A lucky person in California struck it rich on the evening of Wednesday, October 11, 2023 by scoring a whopping $1.765 billion jackpot in the Powerball game. This victory put an end to a long stretch of time during which nobody won the largest prize.
The magic numbers that brought this windfall were 22, 24, 40, 52, 64, and the special Powerball number 10. The winning ticket came from a place called Midway Market & Liquor in Frazier Park, as confirmed by the California Lottery.
Resident of Frazier Park won the game
Frazier Park is a small mountain town with around 2,600 people living there. It’s about 75 miles north of the large city of Los Angeles.
Many folks tried to reach Midway Market & Liquor on the phone late Wednesday night and early Thursday morning, but there was no answer. The store’s night worker, known as Duke, mentioned that the phone was ringing constantly with people congratulating them.
He seemed quite pleased but jokingly added, “Somebody owes me a truck.” He further added that “a lot of customers come in, you know they come in every day to get their tickets, religiously. And a lot of them…said: ‘Oh, if I win I’m gonna get you a new truck.’ So where’s my truck? I’ll be waiting.” He also believed that the lucky winner would be a local resident.
No big wins in the last 35 attempts
Prior to this big win, there were 35 straight attempts without a jackpot winner, going all the way back to July 19 when a California player matched all six numbers and took home $1.08 billion.
This jackpot is now the second-largest lottery prize globally after rolling over for 36 draws. It falls just short of the record of 41 draws set in 2021 and 2022. The final ticket sales boosted the jackpot past its initial estimate of $1.73 billion for Wednesday night’s drawing.
The largest top prize ever awarded was the $2.04 billion Powerball jackpot won by a California player in November of last year.
People’s participation in the Powerball
Powerball is known for its tough odds with only a 1 in 292.2 million chance of winning. These long odds are set up to create huge jackpots that keep growing when no one claims the prize. Lately, there haven’t been many winners, but that didn’t deter people from trying their luck on Wednesday, hoping for a shot at sudden riches.
Robert Salvato Jr., a 60-year-old electrician, made a purchase of 40 Powerball tickets at a hardware store located in Billerica, Massachusetts.
“I would take care of family and give my cat that extra leg that she needs and make her a good kitty,” said Salvato, who recently got married last Saturday.
“I could give her a ring on every finger, I guess,” Salvato humorously remarked about his new wife.
A California ticket won the $1.765 billion Powerball, the second-largest jackpot in U.S. history, after 35 winless drawings.
The Multi-State Lottery Association noted Powerball "has become ubiquitous with life-changing jackpots," a trend propelled by factors like legal… pic.twitter.com/d2IjjZ6aij
— dailyscroll.co (@dailyscroll_co) October 12, 2023
Nevada is one of five states that don’t have Powerball, so friends Tamara Carter and Denise Davis drove from Las Vegas to California to buy their tickets. However, they faced a rather long line at their first stop, so they decided to find another store.
“The line was about three hours long,” Carter estimated. “I was waiting for maybe a half hour, and it didn’t move.”
Kevin Button, who was shopping at the same hardware store as Salvato, seemed to be aware of the slim chances of winning as he purchased a ticket.
“I only buy them usually when the jackpot’s high,” Button explained. “Seems to have been pretty high quite often lately. So I’ve tried quite a few times and haven’t even won a free ticket. But maybe tonight’s the night.”
Details about the Powerball game
In most states, getting a Powerball ticket costs two dollars, and players can either choose their own numbers or have a computer do it for them. The whopping $1.765 billion jackpot is specifically for a single winner who decides to receive their prize through an annuity, which means it’s paid out over 30 years.
However, most winners usually go for the cash option, which, for Wednesday night’s drawing, was estimated to be around $774.1 million. Keep in mind the winnings are subject to federal taxes, and many states also tax lottery prizes. Powerball is a game that people play in 45 states, as well as in Washington, D.C., Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
See all the latest news from Greece and the world at Greekreporter.com. Contact our newsroom to report an update or send your story, photos and videos. Follow GR on Google News and subscribe here to our daily email!
