US Powerball jackpot rises to $1.5 billion

The US Powerball lottery jackpot has reached $1.5 billion, making it one of the biggest jackpots in the world, officials say. No one won in Wednesday’s lottery.

According to Powerball’s official website, the estimated jackpot for the next draw on Saturday night was at least $1.5 billion. The cash value is $745.9 million.

The lottery fever had already started after Wednesday’s draw hit a $1.2 billion jackpot, but no one managed to win big. The winning numbers were 02-11-22-35-60 and Powerball 23 for him.

Some people came close to hitting the jackpot. Nineteen tickets sold in 14 US states matched 5 out of 6 numbers, making $1 million in revenue. Three of them paid $1 extra for the power play, and the winnings doubled his to hers $2 million.

The Powerball jackpot was last hit on August 3rd, when someone from Pennsylvania won $206.9 million. Since then, there have been 39 consecutive Powerball draws in which no one won the grand prize.

Powerball tickets are sold in all 45 US states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico and the US Virgin Islands. The odds of winning the jackpot are 1 in 292 million.

The jackpot is paid out in 30 installments over 29 years, but the winner can choose a small prize (cash value) that pays out immediately. Both prizes are subject to federal and local taxes.

Saturday’s jackpot of $1.5 billion is the third largest prize in the world. The world’s largest jackpot was his $1.586 billion Powerball his jackpot held in January 2016, with prize money split between his three winners in California, Florida and Tennessee .