Dec 23 (Reuters) – The U.S. Powerball jackpot climbed to an estimated $1.7 billion ahead of the Christmas Eve drawing on Wednesday night, making it among the largest lottery drawings in American history.
No one picked Monday night’s winning number combination of 3, 18, 36, 41, 54 and Powerball number 7. But nationwide, nine tickets won $1 million prizes on Monday.
Wednesday’s winner could get an annuitized payout of $1.7 billion paid over 29 years or a cash payout of $781.3 million after taxes. This is the fourth highest jackpot in the lottery’s history.
The drawing is set for 10:59 p.m. ET on Wednesday (0359 GMT Thursday), with the odds of winning the jackpot 1 in 292.2 million.
The biggest lottery jackpot in U.S. history was the $2.04 billion Powerball game and was won in California in 2022.
Large jackpots tend to bolster ticket sales, boosting revenue for state lottery funds that support education and other public spending.
(Reporting by Rich McKay in Atlanta; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama )
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