ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — After months of an ever-growing jackpot, one lucky ticket holder in California finally won the coveted $1.73 billion in Wednesday night's Powerball drawing.
While the jackpot was won, a couple of people in Florida are also waking up as instant millionaires.
See below for the previous story from Monday, Oct. 10.:
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Another drawing, another day the Powerball jackpot grows — no one won the estimated $1.55 billion grand prize in Monday night's drawing. It has now grown to an estimated $1.73 billion ahead of Wednesday night's drawing.
While no one is a jackpot winner, there were still multiple people who became instant millionaires last night, including here in Florida.
Someone in Florida matched all five white balls and opted for the Power Play, meaning they now have $2 million. Four other people in four other states also matched the five white balls, winning $1 million each.
This is the first time in Powerball's history that back-to-back cycles have generated billion-dollar prizes, the game said. The last time someone won the top prize was on July 19.
Monday's winning numbers were 16-34-46-55-67, Powerball 14 and 3X Power Play.
If a winner matches all five numbers and the Powerball, they have the option to take the full jackpot paid out over 30 years, or a smaller cash payout. Winners almost always take the cash option.
The lengthy streak without a jackpot winner is due to the game's long odds, 1 in 292.2 million, that are designed to make winning rare so grand prizes can grow large.
Even with the smaller lump sum payout, federal taxes will eat into those winnings, and some states also tax big lottery prizes. Powerball is played in 45 states, as well as Washington, D.C., Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
Over the past few years, huge lottery jackpots have become more common as lottery officials have changed the rules and ticket prices to boost top prizes.
TEGNA Digital contributed to this report.