Powerball jackpot grows to 2nd largest ever at $825 million for Saturday drawing

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. - The Powerball jackpot has grown to be the game’s second-largest prize ever at an estimated $825 million after 36 drawings in a row with no winner. 

The winner, who must match numbers on five white balls (1-69) and the red Powerball (1-26), also has the option to claim a one-time lump sum payment of an estimated $410.2 million before taxes.

Lottery officials said the current jackpot ranks as the 2nd largest in Powerball history, only behind the world record $1.586 billion Powerball jackpot, and 5th largest in U.S. lottery history.

RELATED: What are the 10 largest lottery jackpots ever won in the US?

The next drawing will be held at 10:59 p.m. ET on Saturday.

Wednesday’s Powerball winning numbers

The winning numbers for the drawing on Wednesday, Oct. 26 were 19, 36, 37, 46, and 56 with the Powerball of 24. The Powerplay is 2x.

There were six winners who matched five numbers worth $1 million in California, Connecticut, Illinois, Michigan, and New York.

There were also 48 tickets sold that won $50,000, and 11 tickets that won $100,000, lottery officials said.

How to play the Powerball Jackpot

The Powerball jackpot grows until a winning ticket is sold. Winners can choose to receive their prize as an annuity, paid in 30 payments over 29 years, or take the lump sum payment. Federal and jurisdictional taxes are applicable to either payout.

Powerball drawings are held on Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday in 45 states, Washington D.C., the U.S. Virgin Islands, and Puerto Rico. The drawings are broadcast live from the Florida Lottery draw studio in Tallahassee, and also live-streamed on Powerball.com.

The grand prize was previously won on Aug. 3 in Pennsylvania, resulting in a $206.9 million jackpot. Since then, there have been 36 consecutive drawings without a grand prize winner, lottery officials said.

Powerball currently holds the world record for the largest jackpot ever: a whopping $1.586 billion prize in 2016 that was shared by winners in California, Florida, and Tennessee.

A customer buys a Powerball ticket at the Shell Gateway store on March 26, 2019, in Boynton Beach, Florida. (Photo by Joe Raedle/Getty Images)

Odds of winning the Powerball Jackpot

The overall odds of winning the Powerball jackpot are just 1 in 292.2 million. To put that into perspective, those odds are a little worse than flipping a coin and getting heads 28 straight times, University of Nebraska-Omaha mathematics professor Andrew Swift previously told the Associated Press.

For those feeling lucky and wanting to spend $2 for a ticket, the overall odds of winning any prize is a little better at 1 in 24.9.

This story was reported from Cincinnati.