Justin Boggs
Can I stay anonymous if I win the record Mega Millions jackpot?
Eighteen states grant anonymity to lottery winners, but many other states provide options for those seeking to remain out of the spotlight.
LEARN MOREPosted: 8:30 a.m. EDT Oct 7, 2023
Powerball is set to have its third-largest jackpot ever, and fifth-largest among all U.S. lotteries, when its jackpot reaches an estimated $1.4 billion Saturday.
The numbers for Wednesday's drawing were 9, 35, 54, 63, 64 and a Powerball of 1.
The odds of winning the jackpot are about 1 in 292 million. There have been four winning Powerball tickets sold in 2023.
The Powerball jackpot has grown since a winning ticket was sold on July 19, marking 33 consecutive drawings without a winner.
Powerball also has prizes ranging from $4 to $2 million, and the odds of winning a smaller prize are about 1 in 25. There were nearly 3.2 million winning tickets for smaller prizes on Wednesday. Among the smaller prizes, seven tickets on Wednesday hit all five white balls, which pays out at least $1 million.
Powerball is played in 45 states and Washington, D.C. Saturday's jackpot is the largest Powerball has had this year. The previous largest winning ticket was sold in California on July 19. That jackpot was worth $1.08 billion.
Since Powerball lengthened the odds of hitting all six numbers in 2015, the multi-state lottery generally has six to nine winners a year. All 10 of its largest jackpots have also come since 2015. The largest Powerball jackpot in history was $2.04 billion, won on Nov. 7, 2022.
The $1.4 billion jackpot figure is based on the winner choosing the annuity option. If the winner takes the lump sum, that person would win $643.7 million. Both figures are before taxes.
