WASHINGTON — Powerball's jackpot just got even larger after no one won the $625 million grand prize Monday. It's now one of the top 10 largest U.S. jackpots in history.
The grand prize for Wednesday's drawing was initially announced as an estimated $680 million, before game leaders raised it to $700 million on Tuesday — $335.7 million if the winner chooses the more popular cash option.
The winning numbers for Monday's drawing were 18-23-35-45-54, Powerball 16 and Power Play 4.
Players must match all five numbers and the Powerball to win the jackpot. While no one beat those 2 in 292.2 million odds Monday, a player in Texas is now a millionaire after getting all five numbers right.
The Powerball jackpot has been growing since early August, racking up 35 drawings without a big winner.
It's not the first time this year a major lottery game has grown to eye-popping levels. Americans were sent into a lottery craze this summer when a near-record $1.377 billion Mega Millions jackpot was up for grabs in July. Two people from Illinois came forward last month to claim that prize, but they chose to stay anonymous.
Powerball still holds the world record for largest jackpot with a whopping $1.586 billion prize won in 2016. That prize was shared by winners in Tennessee, Florida and California.
With Monday's surge and Tuesday's extra increase, Wednesday's jackpot is currently estimated to be the fifth largest in Powerball's history and the grand prize broke into the top 10 for any U.S. lottery game. Here's a look at the biggest U.S. jackpots ever, according to the Associated Press.
- $1.586 billion, Powerball, Jan. 13, 2016 (three tickets, from California, Florida, Tennessee)
- $1.537 billion, Mega Millions, Oct. 23, 2018 (one ticket, from South Carolina)
- $1.337 billion, Mega Millions, July 29, 2022 (one ticket, from Illinois)
- $1.05 billion, Mega Millions, Jan. 22, 2021 (one ticket, from Michigan)
- $768.4 million, Powerball, March 27, 2019 (one ticket, from Wisconsin)
- $758.7 million, Powerball, Aug. 23, 2017 (one ticket, from Massachusetts)
- $731.1 million, Powerball, Jan. 20, 2021 (one ticket, from Maryland)
- $700 million (estimated) Powerball, Oct. 26, 2022
- $699.8 million, Powerball, Oct. 4, 2021 (one ticket, from California)
- $687.8 million, Powerball, Oct. 27, 2018 (two tickets, from Iowa and New York)
Powerball jackpot winners have the option of receiving an annuity payment, paid over 29 years, or a lump sum payment. There have been five Powerball jackpot winners so far in 2022.