WASHINGTON — The Powerball jackpot has risen to an estimated $1.8 billion for Saturday’s draw, with a cash option of about $826.4 million.

It’s now the second-largest jackpot in U.S. lottery history. The only prize larger was the $2.04 billion jackpot won in November 2022.

The initial jackpot amount for Saturday was set at $1.7 billion, but due to a surge in ticket sales, game officials revised the estimate upward on Friday morning.

There have been 42 drawings without a big winner since May.

Throughout this lottery run, “101 tickets have won prizes of $1 million or more, and over a thousand tickets have secured prizes worth $50,000 or more,” according to Powerball.

Although nobody won the grand prize in Wednesday’s drawing, there were over a dozen new millionaires who matched all five white balls. 

So, did anyone win Saturday’s near record breaking 

Wednesday’s winning numbers were 11-23-44-61-62 and Powerball 17. The Power Play multiplier was 2x.

The lottery website crashed at drawing time Saturday, leaving many looking for the numbers staring at an error code. 

If someone matches all five numbers and the Powerball, they can choose between receiving the entire jackpot distributed over 30 years or opting for the smaller one-time cash payout. Most winners prefer selecting the cash alternative.

Even with the smaller lump sum payout, federal taxes will eat into those winnings, and some states also tax big lottery prizes. 

The likelihood of winning the Powerball jackpot stands at one in 292.2 million. The odds of matching all five white balls to win the $1 million prize are 1 in 11,688,053. Overall, the odds of winning any prize are 1 in 24.87.

The Powerball draw is broadcast live at 10:59 p.m. ET every Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday. Players can purchase tickets for $2 each in 45 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands.

The top 6 largest Powerball wins have all surpassed $1 billion. Powerball lottery games have potentially huge jackpots because they are played in multiple states. 

1. $2.04 Billion – Nov. 7, 2022 – CA
2. $1.80 Billion (estimated) – Sept. 6, 2025
3. $1.765 Billion – Oct. 11, 2023 – CA
4. $1.586 Billion – Jan. 13, 2016 – CA, FL, TN
5. $1.326 Billion – April 6, 2024 – OR
6. $1.08 Billion – July 19, 2023 – CA
7. $842.4 Million – January 1, 2024 – MI
8. $768.4 Million – March 27, 2019 – WI
9. $758.7 Million – Aug. 23, 2017 – MA
10. $754.6 Million – Feb. 6, 2023 – WA