Powerball Jackpot Hits Staggering $1.5 Billion

Powerball players across the USA had their high hopes of hitting a $949.8 million jackpot dashed in a drawing Saturday, but a number of them did win prizes with face values of $1 million or more.

The one-time cash payment of almost $900 million would also be reduced by a federal tax as well as state taxes. Since no one has won, the prize keeps growing, along with ticket sales in the 44 participating states, as well as the District of Columbia, the U.S. Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico.

No one matched all six Powerball numbers Saturday night.

The odds of winning are 1 in 292 million, and the chances of winning the jackpot got slimmer when Powerball implemented a rule change in October 2015.

“One thing I preach to people all the time is don’t buy quick picks”.

Wednesday’s Classic Lotto jackpot has increased to $1.5 million after no one picked Monday’s winning numbers of 15, 19, 23, 26, 30 and 37.

Des Moines, Iowa — The worlds largest lottery jackpot has grown to $1.5 billion because of continuing strong Powerball ticket sales. Two of the tickets were eligible for second-prize payouts of $1 million each, AZCentral reported.

Powerball lottery tickets in front of the splash screen for the powerball.com website.

Plus, most states would take a chunk – something winners in Florida, South Dakota, Texas, Washington and Wyoming wouldn’t have to worry about because those states have no income tax.

This might be tough to swallow, but you’re probably not going to win Wednesday night’s Powerball. It was bought at the Hy-Vee store at 3301 Gordon Drive.

I read a couple of other stories saying Powerball is a racket, that they really won’t pay out $1.5 billion if you win.

Take a drive. The only way to legally purchase a Powerball ticket is from a licenced retailer.