Powerball® Jackpot Leaps to Estimated $1.7 Billion for Saturday’s Drawing
Iowa Lottery Players Won More Than $343,000 in Prizes in Wednesday’s Drawing
Editor’s Notes: To schedule an interview with Iowa Lottery CEO and Powerball Product Group Chair Matt Strawn, please contact Sam Martin at smartin@ialottery.com or 515-587-2521. For continued jackpot estimates between drawings, please visit the Iowa Lottery’s website at www.ialottery.com.
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CLIVE, Iowa —With no ticket matching all six numbers in Wednesday’s drawing, the Powerball® jackpot has surged to near-record levels for Saturday.
The estimated jackpot for Saturday's drawing is now $1.7 billion annuity ($770.3 million cash option). This is the third-largest jackpot in U.S. history, and the largest since a $1.765 billion jackpot was won in 2023.
One Iowa Ticket Came SO CLOSE
Iowa Lottery players won a total of 68,008 prizes totaling $343,493 in Wednesday’s Powerball drawing, including one ticket that was just one number away from winning the big jackpot.
The ticket matched four of the first five numbers and the Powerball to win a $50,000 prize. It was purchased at Hy-Vee Fast & Fresh, 912 N. Jefferson Way in Indianola. That prize can be claimed at any Iowa Lottery office.
Wednesday's winning numbers were: 3-16-29-61-69 and Powerball 22. The Power Play® multiplier was 2.
There are nine prize levels in Powerball ranging from $4 up to the jackpot, so the Iowa Lottery reminds its players to be sure to check their tickets for all the prizes they may have won.
Easy Picks vs. Your Own Numbers
The vast majority of tickets purchased in games like Powerball are easy-pick plays, meaning that the lottery terminal randomly assigns the numbers printed on the ticket. More than 91 percent of the Iowa plays for Wednesday's Powerball drawing were easy picks.
But players also can choose their own numbers. They choose five numbers from a pool of 1 to 69 for the white balls and one number from a separate pool of 26 for the red Powerball.
Why Does ‘Coverage’ Matter?
By tracking sales, lottery officials can estimate how many of all the possible combinations in the game have been purchased for a particular drawing. It's called coverage: how many of the 292.2 million possible number combinations have been “covered.”
The coverage estimate for Wednesday's drawing was about 38 percent. The estimate for Saturday's drawing is about 55 percent.
A higher coverage percentage can mean it's more likely there will be a jackpot winner, but it is not a definite.
Does One Person Really Need All That Money?
When the jackpot climbs as high as it is now, some people argue that no one person needs that much money. They suggest that at these levels, the prize should be split into smaller amounts.
However, players vote with their pocketbooks on this issue. Sales follow the jackpot up: The bigger the jackpot gets, the higher sales go. And higher sales push the jackpot even higher.
Remember that it's always possible for multiple tickets to match all six winning numbers in a drawing. And in that instance, the jackpot would be split.
Please Play Responsibly
And as always, the Iowa Lottery reminds everyone that it only takes one ticket to win. Please play responsibly. Have fun, but set a limit and stick to it. Playing the lottery should always be for enjoyment, not obligation.
Whether you play the lottery or not, we want everyone to have an accurate understanding of how the lottery works. Learn more about responsible play on the Know Before You Play section of the Iowa Lottery website.
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