The latest drawing of the Wednesday Powerball numbers took place last night—but did anyone take home the $410 million jackpot?
The winning numbers on January 6, 2021, were 1, 20, 22, 60 and 66, while the Powerball was 3 and the Power Play was 3x.
There were no grand prize winners but two lucky players matched the five white balls without the Power Play option, each earning $1 million, according to the Powerball website.
There were 31 winners who matched four white balls and the Powerball, earning them each $50,000. Ten of these winners purchased the Power Play option, winning them each a prize of $150,000.
A total of 973 ticket holders matched four white balls, each winning $100, and 205 of them purchased the Power Play option, which earned them each $300.
There were 2,553 players who matched three white balls and the Powerball, with each also winning $100, while 574 of them opted for Power Play, earning them each $300.
The next drawing will be on Sunday, January 10, with an estimated jackpot prize of $470 million and cash value of $362.7 million.
Saturday's Powerball drawing also saw no grand prize winners. But two players matched all five white balls, while missing out on the red Powerball, for the game's second prize.
One of those tickets, sold in Arizona, is worth $1 million because they did not purchase the Power Play for an extra $1. The other ticket, sold in Connecticut, purchased the Power Play, which made their second prize worth $2 million.
The last Powerball grand prize winner was in Florida on August 12, 2020 for a jackpot worth $169 million.
The game would usually reset to a $40 million minimum but the COVID-19 pandemic forced Powerball officials to cut the minimum jackpot in half, which began with the 04/11/20 jackpot.
How to play Powerball
Powerball tickets, which cost $2 per play, are sold in 45 states, Washington, D.C., Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
Ticket holders each select five numbers from one to 69 for the five white balls and a number from one to 26 for the Powerball.
Players can multiply non-jackpot prizes by two, three, four, five or 10 times by purchasing the Power Play option for an additional $1 per play.
Drawings take place every Wednesday and Saturday from the Florida Lottery draw studio in Tallahassee.
The prizes
"There are nine ways to win a prize in Powerball. All prizes are set cash amounts, except the Grand Prize. In California, prize payout amounts are pari-mutuel and determined by sales and the number of winners," the Powerball website explains.
The Powerball jackpot prize value continues to grow until it is won. "The Match 5 + Power Play prize value is always $2 million, while the 10X multiplier is only in play when the advertised jackpot is $150 million or less," according to the website.
Jackpot winners can receive their prize as either an annuity or a lump-sum payment. For those who choose the annuity option, the winner is guaranteed to receive 30 graduated payments over 29 years. The annual payments increase by five percent until the 30th and final payment, the website notes.
What are the odds of winning?
The overall odds of winning a prize are one in 24.9, while the odds of winning the jackpot are one in 292.2 million, according to the Powerball website.
The odds of winning a prize are the same in every Powerball drawing. "Even if there are more tickets sold in a particular drawing, your odds of winning a prize are the same," the Powerball website states.
Uncommon Knowledge
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Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
About the writer
Soo Kim is a Newsweek reporter based in London, U.K. She covers various lifestyle stories, specializing in travel and health.
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