Powerball jackpot climbs to 8th-largest ever

(NEXSTAR) — The Powerball jackpot has grown again after no one won the big prize in Wednesday night’s drawing.

The winning numbers were 16, 27, 59, 62, 63 and the Powerball was 23. There were $2 million winners in Georgia and Texas and a $1 million winner in Georgia.

The prize has now grown to an estimated $725 million, with a lump sum cash option of $345.7 million. The next drawing will be on Saturday.

At this size, the jackpot is now the eighth-largest in Powerball’s history. In February, there was a $754.6 million jackpot won by a ticket in Washington, and in July, a California ticket landed a $1.08 billion prize. Both of those prizes rank among the largest in the game’s history.

Here are the 10 largest Powerball jackpots on record:

$2.04 billion: Nov. 7, 2022 (California)
$1.586 billion: Jan. 13, 2016 (California, Florida, Tennessee)
$1.08 billion: July 19, 2023 (California)
$768.4 million: March 27, 2019 (Wisconsin)
$758.7 million: Aug. 23, 2017 (Massachusetts)
$754.6 million: Feb. 6, 2023 (Washington)
$731.1 million: Jan. 20, 2021 (Maryland)
$725 million (estimated on Sept. 21)
$699.8 million: Oct. 4, 2021 (California)
$687.8 million: Oct. 27, 2018 (Iowa, New York)

Should anyone win the jackpot on Saturday, they will have to choose between the annuitized payout of gradually increasing payments over 29 years or the $345.7 million lump sum.

Powerball tickets are $2 each and sold in 45 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Drawings are held every Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday at 10:59 p.m. ET. You have a 1 in 292.2 million chance of winning the Powerball jackpot and a 1 in 24.9 chance of winning any Powerball prize.

Meanwhile, the $1.08 billion jackpot hit this summer remains unclaimed as does the record-setting $1.602 billion Mega Millions jackpot hit in Florida last month.