For the second time this year, there is a $1 billion lottery jackpot on the line in the U.S. But if you win it with a ticket you bought in Oregon, you won’t be able to keep it a secret.
The Powerball jackpot increased to an estimated $1 billion for Monday’s drawing, and it could go up even more before the numbers are picked at 8:00 p.m. That makes it the 5th-largest lottery jackpot in U.S. history, about $500,000 shy of the 4th-largest.
If the winner chooses the one-time lump sum payment, they would take home $497.3 million.
Just three months ago, someone won a $1.337 billion Mega Millions jackpot.
The Powerball jackpot was last won on August 3. There have been 37 consecutive drawings without a jackpot winner.
RELATED: One $1.337 billion jackpot-winning ticket sold in Mega Millions
The odds of winning the big prize is 1-in-292.2 million. For perspective, the odds of being struck by lighting once in your lifetime would be 1-in-15,000. But, you’d have better luck winning Mega Millions or Powerball than filling out a perfect bracket in the NCAA Tournament. That’s 1-in-9.2 quadrillion.
Oregon is one of 45 states, plus the District of Columbia and the U.S. Virgin Islands, that participates in Powerball and Mega Millions.
Five tickets sold in Oregon have previously won the Powerball jackpot. No ticket sold in Oregon has ever won the Mega Millions jackpot.
One thing Oregon contestants should know is this: If they win, staying anonymous will be pretty much impossible. The names of the lottery winners, the money they made, and the city in which they bought the ticket are all public records.
Chris Chiampis, a financial adviser in Bend, told us back in July that lottery winners should seek out a financial advisor, tax planner, public accountant and attorney.
Powerball all-time largest jackpots
- $1.586 billion: Jan. 13, 2016 (three tickets sold)
- $1 billion: Oct. 31, 2022
- $768.4 million: March 27, 2019
- $758.7 million: Aug. 23, 2017
- $731.1 million: Jan. 20, 2021
- $699.8 million: Oct. 4, 2021
- $687.8 million: Oct. 27, 2018 (two tickets)
- $632.6 million: Jan. 5, 2022 (two tickets)
- $590.5 million: May 18, 2013
- $587.5 million: Nov. 28, 2012 (two tickets)
Mega Millions all-time largest jackpots
- $1.537 billion: Oct. 23, 2018
- $1.337 billion: July 29, 2022
- $1.050 billion: Jan. 22, 2021
- $655 million: March 30, 2012 (three tickets sold)
- $648 million: Dec. 17, 2013 (two tickets sold
- $543 million: July 24, 2018
- $536 million: July 8, 2016
- $533 million: March 30, 2018
- $522 million: June 7, 2019
- $516 million: May 21, 2021
