Only the 4th time in history a lottery jackpot has grown to $700 million+
By Todd Northrop
This week lottery players across the United States will be pulling out all the stops to try and win Powerball, featuring one of the largest lottery jackpots in history, worth an estimated $750 million.
If you feel like it's been a long time since Powerball last had a jackpot winner you'd be right. The 25 consecutive drawings since the last winner on Dec. 26 is the longest stretch without a jackpot winner in the game's history.
All those drawings have accumulated a massive pile of cash, ready to provide multi-generational wealth to the lucky lottery player who wins it all.
It is the 4th-largest lottery jackpot in world history, and the 5th-largest cash option ever offered. It is also only the 4th time in history any lottery jackpot has crossed the $700 million mark.
Saturday night when there were no Powerball jackpot winners, the new jackpot for Wednesday's drawing was raised to $750 million, with a lump-sum cash option of $465.5 million. Nearly a half-billion dollars in cash!
Players should note that jackpot amounts are conservative estimates provided by the lotteries, and are often somewhat higher by the time the drawing occurs. For example, the original estimate for Saturday's drawing was $625 million, but by the time all the proceeds were counted just before draw-time, the jackpot had swelled to $638.8 million.
Of course, any big winner (or winners) of Wednesday's Powerball jackpot will have to pay taxes on their prize, so the website USA Mega has a handy Powerball Jackpot Analysis page available to calculate the federal and state taxes that would be withheld upon payout. (Additional taxes beyond what is shown in the analysis will likely be owed by the winner the following April, depending on how the winner chooses to dispose of and invest their money.)
Players looking for a nearby lottery retailer — or that out-of-the-way retailer with a smaller line — are encouraged to use Lottery Places, the only app for iOS, Android, and Windows that can locate the nearest lottery retailers in every jurisdiction that sells Powerball and Mega Millions. The helpful app can locate lottery stores in the United States, the United Kingdom, Mexico, much of Canada, and the Caribbean.
Michigan lottery players also have the option to bypass the store completely and buy Powerball lottery tickets online.
Players outside the USA can use a reputable butler service, which provides scanned copies of the purchased lottery tickets securely held on behalf of the customer. In the past, the lottery ticket service was used by people out side the USA to win big jackpots in Oregon and Florida.
The winning numbers for Saturday, March 23, 2019 were 24, 25, 52, 60, and 66, with Powerball number 5. The Power Play number was 3.
Even though nobody won the jackpot Saturday, 10 lucky players matched the first 5 numbers for a $1,000,000 prize: 2 from Florida, 1 from Illinois, 1 from New Hampshire, 2 from New York, 1 from North Carolina, 1 from North Dakota, 1 from South Carolina, and 1 from Wisconsin.
Two of the second-prize winners — one of the tickets purchased in Florida and the one sold in Wisconsin — purchased the Power Play option for an extra $1 per play, doubling their prize to $2 million.
When a Powerball ticket is purchased with the Power Play option for an extra $1 per ticket, a second-prize win is doubled and any other non-jackpot prize is multplied by the Power Play number drawn that evening. A full chart of payout amounts can be found on the Powerball Drawing Detail page at USA Mega, as well as on the Powerball Prize Payouts page at Lottery Post.
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.
Also in the Saturday drawing, 101 tickets matched four white numbers plus the Powerball and won $50,000. Of those tickets, 13 were purchased with the Power Play option, increasing the prize to $150,000, and 12 of the tickets were sold in California, where the prize was worth $20,111 this drawing.
Following the Saturday drawing, the Powerball annuity jackpot estimate was raised a whopping $111.2 million from its previous amount of $638.8 million and the cash value was raised by $76.5 million from its previous amount of $389 million.
The next Powerball drawing will take place Wednesday night at 10:59 pm Eastern Time.
Powerball is 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
Wednesday's Powerball jackpot currently stands as the 4th-largest lottery jackpot of all time in the United States, and the 3rd-largest Powerball jackpot ever. Brisk sales will almost certainly push the jackpot estimate higher by draw time.
- Powerball: $1.5864 billion, Jan. 13, 2016 - California, Florida, Tennessee
- Mega Millions: $1.537 billion, Oct. 23, 2018 - South Carolina
- Powerball: $758.7 million, Aug. 23, 2017 - Massachusetts
- Powerball: $750 million, Mar. 27, 2019 - Preliminary estimate, not won yet
- Powerball: $687.8 million, Oct. 27, 2018 - Iowa, New York
- Mega Millions: $656 million, Mar. 30, 2012 - Illinois, Kansas, Maryland
- Mega Millions: $636 million, Dec. 17, 2013 - California, Georgia
- Powerball: $590.5 million, May 18, 2013 - Florida
- Powerball: $587.5 million, Nov. 28, 2012 - Arizona, Missouri
- Powerball: $564.1 million, Feb. 11, 2015 - North Carolina, Puerto Rico, Texas
- Powerball: $559.7 million, Jan. 6, 2018 - New Hampshire
- Mega Millions: $543 million, Jul. 24, 2018 - California
- Mega Millions: $536 million, Jul. 8, 2016 - Indiana
- Mega Millions: $533 million, Mar. 30, 2018 - New Jersey
- Powerball: $487 million, Jul. 30, 2016 - New Hampshire
- Powerball: $456.7 million, Mar. 17, 2018 - Pennsylvania
- Mega Millions: $451 million, Jan. 5, 2018 - Florida
- Powerball: $448.4 million, Aug. 7, 2013 - Minnesota, New Jersey (2)
- Powerball: $447.8 million, Jun. 10, 2017 - California
- Powerball: $435.3 million, Feb. 22, 2017 - Indiana
- Powerball: $429.6 million, May 7, 2016 - New Jersey
- Powerball: $425.3 million, Feb. 19, 2014 - California
- Mega Millions: $425 million, Jan. 1, 2019 - New York
- Powerball: $420.9 million, Nov. 26, 2016 - Tennessee
- Mega Millions: $414 million, Mar. 18, 2014 - Florida, Maryland
The number of jackpots in the top 25, by lottery game, are:
- Powerball: 16
- Mega Millions: 9
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.
Looking at the cash value, the upcoming Powerball jackpot ranks as the 5th-largest cash value in U.S. history.
- Powerball: $983.5 million cash, Jan. 13, 2016 ($1.5864 billion annuity) - California, Florida, Tennessee
- Mega Millions: $877.8 million cash, Oct. 23, 2018 ($1.537 billion annuity) - South Carolina
- Powerball: $480.5 million cash, Aug. 23, 2017 ($758.7 million annuity) - Massachusetts
- Mega Millions: $471 million cash, Mar. 30, 2012 ($656 million annuity) - Illinois, Kansas, Maryland
- Powerball: $465.5 million cash, Mar. 27, 2019 ($750 million annuity) - Preliminary estimate, not won yet
- Powerball: $396.2 million cash, Oct. 27, 2018 ($687.8 million annuity) - Iowa, New York
- Powerball: $384.7 million cash, Nov. 28, 2012 ($587.5 million annuity) - Arizona, Missouri
- Powerball: $381.1 million cash, Feb. 11, 2015 ($564.1 million annuity) - North Carolina, Puerto Rico, Texas
- Mega Millions: $378 million cash, Jul. 8, 2016 ($536 million annuity) - Indiana
- Powerball: $370.9 million cash, May 18, 2013 ($590.5 million annuity) - Florida
- Powerball: $352 million cash, Jan. 6, 2018 ($559.7 million annuity) - New Hampshire
- Mega Millions: $347.6 million cash, Dec. 17, 2013 ($636 million annuity) - California, Georgia
- Powerball: $336.8 million cash, Jul. 30, 2016 ($487 million annuity) - New Hampshire
- Mega Millions: $324 million cash, Mar. 30, 2018 ($533 million annuity) - New Jersey
- Mega Millions: $320.5 million cash, Jul. 24, 2018 ($543 million annuity) - California
- Powerball: $284 million cash, May 7, 2016 ($429.6 million annuity) - New Jersey
- Mega Millions: $281.9 million cash, Jan. 5, 2018 ($451 million annuity) - Florida
- Powerball: $279.1 million cash, Jun. 10, 2017 ($447.8 million annuity) - California
- Powerball: $273.9 million cash, Mar. 17, 2018 ($456.7 million annuity) - Pennsylvania
- Powerball: $263.5 million cash, Feb. 22, 2017 ($435.3 million annuity) - Indiana
- Powerball: $258.2 million cash, Aug. 7, 2013 ($448.4 million annuity) - Minnesota, New Jersey (2)
- Powerball: $254.7 million cash, Nov. 26, 2016 ($420.9 million annuity) - Tennessee
- Mega Millions: $254.6 million cash, Jan. 1, 2019 ($425 million annuity) - New York
- Mega Millions: $246.5 million cash, Aug. 11, 2017 ($393 million annuity) - Illinois
- Mega Millions: $240 million cash, Jan. 4, 2011 ($380 million annuity) - Idaho, Washington
The number of jackpot cash values in the top 25, by lottery game, are:
- Powerball: 15
- Mega Millions: 10
The Winner(s) will get plenty of attention from the News Media!
I want to see a record breaker.
Thanks for posting the standings, Todd & staff. Always enjoy this almost as much as your feel good stories.
Now is a good time to hit this! Well...anytime is a good time to win, but this is BIG!
I want to win so I can call out RICH!
Me: Hello boss...... I won't be in today....or any other day after today. I'm RICH.
Boss: Did you say you"re sick?
Me: No! Not sick....RICH!
I promptly reinvested my $7 win this morning!
Here we go again!
I had the ball number and the last number (3) times for $12 win! Reinvest. I had a feeling that no one was going to win because I researched the last couple wins and 24 was the ball number, 5 was the lead white ball, and the 2nd number 25, now became the ball number!
And 52 was the 4th number! So, 4 of the $298 million last were drawn in the number last night. I just noticed this pattern, thatz all!
I do small pyramids and I do a large one with the past draw. the extra ball instead of a middle 3 digit and I noticed the 25/52. I also notice the 5 in the 3 small draws.
It's going to be interesting.
which balls will drop nobody knows ....... best of luck to us all 🍻
A million dollars would be great. After all, the winner(s) get like what, 1/4 of winnings. Good luck to all.
Hopping back into the powerball jackpot pool. Hope to swim to the winner numbers.
I have literally no clue what you're trying to say
Me either, just trying to work out a pattern and strategy! LOL
Oo, almost worth playing.
Me Too, I would like to see it roll, 2 more times winner on Wednesday April 3, 1.8 Million Plus, Roll Baby Roll, Headed Up Move them out, Let It Roll....
my numbers 23-25-53-62-66/5.
Better luck next time.
SOUTH DAKOTA
Per the CA lottery site, if someone had hit 5+0 last night, they would've won $4,427,373. Oh the things I could've done with that...
Instead I got 2+PB and will be re-investing my $8. C'mon lady luck, gimme a chance to prove I wouldn't be a boneheaded winner.
Yep based on enormous odds of 1:292 million at a $2 price point, not worth playing till jackpot hits one billion.
Hopefully it will be someone in an anonymous state.
I was thinking Great Lake State, say.... Michigan.
I WANT THIS!!
Yeah! I want there to be a Billion Dollar Winner in the Wolverine State!
I Concur!
$$$$$$$
Or its very close neighbor Indiana! I am busy looking at lake houses for sale in SW Michigan!!
Just be thankful you did not win 2nd prize LP members. Why is that you ask? Cause conventional wisdom has shown that a 2nd prize winner of MM / PB has never gone on to win the big one. So cheer up, there is hope for us yet. Look on the bright side, 2nd prize is * cough, cough- for losers! 😎
Pennsylvania is a "Great Lake State"!
Yeah, l was eyeballing that too. That amount right there was tempting enough to book a flight.
Naaoooooooooooo.... You got it all wrong.... a Volunteer state.
As I am Volunteering to win. Besides it would put TN in 2 of the top 5 Cash/Annuity jackpots of all time
I’m good with that. I can do either Ohio or Michigan this time.😉
Good luck!
According to the Todd List there were 7 top 25 Jackpots from Jan 2018 to Jan 2019 so the top 25 are getting to be a dime a dozen!
In Michigan the After tax Jackpot Matches the odds on this roll at about $800,000,000 annuity or $1.6 Billion annuity if you factor in the $2 ticket price.
I haven't won in such long time, maybe on this next Powerball game. Good luck Lottery Post members on the next Powerball game.
5+0 looking real juicy right now.
California Power Ball jackpot winners should remember that we are granted one year to claim.
Use this time to gather your team. Place the ticket in a home safe or bank safe box.
As Yoda would say " Plan you should, ahead you must." My team is already in place music, all l need is the winning ticket to complete my journey.👌
I had the power number -- #5. But living in Calif, all I won was a lousy $3 bucks.
Sully,
I'm hoping the just maybe if the largest jackpots got to winners in anonymous states the other states just might catch on.
My team was in place but the lead hand retired.
GLC
, music...(Gotta love CALI) i miss it, go back to visit soon i hope. A year is how it should be all over though.
Interesting times ahead...
Or perhaps somewhere in the Desert Southwest...
I've the Powerball number and won $12.00 .
I will invest this number for Wednesday Drawing .
I am 100% ready to win the Powerball sum of $750 Million .
Long story ( Short ) the money will come in good use !!!
I just remembered reading where our State might soon be Anonymous ,
I pray it will be sooner than later.
Just that alone will be Awesome for this state.
I was in the process of reaching out for a few Brussels sprouts, when l realised that you had been influenced by gull.
In all fairness,the current PB should be won by a LP member from the West Coast. Why you ask? Well, just look..
March 19th: 2nd place MM winner, Missouri.
PB - March 20th- 2nd place winners: Florida, Kentucky,NJ, S. Carolina.
MM March 22nd- 2nd place winners: Michigan, NJ.
PB March 23rd- 2nd place winners: Florida, Illinois, New Hampshire,New York, N & S Carolina,Wisconsin, North Dakota.
Do you fine folks see CA anywhere in the list of recent winners? I don't. A winner from Washington, Oregon or California will do just fine. Balance things out a little, don't you think?
I love these posts as it means that hope floats again! I still purchase my 1MM/1PB ticket per drawing regardless of the jackpot. It would be lovely to see this j/p spill over 2B$ with 10 or so winners. but it does appear to be nearing the tipping point. So... Wednesday would be a grand day to add to my millions! :)
NG, while your theory is considerate of the far left, one needs to remember that it should work it's way there and not jump over all the other states along the way. Perhaps having a winner in saaaaay..... Tennessee, should be the next logical choice
The current jackpot stands at $750 mil and 60 hours to go until drawing.
I feel that by Wednesday the jackpot will be increased to somewhere over $800 mil.
If there's no Jackpot winner on Wednesday, it will be over $1 BILLION for Saturday.
If Arizona . . may be prudent to monitor the progression of HB2552.
"Drawing prizes must be claimed within 180 days of the drawing."
I hear you CDanaT- which is why l posted “ In all fairness,this PB Should be won”.. if you think Tennessee is next in line then there you have it! Btw- Kentucky did bag 2nd prize lately, & since Tennessee is pretty much next door, they should forego their turn. The West Coast States have had a dry run for far too long. CA especially, needs to harvest.🤑
Does anyone know how much Jason Kurland charges?
Only way to find out is to send him an email TMM.
$750 million could expand our acreage REAL fast!! Don't judge. Hay can get expensive. To tune of $120/ round bale during drought. Seen it happen.
Jason Kurland is unlikely to give out his hourly rate unless you hire him. Law firms do not normally advertise hourly rates. I understand he is a partner so I would guess 500-800 per hour. I watched one of his videos and you do not have to pay up front. I would guess a minimum of 20 hours of work if he has to claim it.
"And when it comes to legal fees, there's usually no upfront retainer or fixed fee for lottery winners.
"We get paid when they get paid," Kurland said. "We sit down with the winner and go through all the things we could do for them, and it depends on what they want."
Some winners simply want Kurland's help getting through a press conference, while others want him involved "in every aspect of their lives for years and years." . . source
I suppose I can wait until Thursday to do that!
I saw that on their website. Thanks.
Yes you can. While you have his ear, don’t forget to pass that information on to the rest of us big guy. I wonder if Jason ventures out as far as the West Coast, business wise or does he sleep in his own bed every night? Ask him that as well TMM. l could use JK out here.
OK N-G. I'll ask him for you.
How noble of you to respond to my post, l guess you beginning to like me. As reciprocating value, I found your information on “ No firm is going to tolerate a rogue attorney ruining the law firm’s name “ hilarious & extremely valuable. Don’t tell anyone l said so.🤫
I am always amused, as many other lp members are, how some people try to pass themselves off as experts on every topic but they appear to be unemployed. Some even whine about no one asking them about "their profession." The reasons are obvious. They seem to be unusually insecure over the lp members who bring viable and helpful real world info to the table.
Who needs balance? NH has had 2 top 15 PB jackpot winners the past 3 years, not to
mention this is Patriot and Red Sox country so we’re used to the big wins.
The lotteries should win a "Hype in Advertising" award......
It's gone now but yesterday there was an article that said when all is said and done and since most winners opt for cash a solo winner, after state and Federal taxes would get about $211M.
$750M still sound like $750M?
I actually called that law firm and was told to call them back AFTER I win a jackpot. And then I thought about contacting one of OJ's defense team until I found out Cochran and Kardashian are no longer practicing law and F. Lee Bailey was disbarred.
The thing I can't understand is why so many people are trying to make collecting winnings so complicated when the chances of winning are slim and none and Slim is leaving town.
I guess you can't find it because it's wrong.
Even in the worst-case situation, where a winner did no tax planning at all and foolishly paid the entire 37% federal + let's say the massive 8% that my home state of New Jersey taxes, that's still more than $255 million.
$255 million after taxes is just chump change, right? 😕 No reason to play.
Todd,
Well no, it's not chump change but it's also certainly not $750M either.
Most everybody here at KP knows that but I was thinking about news reporters that will ask players, "What would you do with $750M", implying that's what theyd get and I'm sure that's what a lot of players are thinking.
But if someone asks you your yearly salary, assuming you can disclose the info, don't you give the gross amount?
Last Friday night I won $800 playing Bingo at my local church. I've decided to spend $100 on Wednesday's Powerball. If there's no winner then, Saturday I'll spend another $100. $800M is a good prediction for Wednesday's draw. Cha-ching......grin.....
Understood, but I agree with Artist here. People generally don't go around quoting technical facts about money and taxes. Everyone knows you have to pay tax, it is totally unnecessary to add that asterisk to everything you say.
Plus, there is a perfectly good case for accepting the annuity (the full $750 million), because unlike what pundants typically insist, the annuity is actually a pretty good investment, if you don't want to worry about doing the legwork and management yourself. With a $750 million jackpot, we are talking about a starting point of $11 million per year after taxes, working up to $46 million per year after taxes in the 29th year. And that is a risk-free investment, unlike many of the investments that people would privately make with a lump-sum cash payout. So asking what you'd do with $750 million is totally legitimate.
If you think it is hyped you should put the blame where it belongs, squarely on the shoulders of the mainstream media, and not the lotteries. As you said reporters are asking the question and not really mentioning the cash value because $750 million sounds a lot sexier than $465 million and change.
The average person might go to their state lottery website or the Powerball website for jackpot information and it very clearly says both the cash value as well as the annuity value on most of those sites.
The lowest amount I stand to win if I were the sole winner is $263 million after taxes with the cash value—depending on what state I win in. I won’t feel cheated or lied to at all!
Wow, congratulations on the win! I love your smart investment strategy!
Good luck!
I’m pretty sure those members are screaming at their screen right now “Shut up, woman, and make me a sandwich!”😉🥪
I read an article saying that one of the biggest misconceptions Jason Kurland battles is that he asks a percentage of the win. He said in reality he charges a flat rate. Do you think that means a flat hourly rate or you and he come up with some sort of mutually agreeable number and that is what you pay no matter how much hand holding he has to do?
I also saw him say that lottery winners are super paranoid at first and most will not tell him their name or how much they won at the initial point of contact. I laughed because yes, I could totally seeing myself calling and saying I was Lotto Lucy at first.😆
I have seen people post in lp and assume the attorney takes a percentage of winnings. I think that is due to the personal injury attorneys who take a percentage of a settlement/often a third and people see these commercials on tv.
For an hourly rate, he will provide you an estimate in writing on the number of hours to draft the trust docs, meet with you, claim it, etc. You could certainly say that no more than 30 hours max unless I approve it and I need to approve every increase of 10 hours, etc. That happens all the time with clients.
If you want to include some additional hours you can do that or he could bill you after the fact if you just need to talk to him a couple of times a year. The client is in control of the billing on some level. But if it normally takes 5 hours to finalize a trust document based on his experience, you cannot say do it in 2 since that is not realistic. But remember even 99.9% of quick phone calls will result in a bill. I would ask how he bills travel time, press calls, etc.
The rate should be is normal hourly billing rate. Based on this guy's expertise, I would pay him whatever his normal rate is. Normally something like that is not negotiable and he is a partner. And he is probably well versed in lottery lingo and how to talk to lottery officials so he is worth whatever he charges.
I would make up a name at first also but that is good to hear that winners are cautious.