The Powerball jackpot has increased to $550 million after no one got the winning numbers in the latest drawing.
A drawing on March 16 ended with no one winning the jackpot. The winning numbers were 30, 34, 39, 53, 67, 11.
The next drawing is slated for March 20.
While the jackpot is now $550 million, if someone won and elected to take the one-time cash payout, which most winners do, they’d receive $335 million. If people choose an annual payment, they get 30 graduated payments over 29 years. The payments increase by 5 percent until the fifth and final payment.
Powerball’s jackpot starts at $40 million and goes up as people don’t win.
When someone wins, it resets.
According to the Multi-State Lottery Association, which runs Powerball, people who buy tickets have a 1 in 24.9 chance of winning a prize no matter what the jackpot is at that time.
“You have a 1 in 24.9 chance of winning a prize when the advertised jackpot is $40 million. You still have a 1 in 24.9 chance of winning a prize when the advertised jackpot is $1 billion. Even if there are more tickets sold in a particular drawing, your odds of winning a prize are the same,” the association stated.
As the Powerball jackpot grows, new information recently emerged about the woman who won the $1.5 billion Mega Millions jackpot.
The woman chose the one-time payout option and received about $878 million.
Sharing With Charities
The woman, who has chosen to stay anonymous, which is allowed under South Carolina law, said she wants to “live a life of relative normalcy, free of fear,” according to a statement issued March 14, by her lawyer, Jason Kurland.
The statement answers some questions about the winner after the South Carolina lottery announced the winning ticket had been claimed 10 days ago. She is a woman, from South Carolina—exactly where wasn’t disclosed—and was taking a scenic drive on two-lane state Highway 417 in the Greenville area in late October when the signs advertising the billion-dollar jackpot at the KC Mart in Simpsonville caught her eye.
“She decided to take a chance and purchase a ticket, never once thinking she had the slightest chance to win. After checking her ticket the morning after the drawing, she was in complete shock and disbelief. She stared motionless at the ticket for what felt like hours, then came the jumping and screams of joy,” Kurland wrote in his statement.
An earlier statement from the lottery said the woman had the lottery computer pick her numbers and let someone go in front of her in line to buy their tickets.
The woman wouldn’t officially claim the winning ticket for 131 days. She took her time researching lawyers and financial planners who could help her stay anonymous and manage her newfound wealth, her statement said.
The winner has already donated money to several charities, including the City of Simpsonville Art Center; the One SC Fund for hurricane relief; the Ronald McDonald House in Columbia; In The Middle, a charity in Columbia helping women undergoing breast cancer treatment; and the Red Cross relief fund for victims of the recent Alabama tornadoes, according to the statement, which didn’t say how much she was donating.
“I do realize that such good fortune carries a tremendous social responsibility, and it gives me a unique opportunity to assist, support and contribute to charities and causes that are close to my heart,” the winner said.
The owner of the KC Mart is also a winner, getting a $50,000 bonus after the winning ticket was claimed.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
