Ever since 1992, Powerball has given many people the opportunity to win millions of dollars. Although this might seem significant, you basically have to defy the odds to win this once-in-a-lifetime prize. To put this into perspective, getting killed by a vending machine is a one in 122 million chance, which is still more common than winning the lottery. Powerball was initially known as Lotto America, which was created in 1988. Then the name was changed on April 19, 1992, and its first drawing was held on April 22. The District of Columbia, the Virgin Islands, Puerto Rico, and forty-five U.S. states sell tickets for the Powerball. As mentioned, only forty-five states carry Powerball tickets. The reason for them holding out is that many of these states prohibit gambling and casinos. Additionally, religious groups have highly suggested against adopting lotteries. With each play costing two or three dollars and sales ending at approximately 10:00 each night; The game uses a 5/69 white ball and 1/26 Powerball matrix to determine the winning numbers. Resulting in odds of 1 in 292,201,338 of winning the jackpot per play and a minimum winning amount of twenty million. Once officially turn in your ticket, you get the option between obtaining the money in a lump sum of cash or thirty annual payments over the course of thirty years. Odds of winning this prize are so unlikely but some people have managed to do it.

As stated, many people have actually won this prize, even with the 1 in 292 million odds, but most recently someone from California won the largest prize ever in history. On November 8, 2022, a Powerball ticket was bought in Los Angeles county later discovering that it would win them 2.04 billion dollars. Though their identity has not been confirmed, the winning numbers were 10, 33, 41, 47, and 56, with a 2x power play multiplier. What’s interesting about this drawing was that it took place at 8:57 a.m. after more than a 10-hour delay because one single state hadn’t yet processed its sales and play data. Very few people get the opportunity to win all this money, what would you do with it?