Powerball’s $1.9 billion jackpot is so huge the drawing has been delayed

“Powerball requires all 48 taking part lotteries to submit their gross sales and play information previous to the profitable numbers being chosen. As soon as Powerball receives the excellent submission, the drawing can proceed,” the lottery mentioned in an announcement to The Related Press.

Practically three hours after the scheduled 10:59 p.m. EST drawing, the affiliation instructed the AP, “It’s towards our coverage to call the lottery that’s experiencing the delay.”

The profitable numbers and recorded video of the drawing will likely be posted to the Powerball web site and YouTube channel. Gamers ought to maintain onto their tickets, the assertion mentioned.

The jackpot is sort of $400 million bigger than the earlier file jackpot and can continue to grow till somebody wins the prize. Solely 4 earlier jackpots have topped $1 billion, however none of these are near the present prize, which began at $20 million again on Aug. 6 and over three winless months has grown ever extra huge. Nobody has gained the jackpot since Aug. 3.

A winner who chooses an annuity, paid yearly over 29 years, would get the estimated $1.9 billion payout. Practically all winners as an alternative go for money, which for Monday’s drawing could be $929.1 million.

At the same time as extra folks attracted by the large prize drop $2 on a Powerball ticket, the sport’s ultra-long odds of 1 in 292.2 million means there nonetheless is an efficient likelihood that one other drawing will cross with out anybody profitable the grand prize. That may push the jackpot for Wednesday’s drawing to greater than $2 billion.

Those that spend $2 on a Powerball ticket would possibly marvel if one thing is fallacious when 40 drawings cross and not using a jackpot winner, however that is how the sport is designed. With odds of 1 in 292 million, meaning it’s unlikely anybody will win the prize till a rising jackpot attracts extra gamers. And extra ticket gross sales imply the lottery can increase more cash for public applications, which is the purpose of the state lotteries. Nonetheless, it has been an terrible very long time and not using a jackpot, and if there isn’t a winner a while Tuesday now due to the delay, a file can have been reached: 41 attracts with out anybody matching all six numbers.

The sport is performed in 45 states, in addition to Washington, D.C., Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands.