BONDURANT, Iowa — A winning $202 million Powerball ticket was purchased at an Iowa convenience store in the suburban Des Moines city of Bondurant, but nobody had claimed it by midday Thursday.
Iowa lottery officials encourage people to consult with an attorney or financial planner before stepping forward, so some delay in naming a winner isn't surprising.
"This amount, $200 million, is a life-changing amount of money, and we want to make sure the winner is prepared for what will come," Iowa Lottery spokeswoman Mary Neubauer said. "In general, winners have done just that in Iowa. They usually take their time to get their ducks in a row. It's usually a few weeks or so."
The prize is the second giant Powerball jackpot sold in Iowa this year. Iowa requires public disclosure of lottery winners' names.
The single ticket matched the six numbers drawn on Wednesday night. They are: 13, 26, 39, 41, 42 and the Powerball number 10.
A group of 20 Quaker Oats employees in Cedar Rapids shared a $241 million Powerball jackpot when their numbers came up in June.
(See Quaker Oats workers claim $241 million Powerball jackpot, Lottery Post, June 21, 2012, and Iowa Lottery releases names of 'Shipping 20' Powerball winners, Lottery Post, July 6, 2012.)
That $241 million ticket was Powerball's 15th-largest jackpot nationally. Wednesday's $202 million ranks 28th among U.S. lottery jackpots.
The nation's biggest prize was a $656 million Mega Millions jackpot sold in March. That jackpot was split three ways, as tickets were purchased in Kansas, Illinois and Maryland.
The top Powerball prize was $365 million, won in 2006 by a ConAgra Foods Workers in Lincoln, Neb.
Lottery officials said the winning ticket was bought at the Casey's General Store in Bondurant, where about $200 worth of tickets are sold a day, said Bo Knop, the company's area supervisor.
"We've had a lot of phone calls and people scampering in to check their tickets," he said.
Besides the jackpot winner, someone bought a ticket at a Casey's store in the eastern Iowa city of Williamsburg that is worth $1 million.
In January the price of a Powerball ticket was increased to $2 from $1 and the prizes were adjusted resulting in more frequent higher dollar winners, Neubauer said. The state has had 10 winners of more than $1 million this year.
She said Powerball sales fell about 10 percent after the price increase.
Seems like all these jackpots are won at these "convenience stores".
I'm going to stop buying all my tickets from Sears, and try these "convenience stores" instead!
I went directly to a "convenience stores" that was NOT close to my house.
I only buy any lottery tickets from a mom & pop store!! I don't give the big name corp. store the time of day when it comes to buying lottery tickets!!! They (big name corp. store) sure as heck don't need the bonus cash for selling the winning ticket!!!! The mom & pop stores need that bonus cash!
But sometimes its handy to have one of THESE in the store,,,,.,.,.,.,.,.,......
Iowa is becoming the California and New York of lottery jackpots. Ohio, New Jersey seem to have been displaced in terms of winning jackpots.
I wish whoever won it a long happy life with that money.
Congratulations Iowa purchased, jackpot winning, ticket holder.
I wonder how many jackpots have been won in Iowa in relationship to other states. They do seem to win a lot.
Always good to hear good stories like this... my time is coming.
I had the most amazing dream last evening!
I dreamed I was a New Yorker who had just won the Powerball, then moved to California to win the Mega Millions, then moved to Iowa to
win the Powerball once more.
I then dreamed that the government had formed one new Super State, consisting of New York, California and Iowa.
It was destined to be called by it's new name: New Califiowa
In New Califiowa everybody is a winner, disappointment vanishes, tears will be wiped away, dreams do come true.....if you believe.....if you believe.
I remember when Ohio used to always win the Mega Millions jackpots, now Ohio hardly ever wins any jackpot, not even it's own state lottery Classic Lotto. Classic lotto rolls for over a year before it gets hit and when it does get hit it's from someone out of town who bought a ticket in the state.
I used to think the Big lottos like Mega millions and Powerball was a rip-off and fake until someone in my city had won the Mega Millions in 2005 at a popular Convenience store I frequent often. I remember the day after the store had sold the winning ticket the store was packed like sardines with a line way out the door.
Back then I was 21 and never played except when it got large and never spent more than $2bucks the whole year. lol Now it's a different story. If only I could go back to limiting what I spend on tickets..it's addictive!
Anyone have a link/video of the Factory workers who hit the Mega Millions in Painesville, Ohio back in 2005?
Over a year and no win with Classic Lotto
Must be one of those 6/49 games!
I couldn't find the video but the story is here.
https://www.lotterypost.com/news/116939
None of the above my good pal Hearse.
I was blessed to have the lottery Gods visit me in my dreams. They revealed to me their utopia of the future.
You must now choose to believe.
New Califiowa is a state of mind, and will come to you,....someday.....if you only believe.
Congrats! to the Powerball Winner who ever it is
i got a Quick Pick mega Millions last night in IL 03-07-08-11-20 MBall 02
I've now uncovered the secret to winning Powerball. Buy your tickets in Iowa, you're guaranteed to win!
This proves that which numbers you pick doesn't make a difference. The state you buy your tickets in is the determining factor on any multi-state lottery win.
They deserve to Win for just having to be there
Are you telling me that Ohio citizens quit playing the lottery?
I think RJ still plays a couple of lines from time to time. That's got to account for at least half the annual lottery sales of Ohio?
You should keep playing the lottery. You will win someday. lol
I keep playing THRIFTY,...............and believe that someday,..............I will win the lottery.
Lottery is getting in people nerves. RJOC will win someday.lol
I see this as a trend in lottery games nation wide. Do you think that lottery players have realized the power of saving money? lol
This IS Americas savings account Thrifty...... If all eles fails.... MEDICARE.........
How convenient!
In Illinois there was a chain of stores called the White Hen Pantry (later sold to 711) but when it was the White Hen Pantry an incredible number of Pick 5 jackpot winners were sold there.
Seems like liquor stores sell a lot of winners, too.
There is no better strategy than playing the lottery someday. lol
I will buy a $2 powerball ticket someday. lol
Ohio just needs to double down on its lottery purchases. They cant just be left out of the action like this!
Oh, man I forgot that the lottery is the number one saving account in the USA. lol
I will buy a MM ticket today. lol
The lottery chooses the winning tickets. I will play mega millions today and I hope to be chosen as the jackpot winner.I feel that New York needs some tax money.lol
This is MM & PB but I'm not seeing a whole lot of Iowa here.
http://www.megamillions.com/winners/
http://www.powerball.com/powerball/pb_stories.asp
I guess where using a new form of lotto math where twice means 'always'.
By some of the posts in this thread you would think that just playing in Eye-oh-way is an automatic jackpot winner.
Oh the unwarranted envy.
The mega millions lottery might pick your combination to win the jackpot. You never know with random?
I agree with you, Lottery does control the winning numbers. I've seen it displayed with the pick 3, 4 & 5.
It is sad, the rich get richer and the poor gets poorer.
Someone won a $14M mega millions jackpot in New York with a $2 free play from a $10 ticket on 9/18/12.
Maybe they had 20 - 30 free plays????
The lottery biggest secret is the fact that they pick all the winning combinations. lol
I wonder if they will pick 1-2-3-4-5-6 someday. lol
Keep playing , they probably will.
Hi Thrifty,
well i never had a QP Win anything yet 
i think the Mega is 21. Million,, that would be a good win right??
so the winner would get about 9 Million after taxes,
left with about 1 Million after the people come for handouts
I don't mind giving away Lottery money thats FREE
I agree with you, but spending $10 for a free $2 ticket makes more sense. The fact is that a the $14M jackpot was won with a $2 free play.
You are on a winning state of mind. Good luck.
May I be first on the list to get a $1 million. please?
Powerball jackpots build up so fast that there is no need to envy anyone. There is a need of money to play these lottery games. The powerball jackpot will be $100M within 6 drawings. Get your money ready.
I forgot that $40M is a life changing amount. Wow, do we have a break with powerball? Dream on America. Let me go and buy a $2 powerball ticket in order to have a chance at $40M.
Should I start playing at $50M, $60M, $70M, $80M, $90M or $100M? They are all life changing amounts for $2.
I think Tennessee is due for another Powerball winner soon. We have only had the 1 so far. What gets me is all the people that talk about winning the lottery and never buy a ticket. I have a lot of friends that say it all the time and I tell them you can't win if you don't buy a ticket. It's not likely they are going to show up at your house,work,etc and say you won. Get off your bottom and go buy a ticket. If you don't win then at least you helped put someone's child thru college.
Good luck to the winner and future winners!!!
I was just packing for Iowa..........?????????........... Now what to do???????????????????
my 1st Stop is Reno
so i would say YES!
if u can come
there to get the $$$$$$$$ i will be Looking at Houses
I live in Iowa and I never win,so that blows your theory!
Whoever won, I hope he/she plays it smart. Unlike the guy who won $337 million, and is now publically trolling the internet looking for "BBW Women"...
I believe that most big name corporations, if not all that I am aware of, tend to give away their bonus commissions for selling a winning Jackpot ticket, to charities and community causes around them.
It is an image booster for them, and buying from them has in fact, the added advantage of indirectly and invisibly influencing the potential directing of a large sum of a store's bonus commission to charities, should the ticket turn out to be a winner.
At the end of the day, a single lottery game is subtly many games lumped and presented as one, and played as one. However, the net results of a lottery ticket purchase action, is a net purchase for the player aiming for the jackpot, and an accompanying linked free ticket purchase for the retailer that sells and prints the ticket, with the latter aiming for the winning retailer's bonus commission.
I generally prefer to buy my tickets from the large corporations for all the reasons cited in above.
First of all Welcome to this forum at the Lottery Post, Erzulieredeyes!
Shortly after Ohio started to sell Powerball tickets, I beleive that they had at least two Powerball Jackpot winners very early on, and I believe that events gradually slowed down for them for a while.
And don't forget the benefits of Illuminati participation!!
You need to be ugly AND live in Iowa Cletu$2
You're right hawkeye. Maybe its because Iowa lottery has been on the news a lot lately.
The strange occurance with the Hot Lotto ticket, then the huge jackpot win by the
Quaker Oats factory workers then this latest jackpot win.
Not exactly, for the simple reasons that the $2 free play, one of which held the winning set of numbers, could not have happened without the $10 MM tickets purchased.
Awesome, I'm a couple hours away in Phoenix which has flights there several times a day......
I will be using the money to play the lottery,,.,.,.,., (Im sure you understand)
May the Illuminati illuminate your path......
I agree with you. The $14M Mega millions Jackpot was won with the $10 MM tickets.
Who would be the luckiest person on the planet at this time? Maybe that person is still amazed and shocked of what had happened to him. Anyway, my congratulations to you pal. Enjoy your money, but don't forget to help those who are in need.
It wasn't me. Why didn't life lead me to Iowa? lol