DES MOINES, Iowa — People showed up at convenience stores, groceries and gas stations around the country to snatch up lottery tickets for a chance at Monday night’s massive $1 billion Powerball jackpot.
The jackpot soared after no one matched all six numbers in Saturday night’s drawing. It’s the fifth-largest lottery jackpot in U.S. history. The biggest prize was a $1.586 billion Powerball jackpot won by three ticketholders in 2016.
No one has hit all six numbers since Aug. 3, a testament to how slim the odds are of winning the jackpot: one in 292.2 million.
The $1 billion jackpot prize is for winners who opt to take the full amount piecemeal over 29 annual payments.