Illinois Wins $1 Billion
The single ticket holder will take home a $433.1 million cash lump sum after ending a 44-drawing dry spell.
A single lottery ticket purchased in western Illinois has won a Powerball jackpot exceeding $1 billion, successfully matching all six winning numbers drawn on Wednesday night to secure the massive prize.
The windfall represents the 15th time a jackpot in U.S. lottery history has crossed the ten-figure threshold, ranking as the eighth-largest prize in the game's history. The winning ticket holder now faces a choice between the full prize paid over a 30-year annuity or a one-time cash lump sum estimated at $433.1 million before applicable taxes.
Long rollover streak ends
Wednesday's breakthrough drawing was the 44th drawing held since the jackpot was last hit on May 2, when two players in Florida and Texas split a $20 million payout. The odds of matching all six numbers on a single ticket stand at approximately 1 in 292.2 million (1 in 292,201,338).
Ticket sales had surged sharply ahead of the drawing. Ahead of Wednesday's top prize, the jackpot had stood at $905 million for Monday's drawing, where the winning numbers drawn were 6, 37, 54, 55, and 64, with the red Powerball number 10.
Expanding reach
Powerball Product Group Chair and Kansas Lottery Executive Director Stephen Durrell noted that ticket purchases for Monday's drawing rose over 86% compared to the prior Monday. The game, available across 45 states, Washington, D.C., and the U.S. Virgin Islands, also expanded sales to the United Kingdom in July. U.K. entries count exclusively toward the top jackpot and must take the mandatory 30-year annuity structure.
While this latest win marks the largest payout of the year, the all-time record remains the $2.04 billion Powerball grand prize won by a single ticket holder in California in November 2022.
