By Todd Northrop
There was no jackpot winner in the Saturday night drawing of the multi-state Powerball game, causing the grand prize to increase to an estimated $250 million for Wednesday's drawing.
Saturday was the 12th consecutive drawing without a jackpot winner.
The estimated cash value for the new jackpot is $156 Million. After-tax cash and annuity prize amounts are reported state-by-state at USA Mega, a web site devoted to the Powerball and Mega Millions multi-state lottery games.
Players should note that jackpot amounts are conservative estimates provided by the lotteries, and are often somewhat higher by the time the drawing occurs.
Even though there were no jackpot winners, 5 lucky players matched the first 5 numbers for a $1,000,000 prize: 1 from Arizona, 1 from Colorado, 1 from Florida, 1 from New York, and 1 from North Carolina.
Two of the second-prize tickets — from Colorado and Florida — were purchased with the Power Play option for an extra $1, and their prizes were increased to $2 million each.
This is the first drawing in which a player won second prize with the Power Play since the Powerball prize structure changed on Jan. 18.
50 tickets matched four white numbers plus the Powerball and won $10,000. Of those tickets, 7 were purchased with the Power Play option, increasing the prize to $40,000.
The Powerball winning numbers for Saturday, February 4, were 15, 23, 43, 45, and 56, with Powerball number 7.
When a Powerball ticket is purchased with the Power Play option for an extra $1 per ticket, any non-jackpot prize is increased according to a fixed prize schedule, which can be found on the Powerball Drawing Detail page at USA Mega, as well as on the Powerball Prize Payouts page at Lottery Post.
Powerball is now played in 42 states, plus the District of Columbia and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Drawings are Wednesdays and Saturdays at 11:00 p.m. Eastern Time. Tickets cost $2 each.
Powerball lottery results are published within minutes of the drawing at USA Mega.
1/2 way to $500M
will it go to $1 Billion Dollars?
Hmmmm..............quarter of a Billion. In my humble state of NH, taking the lump sum would translate to $117 Million, after no state taxes.
Coincidentally that's exactly the amount I calculated that would see me through my retirement, including all the toy's and taking care of a select few of my real "friends" and "family".
I believe I will continue to play........what do I have to lose??? Oh right,..... $2.
If this rolls again Wednesday...........another $70 Million???...........perhap's to $320 Million???
Roll on littl' doggie..........ROLL ON!!!
Lots of money grubbing greedy people out there.
I'm not surprised that we finally now see the 2 million dollar winners.
I'm certain there will be more 2 million dollar winners for Wednesday with a Jackpot so high.
Good luck to all!
Also , please note that there was NO $1 million dollar winners in Florida or Colorado, these persons won the $2 million dollar prize with Powerplay.
well color me seriously annoyed........
but my guess is inspite of slightly better odds I tink its gonna set the new record b4 they'll let someone win
It will be insane but should be fun. I'm gonna wait for the jackpot a little bit to buy my tickets just for kicks.
OK .............. $101,000,000 + after 35% .....................
Well if you don't get a play in for the next two drawings, your waiting is going to be a bit too late unless you are looking to jump in when the jackpot rolls back down to 40 million! I will be happily looking at my winning ticket for a few weeks while I take care of prior commitments (yup, just because I am going to win the jackpot does not mean I just quit my obligations), meet with my team of lawyers and accountants, and get a medical checkup (hey, getting a physical examination is just as important as making sure you got all your financial ducks in a row...don't believe me, then just ask the family of that big Mega Millions lottery win from Michigan who died of an apparent heart attack some years ago just 3 or 4 years after hitting it big!). Then I would call Springfield to set up a news conference, purchase a plane ticket and book a limousine to pick me up at the airport, check in at a nice hotel there, and then come in the following day for the claiming process. I figure if I be the spoiler to win within the next two drawings, I would likely claim the prize in March (nope, I won't be waiting a long time as curiousity only intensifies with each passing month). Now when I do win, I am torn between using a deguise of Jamaican dreadlocks and that typical touristy Caribbean knit cap or a Obama mask. But there has been a guy going around robbing places using the latter disguise, so I think I won't do that...plus, there are people in Illinois who worship the man, so I may be asking for trouble (and liberals call conservatives bullies...look at me feeling bullied by the libs!).
But should I not be the spoiler and the jackpot continues to roll and reach astronomical record levels, I won't buy any additional tickets besides my subscription and an advanced play (I travel to places where I can't play the lottery).
Well DP, I can honestly believe with that kind of after tax win, I could comfortably make all close family members/friends millionaires. Then throw a big shindig for all LP contributors and ship Rdgrnrs still, in advance for show - n - tell !!!!!
I am actually glad to see this roll. Texas has a free qp + pp starting today for every $10 pb purchases. Time for a Texas PB win!
And I'd like to see this one as my win, seeing as how I'm-a gonna win a jp anyway. So many possibilities!
Good luck to all my LP friends! May the winner be one of us... hopefully me, but...
I also believe that this jackpot is going to keep rolling (hey, they have to back up their claims for bigger jackpots or the whole marketing scheme would be a flop!)....to around $400 million (just over their all-time high of $365m) then it will hit. However, I think the best is yet to come...I anticipate a huge jackpot in excess of $500 million later this year.
I'm not spending a dime until it nears this level!
Yeah, I think the jackpot will keep rolling too, because the jackpot increases the same amount for half as much tickets sold, so the chances of a rollover are double for the same increase. I do have a feeling that this year will be the year Powerball produces a record CASH jackpot, especially since they've eliminated the match 5 bonus pool feature.
Well Pia while I hope you do win, I am sorta leaning towards a FL winner(namely meeeeee)....Besides we just had one of the first new 2 million dollar powerplay winners..... Thats gotta be a sign of better things to come !!!!
Thank you Dana. It if hits Fla, I'm rooting for you.
Hey OldSchool, have a gander at the spfxmasks. Those things are so realistic its creepy.
guess that means were only 2 or 3 drawings away from a heafty 400,000,000.00 annuity
Id be replacing my mailbox with a trashcan if i hit that.
I was wondering at what point I would get back in to buying Powerball tickets after they raised their prices. Apparently I found it, and it's $250M. USAMega's Powerball Jackpot Analysis tells me that's $110,214,000 with cash-payout and after taxes. I would like to thank all the people who have built the jackpot up to that amount for me in my absence.
You're welcome!
chances are higher but no one has hit yet!!! give me a break!!!
It did not hit yesterday, the jackpot that is. Now it is in a range give or take, should it have been through the consecutive rollovers, at half the current ticket price. I expected the rollover to have been a bit higher. The executives failed to execute their well intentioned plan, I suppose. Nonetheless, not many people will turn their nose on the lovely jackpot price, the increase in ticket price be darned!
Best of luck, should it not hit this coming wednesday, I will like to see a rollover be increased MORE significantly.
I just bought my two tickets for wednesday with powerplay so come on $2 million or jackpot. Good luck to all who play.-weshar75
I was wondering if I was the only one who stayed away after the changes. Good luck man!
I can't imagine one person winning a jackpot if it surpassed $400million. It would likely go to a large pool or multiple persons.
I agree!
Not to mention remaining anonymous. The winner(s) may attempt keep his/her mouth shut on the subject, but with that much money, there is bound to be someone that will uncover their secret.
A name change and a move to another state might be in order to preserve one's sanity.
seeing you have a subscription, i hope you win the 250M next draw, and the $40M the following week,
just for the giggles.
Actually, statistics show that pools very rarely win compared to individuals.
And when they do it's always a big nightmare getting your money.
Bought one 2 dollars quick pick and I got
15 as the first number of the white row, and 7 as the red ball . I almost had a heart attack this morning because it looks like I had it, but then again it was a total winning of 4 dollars.
Hey Ridge, now it's your chance to own your personal nuclear arsenal. :D
Heart attacks are bad whether you are rich or poor. I know the thought of coming into such a huge amount of money can be unsettling for some people, which is why I always check to see if the jackpot was hit, and if so, where right away before I even look at my tickets and compare them to numbers drawn. That way, I know whether or not I still have a chance or if I am going to say, "Oh well, maybe next drawing..." kind of like Cubs fans say every year the Cubs either don't make the pennant race or fall short in infrequent World Series appearance...can America say, "Bartman for President!!!"? Of course, when it isn't hit, I just say, "Good deal" and go about my business as usual...same as I would if it were hit. $110 million....$20 million...either sum of money is just fine in my books, though admittedly, the larger would be preferred, of course!
Now when the jackpot is hit, Illinois has had so few jackpot winners. So I am usually saying, "Doggone IN....FL....NC....PA....OK....ID....LA!" But truthfully, it doesn't matter since I know my day is coming soon to be holding that winning ticket. And I have had a moment to re-think my declaration to go very public with a media conference. Although I am not afraid of saying no to all freeloaders, I do realize that there are people in this world who wake up each day intent on either taking advantage of someone or even killing someone. By going public, I would be one Google or Wikipedia search away from some bad guy getting the info needed to size me up. So it looks like I will claim in a blind trust, but because I don't trust other people to handle my money, I would be there at the press conference in disguise. I would be sure to hire the best makeup artist money could buy and only disclose my get up with the lottery folks ahead of time. They might not like it...but oh well and good luck in LP land for the next drawing.
Nah, I'm a conventional weapon kinda guy, lol.
I might consider some really radical conventional weapons though, like that 905 in jarasan's blog.
Bet I could make skunk soup with one shot with that dadgum thing.
The PB record isn't really $365 milion. Those winners (like almost all winners) took the cash value. Interest rates at that time were a lot higher, and the cash value was just under $180 million. With todays interest rates the cash value will pass that at about $270 million. Unless sales are far lower than they expect, a roll will probably push it well beyond that. At $2 we don't know what changes we'll see with the people who aren't really lottery players but take a chance when it gets really big. Sales may be off a bit from historic trends, but I'll guess it will be advertised at $315ish and have a cash value of about $205 million or so.
The increase suggests that they're expecting sales of about 51 million tickets. At that level the chances of a rollover are better than 70%. That's good, but still far short of a sure thing. With MM at "only" 32 million I'll probably go ahead and get a ticket while the getting is reasonably good. As a very rough guess there's about a 1 in 5 chance it will roll 3 times and pass the $500 million mark.
FWIW, I'm critical of the advertising hype, but the "bigger" jackpots refers to average jackpot values. Putting twice as much money towards the jackpot at only slightly reduced odds makes that an absolute certainty. A new record is also more likely than it has been, but it's still a longshot each time a new roll starts.
I never understood people that are so paranoid about their identity being revealed if they win the lottery. If you are that paranoid, don't play, problem solved.
There are thousands of people worth hundreds of millions and even billions of dollars all over this country and all over the world and they exist just fine. Most of them live in regular homes with no gates, no guards and drive regular cars and go regular places like everyone else.
And who cares if people ask you for money? There is a simple solution to that, TELL THEM NO. You say it enough times, they will stop asking.
Anybody out there consider taking the annuity with this level of payout? Just curious...
No.
Hell no, if the democrats win, they'll come up with some excuse to take it away from ya.
And even if they don't take it away, they'll bring about the collapse of the dollar anyway.
Land's cheap and they ain't makin' anymore of it.
Load up on good bottom land.
Difference being all those billionaires/millionaries don't have their name and hometown shown in neon lights on local/national television, in print media and of course across the internet, where it lives forever. I wouldn't consider it paranoia; I would consider it a wise decision that basically leaves you alone to share the news of your good fortune with those you and you alone choose to share that information with.
OMG people like you crack me up.
The Republicans spend trillions of dollars on defense and other contracts, where do you think that money comes from, out of the thin air?
Newsflash, they want your money just as bad, more actually.
Tax rate is the lowest rate it has ever been and more guns have been sold then ever, but yeah right, Democrats are taxing us more and taking away our guns..
Do you people every pick up a book or read a newspaper?
BTW, if the dollar is collapsing it is because companies have sent lots of jobs overseas to other countries like China, including Wal Mart probably the biggest offender, which just happens to be owned by Republicans.
So let me get this straight, no one knows who the billionaires and multi-millionaires are in this country and where they live?
No one knows about all the pro athletes, musicians and actors and what they make in salary or anything?
All the Fortune 500 executives that are on TV all the time and whose salaries and bonuses are reported in the Annual Reports or reported on CNBC, no one knows about them either?
And these guy's homes are frequently posted on multiple celebrity and other real estate blogs, but no one knows where they live, right?
Or those two little magazines called Forbes and Fortune, I guess no one reads those either.
If A Rod can sign an almost $300 million contract and walk around town, I think a nobody like you will be just fine if you win $10 million or so.
Well, Venom (wow, you sound really dangerous and stuff) , you appear to be the type who'd enjoy telling the world about your big winnings, so post your name and address on here after hitting it large, and invite us all to your grand party to celebrate.
Illinois keeps showing that new PB commercial. Okay you keep saying this state will see more winners, then let me hit it on wednesday! Let Feb. 8 2012 be the day my life changes forever. "There was one jackpot winner sold by the Illinois lottery." Not NY, not Cali or Mass, but the Illinois lottery. We would keep quite and start packing the next day. Even though we're not going public, I still don't believe we should stay in our old place until we find a new house. We're moving into a new apartment until we find a new home. It's much safer. Too many people know us. We want to go shopping, get legal help, drop our jobs like a bad habit and friends and neighbors are going to wonder what's going on. You we cannot risk that.
I never knew Mansions and Penthouses were considered regular homes since only wealthy people live in them and they cost millions. Yes, it's usually a gate around their mansions and they have protection. I don't know who told you having lots of money does not put one in danger or most rich people don't live different from the rest of us. You think you can just go and knock on Warren Buffett's door and ask him for butter?
Actually you probably could go knocking on Warren's door for butter. Although one of the world's richest men, he still resides in a very modest 5 bedroom stucco un-gated home in Omaha, Nebraska in which he originally paid only $31,000. He is also known to be a very down to earth man among his neighbor's.
Oh and while your there, would you mind terribly asking him if he could also spare an egg or two? I'm baking a celebration cake for myself for this Wednesday's Powerball, which I intend to win. The recipe calls for six eggs, I have only four.
Thank you ever so much!
We had an office pool for the PB drawing on Saturday. It's the first time in over 10 years we have done it. We had 17 of the 27 employees get in on it. I would expect that since the JP went up, so will the participation number.
For those interested, we didn't win anything. Didn't even have 2 number on one line.
But with the increased JP is increased hope! 
Were they all just quick pick's?
Hmmm, Annutiy or Lump Sum??? Personaly, I think I'd take the Annuity. On average that comes out to $694,444 Per MONTH for the next 30 years! Yeah, I suppose I could live off that. Forget taking the Lump Sum, and than trying to double your money, when there is a guaranteed way to pull in a Quarter Billion...
Heck, I just hope that me and whoever hits the jackpot have the same Numbers picked out!
You seem to forget that the Democratic Regressives want to raise taxes and punish the wealthy !
I say lump sum all the way ............... and it should necessarily go to an "evil Republican" like meeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee (one winner please, to drive the nuts like Dennis Kucinich over the edge)
being part of the Newly Green($$$$$) 1% ............. Priceless !!!!!!!!
This is not being extravagant ....... I just want to preserve a piece of history
I am taking the annuity after I win. Over $5 million a year after taxes. I can't begin to spend that.
Not if the Democrats get their wish to punish the "1%" , the Greed of Envy
would take 90% if they could! Not to mention the very real possibility of the devaluation of the $!
Socialism breeds mediocrity ........................
This needs to go to one person in a lump sum ................. drive the dingbats batty!
and yes ....... I am a big spender ............ $4 on the chance for a $101,000,000 + wire tranfer to my bank account ................
Now to go and pick up my $100 I won on a scratch-off I bought yesterday.
I would love to see this jackpot go to a large pool... a large pool in my new backyard!!!
If there isn't a winner this time, whats the next increase going up to ? Over 300 ?....aint happenin, since I purchased the winning ticket !!! Lump sum, here I come
prolly btwn $300M & $315M
Amen DP....pay my taxes now, watch the pooooolice and the taxman catch me....Im MOBILE
I would increase my moblility with a 2012 991 Carrera S !
and as you can see, I am dressed very nicely! That is really me in the pic!
I am sorta partial towards that new Acura NSX that I saw during the superbowl ....funny thing, so is my kid (rotten lil monster)...already put in the demand for it when I win...Cant even get a new toy and the offspring wants it !!!! I'll trick em though and buy a used 79 chevy chevette and hide it under a car cover in the garage saying its the only birthday present I am buying ..uncover it on that joyous day and watch the facial expressions go from being extatic to looking like they are headed to the barn to shovel cow poo !!!!
First of all, I mainly distrust certain Americans because of their blind allegiance to the human messiah, the great transformer, the illegitimate NP prize winner. But paranoid? Not at all. The difference between my current and future lifestyle and that of a lot of Americans is that I travel to places and come into contact with people who are seeking a big payout somehow. They view foreigners as people with deep pocket, and should they somehow find out about my wealth, bad things would likely happen to me. I love traveling and meeting the local people where they live...not staying in just a 5 star hotel or all-inclusive resort. I also won't have bodyguards hanging with me, and that my friend VenomV12, would be the difference between me and those wealthy celebrities and athletes. Except for the most iconic businesses, business people are largely incognito, as they may be wealthy but not largely known to the whole world. Another difference between even known wealthy business people and lottery winners is that people somehow view earned/investment wealth differently from luckily acquired riches. I don't think people come knocking on Bill Gates or Warren Buffetts door looking for a loan or grant for their 'business' idea!
The main reason I will claim the prize less publicly is because I still desire to travel with the masses on commercial airplanes. What will change is I would no longer use public ground transportation when visiting developing countries.
And when I win, I will claim the jackpot in lump sum...again going back to my distrust of American intelligence in voting for true leaders. I will be sure to buy the nicest foreign sports cars greenbacks can buy...and that will be as close I get to being green since I have been green, environment conscious as far back as I can remember (I purchased a little gas sipper that got 40 miles to the gallon when BIG was the in thing wrt cars, SUVs, and trucks).
If there is a $1,000,000. door prize, I am so going to be there, lol.
"I never understood people that are so paranoid about their identity being revealed if they win the lottery. If you are that paranoid, don't play, problem solved.
There are thousands of people worth hundreds of millions and even billions of dollars all over this country and all over the world and they exist just fine. Most of them live in regular homes with no gates, no guards and drive regular cars and go regular places like everyone else.
And who cares if people ask you for money? There is a simple solution to that, TELL THEM NO. You say it enough times, they will stop asking."
I would not call it being paranoid, but more along the lines of good old fashioned common sense, carefull planning and preservation. Most folks that would remain anonymous have friends, clubs and organizations that they would like to continue hanging out with. That would surely change if they were to go public. If I won something, I do not want to have to put a friend or associate in the position of myself having to tell them no and then seeing the disappointment and resentment on their face.
Just to tell someone no, it might seem that simple but it really isn't. Just have a look at the list of lottery failures that have had major falling outs with their family, have commited suicide or have even been murdered for their money. Some of them might have started off with the intention of saying no to everyone, but it takes just fulfilling one request. Word of their good deed spreads and the next thing you know, everyone is approaching for a hand out. You might be able to handle turning these requests down for a few weeks or so, but it will soon get very draining on your psyche. I don't care how bulletproof someone thinks they are, I've got my own set of steel testicles, but even I am not that reckless.
Except for a few politicians, financial analysts and other upper middle class types, a vast majority of jackpot winners come from the poor and middle class. They don't have the daily hands on experience of managing large sums of money or the fame and publicity that comes with it. There's also a huge difference between the 1% and jackpot winners, they built their wealth up slowly over time by playing a smart game. History shows that friends and family usually don't go nuts when the results are not so immediate.
"Why play the game then?" most of us have a dream of managing "The Dream" carefully so it lasts us for the rest of our lives, not to mention to be able to pass it down through our children and grandchildren.
For some of the above reasons, is why I do not get my hopes up of reading a success story down the road of lottery winners that chose to go public. If you can beat the odds stacked up against you, more power to ya.