After more than three months without a winner, a Southern Californian who purchased a Powerball ticket has claimed a record US$2. 04 billion (NZ$3. 42 billion) Powerball jackpot.
White balls 10, 33, 41, 47, and 56 were drawn as the winning numbers on Tuesday morning at the Florida Lottery draw studio in Tallahassee. The red Powerball number was 10.
The jackpot ticket was sold at Joe’s Service Center in Altadena, an unincorporated community in the foothills northeast of Los Angeles.
Joe’s Service Center didn’t immediately respond to a voicemail left for them.
The jackpot, which surpassed the previous record prize of US$1.586 billion (NZ$2. 66 billion) won by three Powerball ticket holders in 2016, was by far the largest lottery prize ever won. Only four previous jackpots have topped US$1 billion, but none of those are close to the current prize, which started at US$20 million back on August 6 and over three winless months has grown massive. Since August 3, no one has won the jackpot.
The jackpot’s initial estimate was one US dollar. On Monday, the prize was $9 billion, but it was raised to $2 billion. On Tuesday morning following revised calculations, $4 billion.
The Multi-State Lottery Association reported that a participating lottery experienced difficulties processing sales, which caused the drawing that was supposed to take place Monday night to be postponed until Tuesday.
One participating lottery’s inability to process its sales data was held responsible for the difficulties in conducting a drawing on Monday night.
The drawing could start after the lottery, which wasn’t named, finished its pre-draw procedures.
The cooperation of all participating lotteries allowed us to protect the draw’s integrity during this historic drawing, according to Drew Svitko, executive director of the Pennsylvania Lottery and chairman of the Powerball Product Group.
The delay, according to Terry Rich, a former director of the Iowa Lottery who also served on the Powerball board, was probably caused by a two-step ticket sales verification process that uses an outside vendor to make sure everything is in order before the game’s numbers are drawn.
“Each state must verify through a dual process that all of the sales and dollars match before the Multi-State Lottery Association can do the draw,” said Rich, who headed the Iowa Lottery for 10 years and was president of the North American Lottery Association.
This state-by-state approach separates the entire process and has proven to be very successful.
State lotteries experience similar issues several times a year, according to Rich, but the delays rarely draw much attention because the potential jackpots are much smaller than they were this week.
The Powerball’s YouTube channel has the drawing’s winning numbers and recorded video.
The winner of the $2.04 billion jackpot must select an annuity that will be paid out over a 29-year period. Most winners choose cash instead, which was worth US$997,6 million (NZ$1. 67 billion).
There is a 1 in 292. 2 million chance of winning the jackpot.
The game is played in 45 states, as well as Washington, DC, Puerto Rico and the US Virgin Islands..
A California Powerball ticket sells for a record-breaking NZ$3.42 billion.
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