U.S. Powerball Hits $119 Million in Wednesday's Draw

This week’s U.S. Powerball lottery is $119,000,000! The Powerball is one of the most famous lotteries in the United States, and has spawned spin-off versions in South Africa, Australia and New Zealand. 

Buy Online Lottery Tickets

To participate in this week’s Powerball, to be drawn on March 11, 2015 at 23:00 Eastern Time, you can purchase online lottery tickets at reputable sites such as The Lotter and Lottery Master. To play, you need to choose five numbers between 1-59, as well as a separate Powerball number, between 1-35. There are nine prize categories in total: the grand jackpot, and additional prize levels that range anywhere from $4 to $1 million.

Tickets currently cost two bucks apiece, or 3 bucks if you want the Power Play option. Power Play is a special feature that lets winners increase the original prize amount. (When you buy online lottery tickets at The Lotter for the first time, you can get a 100% bonus money credit.)

As of now, the Powerball can be played in 44 states in the U.S., as well as Washington D.C., Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands.

Powerball History

The U.S. Powerball was founded in 1988 by the Multi-State Lottery Association. It was originally called “Lotto America,” and the name was only changed to Powerball in 1992. To celebrate its 20th anniversary, the lotto dropped its Powerball guess-range from 39 to 35, making it easier to win.

On February 11th, the Powerball lottery made history when three players split the grand jackpot of $564 million, making it the third largest payday since the lottery's inception and the fifth-largest lottery jackpot in the world.

Some of the other big wins in Powerball history include $588 million in 2012 (the highest-ever Powerball won), $314 million in 2007, $365 million in 2006, $340 million won in 2002. As you can see, Powerball has been making millionaires for over a decade!