Who Has The Golden Tickets??

14 Jan, 2016

The winners of a record $1.6 billion U.S. Powerball jackpot had yet to come forward early on Thursday, with officials saying the prize will be split between holders of three tickets sold in Tennessee, California and Florida.

Each of the three winning tickets is worth $528.8 million, the California Lottery said. The winning numbers were 08 27 34 04 19 and Powerball 10.

The identities of the winners were not yet known. The winners in Florida and Tennessee have not come forward, lottery officials in those states said, and officials have not said whether anyone in California had sought to claim their share.

One ticket was sold at a 7-Eleven convenience store in Chino Hills, east of Los Angeles, California Lottery officials said. Two other winning tickets were sold at locations in Munford, Tennessee and at a Publix grocery store in Melbourne Beach, Florida, lottery officials in those states said.

It was the second time in a row that a Powerball jackpot winner came from Tennessee. Before Wednesday’s drawing, the last winner was in November, when a Tennessee ticket holder claimed $144.1 million.

The drawing late Wednesday for the $1.586 billion jackpot was the largest ever lottery prize in North America. The odds of picking the correct combination were 1 in 292 million.

Crowds descended on the California store after word emerged it had sold a winning ticket, with excited customers snapping pictures and congratulating the sales associate. The store will receive a $1-million bonus, lottery officials said.

The prospect of becoming instantly rich sparked a ticket-buying frenzy that was expected to have reached a rate of $1.3 million per minute during Wednesday’s evening rush hour, Gary Grief, executive director of the Texas lottery, told a news conference.

To receive the full jackpot amount, winners have to accept a multi-year annuity, whereas the lump sum cash payout for the jackpot was about $983.5 million, lottery officials said.

For every $1 worth of Powerball sales, half goes to prizes, 40 percent to causes such as education, and 10 percent to retailers who sell the tickets and other administrative costs, Grief said.

If no winning tickets had been sold on Wednesday the jackpot would have rolled over again, pushing the annuitized prize to an estimated $2 billion, with a cash value of $1.24 billion.

Powerball is played in 44 states, Washington, D.C. and two U.S. territories.

Reuters

Image Reuters

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