The Powerball lottery jackpot for Feb. 20 stands at $70 million, lottery officials announced Wednesday.
The after-tax value is estimated at $43.8 million.
Jackpot winners may take the full amount in one lump sum or receive the money in annual payments over a period of 29 years for a total of 30 payments.
Powerball drawings are held on Wednesday and Saturday nights at about 11 p.m. ET.
Lottery officials "draw five white balls out of a drum with 59 balls and one red ball out of a drum with 35 red balls," according to game rules.
"Players win by matching one of the 9 Ways to Win. The jackpot (won by matching all five white balls in any order and the red Powerball) is either an annuitized prize paid out over 29 years (30 payments) or a lump sum payment. Each ticket costs $2. If the winner chooses the annuity, the annual payment will be increased each year by the percentage set out in the Powerball game rules.
"The second prize (won by matching five white balls in any order) is $1,000,000 paid in cash and any time you match the red Powerball, you win. The overall odds of winning a prize in the game are approximately 1 in 32.""Five balls are drawn from a set of balls numbered 1 through 56; one ball is drawn from a set of balls numbered 1 through 46," according to lottery rules. "You win if the numbers on one row of your ticket match the numbers of the balls drawn on that date. There are nine ways to win a prize, from $2 to the jackpot. If no one wins the jackpot, the money is added to the jackpot for the next drawing. Overall chances of winning a prize are 1 in 40."
The Powerball lottery is played in 42 States, Washington D.C. and the US Virgin Islands.
For a nationwide interactive map of ticket outlet addresses, visit the Powerball website.
Comments