Fifth-biggest $824m Powerball jackpot drops in Michigan

After 34 excruciating draws, amounting to roughly 11 weeks without a winner, the $824m Powerball jackpot has finally dropped, and it’s going to someone who bought a ticket in Michigan.

The $824m prize purse is the fifth-biggest on record, falling short of last year’s $1.08bn won in July 2023 and $1.76bn won in October 2023. The person who won had success using the numbers 12, 21, 42, 44, and 49, and played the red Powerball 1 which landed a multiplier of 3X resulting in a substantial win, a press release outlined.

As customary, the winner, whoever they may be, would have the option to claim a bulk sum of $430m and front all owed taxes or choose to go easy and claim a larger amount, paying lower tax, but then having to wait around for 29 years in annual instalments until the sum could be claimed.

Both ways are viable paths, but most people, as if incredulous or dubious of their luck, have chosen to scoop up the entire amount. Powerball Product Group Chair and Executive of the Pennsylvania Lottery, Drew Svitko, has welcomed the opportunity to see another player win, and called it a great way to start the year.

"In addition to our big jackpot winner, there are hundreds of good causes supported by U.S. lotteries that will receive further funding from this jackpot run. Thank you to our players for making this possible! Happy New Year," Svitko explained in an upbeat note.

For the record, the person actually won on Monday, January 1, marking an incredible start to the year indeed. Winning the Powerball jackpot is no trifling matter either, with people having a better chance of being hit by a meteorite, for one. In fact, there is only a one in 292.2 million chance to win the jackpot, which is incredibly rare and not really something a person could realistically hope for in their lives.

However, there is a small chance, however unlikely, that a person may not claim the jackpot. Millions have been lost to people who bought a ticket and forgot about it or were unaware that they had won. So far, big jackpots have always been recuperated. The still anonymous (and likely to remain so) individual has 60 days to step forward and notify the Powerball to claim their winnings.

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