This week’s Powerball jackpot is heading into record territory after no winner was drawn this past Monday. That rollover pushed the jackpot total to Top 10 historic levels, with at least $575 million up for grabs on Wednesday, January 5.
While the press release from Powerball puts the total jackpot now at $575 million, the main page for the lottery lists an estimated jackpot of $610 million.
Either scenario would put the prize at the seventh largest in history, about $20 million above the current seventh-place Powerball jackpot of $590.5 million.
The jackpot represents the amount that would be paid if the winner(s) decided to collect in an annuity paid over a 29-year period. Most players decide to collect their winnings in one lump sum payment. Should the winner(s) elect to go that route, the current jackpot has a cash value of $434.2 million.
The last time Powerball hit was October 4, 2021 in California, and it was a big one as well. A single ticket won the $699.8 million grand prize, which ranked as the fifth-largest Powerball in history.
Historic Jackpots
Powerball is no stranger to historic jackpots. It currently holds the Guinness World Record for the biggest lottery jackpot ever — a massive $1.586 billion jackpot shared by three people in 2016.
That was the only prize on the list that topped $1 billion, but the entire Top 10 list is full of prizes of half a billion or more.
Top 10 Powerball Jackpots
- $1.586 billion — January 13, 2016 — CA, FL, TN
- $768.4 million — March 27, 2019 — WI
- $758.7 million — August 23, 2017 — MA
- $731.1 million — January 20, 2021 — MD
- $699.8 million — October 4, 2021 — CA
- $687.8 million — October 27, 2018 — IA, NY
- $610 million (estimated) — January 5, 2022
- $590.5 million — May 18, 2013 — FL
- $587.5 million — November 28, 2012 — AZ, MO
- $564.1 million — February 11, 2015 — NC, PR, TX
The press release for the current draw puts the current jackpot at the ninth biggest ever, but it looks like it might even be bigger than that. After the non-profit Multi-State Lottery Association (MUSL), which runs Powerball, announced there was no winner from the most recent draw, it put the estimated jackpot at $575 million.
Back in October, PA Gaming Review reported on a record 40 rollovers of the jackpot, just before the fifth place $699.8 million prize was won. While that record has not yet been eclipsed, Monday’s drawing marked the 39th Powerball drawing in a row without a winner.
With the rollovers nearing record levels, it still remains to be seen how high the prize value could get. Piqued interest in the drawing should lead to more ticket sales, which, in turn, would add to the jackpot.
If there is no winner, it will roll over once more, tying the record of 40. Either way, Wednesday will be a potentially record-breaking day.
Powerball tickets are $2 a play and sold widely throughout the US. Lottery fans can get into the Powerball action in 45 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and the US Virgin Islands. More than half of the sales proceeds remain in the jurisdiction of sale.
