WASHINGTON, USA — The Powerball jackpot went unclaimed again Monday, climbing to an estimated $672 million ahead of Wednesday night's drawing.
An estimated $639 million was on the line Monday, the tenth-largest jackpot in the game's history.
One lucky winner in Massachusetts did match five numbers correctly, netting a cool $1 million, and would've hit the jackpot had they also got the Powerball number correct.
Lottery players must match all five white balls and the Powerball to win the jackpot. The winner can choose to get the full amount through an annuity option — a sum paid out over 29 years. However, winners typically opt for the cash option. For Monday night's drawing, that was a lump sum of $304.2 million. For the upcoming drawing on Wednesday, that lump sum will be an estimated $320.5 million.
The last time someone hit the Powerball jackpot was back in July, when one very lucky lottery player in California won $1.08 billion, which was the game's third largest prize in history. Since then, there have been 26 straight Powerball drawings without a grand prize winner.
It's been a big summer for huge lottery prizes. Last month, a single winning ticket sold in Florida won the $1.58 billion Mega Millions jackpot, the largest in the game's history.
What were the winning Powerball numbers for September 18, 2023?
The winning numbers were 42-26-2-21-40, Powerball 9 and Power Play 3 .
When is the Powerball drawing?
The Powerball drawing takes place live at 10:59 p.m. Eastern every Monday, Wednesday and Saturday. Tickets, which cost $2 per play, are sold in 45 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
What are my chances of winning the Powerball?
The odds of winning the Powerball jackpot are one in 292.2 million.
Over the past few years, huge lottery jackpots have become more common as lottery officials have changed the rules and ticket prices to boost top prizes.
Powerball's biggest change came in 2021 when officials decided to add a Monday drawing to its weekly lineup of Wednesday and Saturday evening drawings. At the time of the announcement, Powerball proclaimed the addition of the Monday drawing would lead to "larger, faster-growing jackpots."
What are the largest Powerball jackpots?
- $2.04 Billion – Nov. 7, 2022 – CA
- $1.586 Billion – Jan. 13, 2016 – CA, FL, TN
- $1.08 Billion - July 19, 2023
- $768.4 Million – March 27, 2019 – WI
- $758.7 Million – Aug. 23, 2017 – MA
- $754.6 Million – Feb. 6, 2023 - WA
- $731.1 Million – Jan. 20, 2021 – MD
- $699.8 Million – Oct. 4, 2021 – CA
- $687.8 Million – Oct. 27, 2018 – IA, NY
- $639 Million (est.) - Sept. 18, 2023