, retiree William Burke drove 45 minutes Monday from his home in Henderson, Nevada, to buy tickets in Nipton, California. But 39.6 per cent of the lump sum would go to federal income taxes. The last two amounts soar past the previous USA record of $656 million in 2012. They get $50,000 for four white balls and the Powerball, or if you hit the five white balls but not the red Powerball, you get a $1 million “consolation” prize.

The highest a Powerball jackpot has been was $590.5 million in May 2013, which was claimed by Gloria Mackenzie of Zephyrhills, Fla.

$7,700/one second: The pace at which tickets were being sold on Saturday afternoon before the $949.8 million drawing.

They referred that question to the Multi-State Lottery Association, which administers Powerball.

After no one won on Saturday, the jackpot has grown to a record $1.4 billion. But, the grand prizes were capped at about $4.36 million per winning ticket. Or the victor could opt for a lump-sum payment of $930 million.