Powerball jackpot climbs to $1.09 billion ahead of Wednesday night’s drawing

Written by ABC Audio ALL RIGHTS RESERVED on April 3, 2024

(NEW YORK) — The Powerball jackpot in Wednesday night’s drawing is one of the largest in the game’s history.

The jackpot is an estimated $1.09 billion — which would make it the fourth-largest in Powerball history and the ninth-largest lotto jackpot ever when factoring in Mega Millions grand prizes.

Wednesday night’s Powerball jackpot has an estimated cash value of $527.3 million.

Wednesday’s drawing comes after a Mega Millions player won the eighth-largest jackpot ever last week. A ticket in New Jersey claimed the $1.128 billion Mega Millions prize.

If a player wins, they can choose between a lump-sum, pre-tax payment of $527.3 million or annual payouts of $1.09 billion, also pre-tax — starting with one immediate payment followed by 29 annual payments that increase by 5% each year.

The Powerball jackpot crossed the billion-dollar threshold last week. There have been 39 consecutive drawings without a jackpot winner. The last winner was on Jan. 1, when a ticket in Michigan won $842.4 million, according to the lottery.

The odds of winning the jackpot are 1 in 292.2 million, according to Powerball.

Powerball tickets are $2 per play. Tickets are sold in 45 states, Washington, D.C., Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands.

The drawing will be held Wednesday at 10:59 p.m. ET.