The Powerball jackpot has reached an astonishing $1.2 billion after no winning ticket was sold during Monday’s drawing. This makes it the third largest jackpot in Powerball history. The lucky winner, if there is one, will have the option to claim a cash prize of $551.7 million before tax. This massive jackpot has rolled over for a record 32 times, with the last grand prize winner being from California in July, who won a jackpot worth $1.08 billion.
Although no one won the jackpot on Monday, there were still some big winners. Two tickets sold in New York and South Carolina won $2 million prizes, while tickets in Delaware and Michigan were able to claim $1 million prizes. This marks the first time in Powerball history that back-to-back jackpot cycles have generated billion-dollar grand prizes. Overall, the odds of winning any Powerball prize are 1 in 24.9, but the chances of winning the grand prize are extremely slim at 1 in 292.2 million.
The largest Powerball jackpot ever recorded was a whopping $2.04 billion, won in California in November 2022. This was followed by a $1.586 billion jackpot in January 2016, and now the estimated $1.2 billion prize up for grabs in October 2023. The anticipation for Wednesday’s drawing is at an all-time high as players hope to become instant billionaires.