Santa delivered a record-breaking surprise on Christmas Eve. A single Powerball ticket sold in Arkansas won the staggering $1.817 billion jackpot, making it the second-largest lottery prize ever won in the United States.
The winning numbers for Wednesday night’s drawing were 4, 25, 31, 52, 59, with a Powerball of 19.
The jackpot carries a lump-sum cash option worth $834.9 million, before taxes. A late surge in ticket sales pushed the final prize even higher than earlier estimates.
Powerball says the jackpot has only been won once before on Christmas Eve, back in 2011, and four times on Christmas Day. The game itself dates back to 1992.
The last Powerball jackpot was hit on Sept. 6, when two winning tickets in Missouri and Texas split a $1.787 billion prize. That drawing ended a nearly four-month streak — 47 drawings — without a winner, the longest jackpot run in Powerball history.
This marks just the second time ever that Powerball has produced back-to-back jackpots exceeding $1 billion, according to game officials.
The $1.817 billion prize is second only to the $2.04 billion jackpot won in 2022 by a single ticket sold in Altadena, California — the largest lottery win of all time.
To claim the top prize, a ticket must match all five white balls plus the red Powerball. Winners can choose between a lump-sum payout or an annuity option, which includes one immediate payment followed by 29 annual payments that grow by 5% each year. Both options are listed before taxes.
Plenty of other players also walked away with big wins. Powerball reported that eight tickets matched all five white balls to win $1 million each (the prize amount varies in California). Another 114 tickets won $50,000, and 31 tickets took home $100,000.
The odds of winning the Powerball jackpot are about 1 in 292.2 million, officials say. While jackpots have grown dramatically over the past decade, the chances of winning have become even slimmer.
Powerball tickets cost $2 and are sold in 45 states, Washington, D.C., Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Drawings are held every Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday at 11 p.m. ET.
