Powerball prize climbs to $1.3B ahead of next drawing

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Lottery players will have another shot Saturday night at a Powerball jackpot that has grown to an estimated $1.3 billion after more than three months without a winner.

There have been 40 consecutive drawings since the last time someone won Powerball’s top prize on New Year’s Day. The 41st drawing Saturday night will tie a record for drawings set twice before in 2022 and 2021.

The jackpot, which ranks as the eighth largest in U.S. lottery history, has grown so large because the long odds of 1 in 292.2 million make winning so difficult. That has enabled the top prize to roll over three times a week for months.

The $1.3 billion prize is for a sole winner who is paid through an annuity, with an initial payment and then 29 annual payments. Winners almost always choose a cash payout, which for Saturday night’s drawing would be an estimated $608.9 million.

Powerball is played in 45 states plus Washington, D.C., Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands.