By Nebraska Lottery
Lincoln, NE – Powerball is celebrating its 30th birthday with a $370 million jackpot for the Wednesday drawing. Because of the high jackpot, the Nebraska Lottery reminds customers to play responsibly.
The Powerball jackpot starts at $20 million and continues to grows each drawing until it is won. There have been 27 consecutive Powerball drawings since February 16, without a jackpot winner. This run has grown the estimated jackpot for the Wednesday, April 20 drawing to $370 million or $222.8 million with the cash option selected.
This jackpot run has produced some large Nebraska winners. A $50,000 Powerball winning ticket for the March 9 drawing was sold at Nick's Gas & Liquor, 224 E 3rd St in Alliance. Another $50,000 Powerball ticket was sold at Cornhusker Quick Stop, 10209 S 25th St in Bellevue for the March 12 drawing. A third $50,000 Powerball winning ticket was sold at Casey's General Store #2977, 4715 W Adams St in Lincoln for the April 9 drawing.
Ten jackpots ranging from $2.5 million to $365 million have been won in Nebraska since the Nebraska Lottery began offering Powerball in July of 1994. The largest Powerball jackpot won in Nebraska occurred in February 2006 when a group of eight coworkers at the ConAgra Foods ham and corned beef plant in Lincoln split a $365 million jackpot.
Powerball jackpot winners have two options for collecting their payment: 30 annuity payments or one cash payment at present value. The annuity option provides annual payments that increase each year. The present cash value is less than the advertised jackpot, which is based on the 29-year annuity option. Winning Powerball numbers are announced every Monday, Wednesday and Saturday at 9:59 p.m. Central Time.
Powerball ticket sales began on April 19, 1992, for the game’s first drawing held on April 22, 1992. To celebrate 30 years of Powerball, Nebraska Lottery players have the chance to win free Powerball tickets with the Powerball 30th Anniversary Ticket Promotion. Through April 20, free Powerball Power Play tickets will randomly print with Powerball purchases across Nebraska. See nelottery.com for details.
Play Responsibly
Because of the high Powerball jackpot, the Nebraska Lottery encourages customers to play within their means. “It’s important for Nebraska Lottery players to remember that no matter how large the jackpot is, the odds of winning the Powerball jackpot are 1 in 292 million,” said Lottery Director Brian Rockey. “Your odds of winning remain the same, regardless of how many tickets are purchased or how many people play.” If you or someone you know has a problem with compulsive gambling, free help is available at problemgambling.nebraska.gov.
The mission of the Nebraska Lottery is to generate proceeds for good causes while providing quality entertainment options to Nebraskans. Over $868 million has been raised for the Nebraska Lottery’s beneficiary funds since the Lottery began in 1993. All 93 counties in Nebraska have benefited from projects funded with these Nebraska Lottery proceeds.