The Powerball jackpot jumped from $1 billion to $1.25 billion after nobody got the winning numbers during Monday’s drawing.
The winning numbers Monday were white balls 23, 35, 59, 63 and 68 and red ball 2.
The prize has been growing since a $1.787 billion prize was split between winning tickets bought in Texas and Missouri and drawn on Sept. 6.
It’s the second time that Powerball has produced back-to-back billion-dollar jackpots after two such prizes were won in California in 2023.
Wednesday’s drawing will be the 44th in the ongoing jackpot cycle, a record for the most drawings in a cycle, Powerball officials said.
If a player hits the jackpot Wednesday, he or she could choose between a lump sum of $572.1 million or an annuity option involving a smaller immediate sum followed by 29 annual sums, each 5% larger than the last, ultimately adding up to the full $1.25 billion prize.
Powerball tickets cost $2 each and are sold in the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands and every U.S. state with the exception of Alabama, Alaska, Hawaii, Nevada and Utah.
