Saturday Powerball jackpot rewrites the record books with the largest lottery prize the world has ever seen

Jackpot of unthinkable size will almost certainly be even bigger by draw time

By Todd Northrop

It's been four years since the last lottery jackpot record was broken, but Wednesday night it finally happened again.

The old record of $656 million, set by the multi-state Mega Millions game in March 2012, was shattered Wednesday when nobody won Powerball's $524.1 million jackpot, and the initial jackpot estimate for Saturday was set to $675 million.

It's the largest lottery jackpot prize ever to be awarded in history.

The initial estimate for the lump-sum cash option for Saturday's Powerball drawing is $413.1 million.  So the Mega Millions game still holds the world record cash value record of $471 million. However, seeing as the initial cash value in the Wednesday drawing was $61.2 million less than it's final tally at draw time, it is entirely possible — perhaps probable — that the cash value will also set the world record by the time the numbers are announced Saturday night.

The new world record Powerball jackpot is the result of 18 consecutive drawings without a top prize winner. The jackpot started as a $40 million prize on Nov. 7, 2015.

Players looking to calculate what they would receive after the initial federal and state tax withholdings can find it all pre-calculated for each Powerball jurisdiction on the  Jackpot Analysis page at  USA Mega, a web site devoted to the Powerball and Mega Millions multi-state lottery games.

Doubtless, there will be a rush of media pundits clamoring to cite the tiny chance each player has of winning.  There will probably be a thousand different analogies designed to explain how small the chances are.  Maybe someone will compare it to the odds of getting stuck at the top of a roller coaster while at the same time being bit on the leg by an angry Pomeranian.

But no matter how hard they try to convince people to resist the urge to play, the pundits are up against a simple fact: there is enough money at stake to make even the most pessimistic person line up at the lottery ticket counter this week.

Are there some people who won't feel the need to play Powerball Saturday?

Maybe there are 15 such people, because although there were no jackpot winners on Wednesday night, 15 lucky players matched the first 5 numbers for a $1,000,000 prize: 1 from California, 1 from Connecticut, 2 from Florida, 1 from Georgia, 2 from Louisiana, 1 from Massachusetts, 1 from Nebraska, 1 from New Mexico, 1 from New York, 1 from Oregon, 1 from Tennessee, 1 from Texas, and 1 from Washington.

Of all the second-prize winners, only the ticket sold in New Mexico was purchased with the Power Play option for an extra $1. Because they purchased the Power Play, that particular ticket is now worth $2 million.

Power Play is not available in California, because the fixed nature of the prize increase offered in Power Play is not compatible with California's pari-mutuel payouts. By law, California awards all prizes on a pari-mutuel basis, meaning the prizes will change each drawing based on the number of tickets sold and the number of tickets that won at each prize level.

171 tickets matched four white numbers plus the Powerball and won $50,000. Of those tickets, 24 were purchased with the Power Play option, increasing the prize to $150,000.

The winning numbers drawn Wednesday, Jan. 6, 2015, were 2, 11, 47, 62, and 63, with Powerball number 17. The Power Play number was 3.

Following the Wednesday drawing, the Powerball annuity jackpot estimate was raised $150.9 million from its previous amount of $524.1 million. The cash value was raised by $92.4 million from its previous amount of $320.7 million.

When a Powerball ticket is purchased with the Power Play option for an extra $1 per ticket, any non-jackpot prize is multiplied by the Power Play number drawn that evening, although the second prize with Power Play is always doubled to $2 million.

Lottery players seeking to check the winning numbers Wednesday night are urged to use USA Mega (www.usamega.com). State lottery Web sites are normally brought to a standstill during busy periods, while USA Mega normally remains responsive.

Powerball drawing results will be posted immediately after the 10:59 pm Eastern Time drawing at USA Mega (8:59 pm Pacific Time). The number of winners and new jackpot will be announced after all participating Powerball states have reported their data, which normally occurs within a couple of hours after the drawing.

Players are advised not to wait until the last minute to buy their lottery tickets.  Sales will remain open until around 10:45 pm Eastern Time on Wednesday, although players should check with a lottery retailer in their state for the exact sales cutoff time.

The odds of winning the jackpot are approximately 1 in 292 million. The odds of winning any of the Powerball prizes are approximately 1 in 25.

Powerball features nine different prize levels, ranging from $4 all the way up to the jackpot. Players can win even if they just match one number — the Powerball number.

Powerball is now played in 44 states, plus the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands.  Drawings are Wednesdays and Saturdays at 10:59 p.m. Eastern Time.  Tickets cost $2 each.

Powerball lottery results are published within minutes of the drawing at USA Mega (www.usamega.com).  The USA Mega Web site provides lottery players in-depth information about the United States's two biggest multi-state lottery games, Mega Millions and Powerball.

Top 25 United States lottery jackpots of all time

Saturday's Powerball jackpot currently stands as the largest lottery jackpot of all time in the United States — and in the world.  The amount of the jackpot may rise even further before the drawing Saturday night, as lotteries are typically conservative in their initial estimates, and brisk sales will certainly push the jackpot estimate higher by draw time.

If nobody wins Saturday... well, let's not even go there.

1. Powerball: $675 million, Jan. 9, 2016 - Preliminary estimate, not won yet
2. Mega Millions: $656 million, Mar. 30, 2012 - Illinois, Kansas, Maryland
3. Mega Millions: $648 million, Dec. 17, 2013 - California, Georgia
4. Powerball: $590.5 million, May 18, 2013 - Florida
5. Powerball: $587.5 million, Nov. 28, 2012 - Arizona, Missouri
6. Powerball: $564.1 million, Feb. 11, 2015 - North Carolina, Puerto Rico, Texas
7. Powerball: $448.4 million, Aug. 7, 2013 - Minnesota, New Jersey (2)
8. Powerball: $425.3 million, Feb. 19, 2014 - California
9. Mega Millions: $414 million, Mar. 18, 2014 - Florida, Maryland
10. Powerball: $399.4 million, Sep. 18, 2013 - South Carolina
11. Mega Millions: $390 million, Mar. 6, 2007 - Georgia, New Jersey
12. Mega Millions: $380 million, Jan. 4, 2011 - Idaho, Washington
13. Powerball: $365 million, Feb. 18, 2006 - Nebraska
14. The Big Game: $363 million, May 9, 2000 - Illinois, Michigan
15. Powerball: $340 million, Oct. 19, 2005 - Oregon
16. Powerball: $338.3 million, Mar. 23, 2013 - New Jersey
17. Powerball: $337 million, Aug. 15, 2012 - Michigan
18. Powerball: $336.4 million, Feb. 11, 2012 - Rhode Island
19. Mega Millions: $336 million, Aug. 28, 2009 - California, New York
20. The Big Game: $331 million, Apr. 16, 2002 - Georgia, Illinois, New Jersey
21. Mega Millions: $330 million, Aug. 31, 2007 - Maryland, New Jersey, Texas, Virginia
22. Mega Millions: $326 million, Nov. 4, 2014 - New York
23. Mega Millions: $319 million, Mar. 25, 2011 - New York
24. Mega Millions: $315 million, Nov. 15, 2005 - California
25. Powerball: $314.9 million, Dec. 25, 2002 - West Virginia

For those keeping score, the number of jackpots in the top 25, by lottery game, are:

• Powerball: 13
• Mega Millions: 10
• The Big Game: 2

The Big Game is the original name of Mega Millions, from the game's first drawing on Sep. 6, 1996 through May 14, 2002.  The name was changed to Mega Millions starting with the May 17, 2002 drawing.

Top 25 cash value jackpots

Since many lottery winners collect their winnings in cash, the lump-sum payout is an important measure of what a winning ticket could be worth.  The new Powerball jackpot ranks as the 2nd-highest lump-sum cash value jackpot in history.

1. Mega Millions: $471 million cash, Mar. 30, 2012 ($656 million annuity) - Illinois, Kansas, Maryland
2. Powerball: $413.1 million cash, Jan. 9, 2016 ($675 million annuity) - Preliminary estimate, not won yet
3. Powerball: $384.7 million cash, Nov. 28, 2012 ($587.5 million annuity) - Arizona, Missouri
4. Powerball: $381.1 million cash, Feb. 11, 2015 ($564.1 million annuity) - North Carolina, Puerto Rico, Texas
5. Powerball: $370.9 million cash, May 18, 2013 ($590.5 million annuity) - Florida
6. Mega Millions: $347.6 million cash, Dec. 17, 2013 ($648 million annuity) - California, Georgia
7. Powerball: $258.2 million cash, Aug. 7, 2013 ($448.4 million annuity) - Minnesota, New Jersey (2)
8. Mega Millions: $240 million cash, Jan. 4, 2011 ($380 million annuity) - Idaho, Washington
9. Mega Millions: $233.1 million cash, Mar. 6, 2007 ($390 million annuity) - Georgia, New Jersey
10. Mega Millions: $230.9 million cash, Mar. 18, 2014 ($414 million annuity) - Florida, Maryland
11. Powerball: $227.8 million cash, Feb. 19, 2014 ($425.3 million annuity) - California
12. Powerball: $224.7 million cash, Aug. 15, 2012 ($337 million annuity) - Michigan
13. Powerball: $223.3 million cash, Sep. 18, 2013 ($399.4 million annuity) - South Carolina
14. Mega Millions: $214 million cash, Aug. 28, 2009 ($336 million annuity) - California, New York
15. Powerball: $211 million cash, Mar. 23, 2013 ($338.3 million annuity) - New Jersey
16. Powerball: $210 million cash, Feb. 11, 2012 ($336.4 million annuity) - Rhode Island
17. Mega Millions: $202.9 million cash, Mar. 25, 2011 ($319 million annuity) - New York
18. Mega Millions: $197.5 million cash, Nov. 4, 2014 ($326 million annuity) - New York
19. Powerball: $197.4 million cash, Sep. 30, 2015 ($310.5 million annuity) - Michigan
20. Mega Millions: $194.4 million cash, Aug. 31, 2007 ($330 million annuity) - Maryland, New Jersey, Texas, Virginia
21. Mega Millions: $185 million cash, Nov. 15, 2005 ($315 million annuity) - California
22. The Big Game: $180 million cash, May 9, 2000 ($363 million annuity) - Illinois, Michigan
23. Mega Millions: $177.3 million cash, Jan. 16, 2015 ($270 million annuity) - Illinois
24. Powerball: $177.3 million cash, Feb. 18, 2006 ($365 million annuity) - Nebraska
25. Powerball: $170.5 million cash, Dec. 25, 2002 ($314.9 million annuity) - West Virginia

The number of jackpot cash values in the top 25, by lottery game, are:

• Powerball: 13
• Mega Millions: 11
• The Big Game: 1