Money, It’s A Gas: Powerball Jackpot Soars To $408 Million

Who knew that acid-soaked progressive and psychedelic rock pays so well? Apparently the members of Pink Floyd do, as Sony Music recently purchased the British band’s entire catalog for a cool $400 million.

In fact, one might say Roger Waters, David Gilmour, and company hit the jackpot with this deal.

Yes. One might say that.

One also might say, why bother writing, performing, recording, and touring for 50 or so years, when you can just plunk down $2 for a Powerball ticket for Wednesday night’s drawing and have a shot at hitting the same jackpot — plus another $8 million.

After no one went 6-for-6 in Monday night’s drawing, Wednesday’s Powerball jackpot has soared to an estimated $408 million, with a $196.3 million cash option. Wednesday’s drawing will be the 26th since someone last won the Powerball top prize.

Monday’s numbers — 14, 18, 33, 64, and 67, with red Powerball 14 — not only didn’t yield a jackpot, there were also the sum total of zero Match 5 winners.

Lottery Geeks estimates a little under 12 million tickets were sold for Wednesday’s drawing.

To sum up, then: Money. It’s a gas. Grab that cash with both hands and make a stash.

Mega Millions not too shabby either

After nobody won the grand prize last Friday, the Mega Millions jackpot for Tuesday has grown to $169 million, with an $80 million cash option. This will be the 10th drawing since someone last took down the top prize.

Friday’s numbers — 3, 10, 29, 52, and 57 with a gold Mega Ball of 20 — also saw no tickets match the five white balls, which means no one took home a million bucks.

Lottery Geeks estimates 10.3 million tickets were sold for Friday’s drawing.

Tickets for either lottery cost $2, with most states offering a multiplier option — Megaplier for Mega Millions, Power Play for Powerball — for an additional $1.

Both lotteries are legal in all states except Alabama, Alaska, Hawaii, Nevada, and Utah. Tickets for both draw games are also sold in Washington, D.C. and the U.S. Virgin Islands, while in Puerto Rico, customers can buy tickets for Powerball, but not for Mega Millions.

All-time biggest jackpots

Here is a list of the all-time top 10 U.S. lottery jackpots:

1. $2.04 billion, Powerball, Nov. 7, 2022, won in California
2. $1.76 billion, Powerball, Oct. 11, 2023, won in California
3. $1.6 billion, Mega Millions, Aug. 8, 2023, won in Florida
4. $1.59 billion, Powerball, Jan. 13, 2016, won in California, Florida, and Tennessee
5. $1.54 billion, Mega Millions, Oct. 23, 2018, won in South Carolina
6. $1.35 billion, Mega Millions, Jan. 13, 2023, won in Maine
7. $1.34 billion, Mega Millions, July 29, 2022, won in Illinois
8. $1.33 billion, Powerball, April 6, 2024, won in Oregon
9. $1.13 billion, Mega Millions, March 26, 2024, won in New Jersey
10. $1.08 billion, Powerball, July 19, 2023, won in California

And here’s the all-time top 10 by lump-sum cash value:

1. $997.6 million, Powerball, Nov. 7, 2022, won in California
2. $983.5 million, Powerball, Jan. 13, 2016, won in California, Florida, and Tennessee
3. $877.8 million, Mega Millions, Oct. 23, 2018, won in South Carolina
4. $794.2 million, Mega Millions, Aug. 8, 2023, won in Florida
5. $780.5 million, Mega Millions, July 29, 2022, won in Illinois
6. $776.6 million, Mega Millions, Jan. 22, 2021, won in Michigan
7. $774.1 million, Powerball, Oct. 11, 2023, won in California
8. $723.5 million, Mega Millions, Jan. 13, 2023, won in Maine
9. $621 million, Powerball, April 6, 2024, won in Oregon
10. $558.1 million, Powerball, July 19, 2023, won in California