$590 million is the new record Powerball jackpot
Ever since the price of a Powerball Lottery ticket was doubled, the jackpots increased at an accelerated pace, proving critics wrong. $2 for a lottery ticket that has one chance in 175 million to be a winner sounded a bit high initially, but players were not deterred by the additional dollar. With just as many people buying tickets for regular draws and many more jumping on the bandwagon in the wake of above average prize, a new record Powerball jackpot was hit by a Florida resident.
Winning ticket bought at Publix supermarket
With the record Powerball jackpot inching closer to $600 million it was expected that lottery players will buy tickets in higher numbers and that’s exactly what happened. Nationwide, the players rushed to convenience stores and lottery outlets to make sure that they don’t miss out on a once in a lifetime opportunity. In a Publix supermarket in Zephyrhills Florida, a lucky player spent $2 on a Powerball ticket and won an amount that the is 12 times larger than the budget of the entire town.
Florida is one of the most successful states when it comes to Powerball millionaires as 6 of its residents joined the elite group. One explanation could be found in the fact that so many of those who live in this sunny state are frequent lottery player and they were drawn by the record Powerball jackpot. California has an excellent chance of outstripping Florida of the title, as it recently added the lottery among the legal games and its residents are ecstatic. In the wake of the draw, there were even special queues set up for those who visited convenience stores for the precise purpose of buying lottery tickets.
A mystery about the winner’s identity persists
Zephyrhills residents are wondering whether it is one of them who won the record Powerball jackpot, or if somebody passing through their town bought the ticket. The media didn’t prove too helpful so far and the lottery officials didn’t say whether the winner claimed the prize already or if he is waiting for the enthusiasm to dwindle before stepping up. In the absence of any confirmed data, all that Zephyrhills inhabitants have are rumors and must wait patiently for the lucky winner to reveal his or her identity.
The winning numbers that triggered the release of the record Powerball jackpot were 10, 13, 14, 22, 52 and 11 for the Powerball. Many more won slightly lower amounts and those who matched all five numbers without the special ball had to settle for $1 million. This is a fixed amount that is awarded to second category winners regardless of how high the main prize is, which means that the winners didn’t capitalize on the fact that the previous record was shattered. Initial estimates were proven wrong and so far the Mega Millions jackpot won more than a year ago remains the largest lottery prize every awarded worldwide.
Check out What makes US Powerball so popular around the world? as well.
