Powerball Winner Last Night: 2 Tickets Sold in NY, Iowa

Someone from Iowa and another person from New York will now split the winnings of the $688 million Powerball jackpot after the winning numbers were announced on Oct. 27.

The numbers were 8, 12, 13, 19 and 27. The Powerball number was 4.

The unnamed winners have a chance of getting a lump sum or getting the money yearly for the remainder of their lives.

Before the winners this week, the odds of winning a jackpot were abysmal at 1 in 302 million for Mega Millions and 1 in 292.2 million for Powerball. Several days ago, one person from South Carolina won $1.5 billion in the Mega Millions drawing.

The winner or winners of the Mega Millions $2 ticket haven’t yet stepped forward.

File photo of signs of the jackpots for Mega Millions and Powerball lottery drawings at a newsstand in midtown Manhattan in New York, on Oct. 19, 2018. Mike Sugar/Reuters

The lottery was previously estimated at $750 million, but the adjusted numbers early on Sunday are based on actual ticket sales, according to Powerball, Reuters reported.

Powerball tickets are sold in 44 states as well as Washington, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands.

Our obsession with lotteries, with gambling, is that unicorn feeling of, like, ‘Maybe it’ll be me,'” CBS News business analyst Jill Schlesinger wrote, adding that a number of people don’t necessarily play to win.

“They just want to take a moment out of their day to consider how to dream big,” Schlesinger said.

Regarding last week’s Mega Millions win, “The final total was less than the $1.6 billion estimate,” said Carol Gentry, a spokeswoman for the Maryland Lottery, which leads a consortium of state lotteries participating in the Mega Millions jackpot.

“Estimates are based on historical patterns,” she told The Associated Press. “The jackpot’s been rolling since it was hit in July in California, but there are few precedents for a jackpot of this size. Typically about 70 percent of sales occur on the drawing day, so forecasting precise numbers in advance can be difficult. That’s why we always use the term estimate.”

South Carolina is among eight states where the winners can stay anonymous. Delaware, Georgia, Kansas, Maryland, North Dakota, Ohio, and Texas are the other states.

It means that the Powerball winners in New York and Iowa will now be identified.

Largest Jackpots

Other than the recent $1.5 billion Mega Millions win and last night’s Powerball jackpot, here are the 10 largest U.S. jackpots that have been won and the states where the winning tickets were sold, according to The Associated Press:

1. $1.586 billion, Powerball, Jan. 13, 2016 (three tickets, from California, Florida, and Tennessee)

2. $758.7 million, Powerball, Aug. 23, 2017 (one ticket, from Massachusetts)

3. $656 million, Mega Millions, March 30, 2012 (three tickets, from Kansas, Illinois, and Maryland)

4. $648 million, Mega Millions, Dec. 17, 2013 (two tickets, from California and Georgia)

5. $590.5 million, Powerball, May 18, 2013 (one ticket, from Florida)

6. $587.5 million, Powerball, Nov. 28, 2012 (two tickets, from Arizona and Missouri)

7. $564.1 million, Powerball, Feb. 11, 2015 (three tickets, from North Carolina, Puerto Rico and Texas)

8. $559.7 million, Powerball, Jan. 6, 2018 (one ticket, New Hampshire)

9. $543 million, Mega Millions, July 24, 2018 (one ticket, California)

10. $536 million, Mega Millions, July 8, 2016 (one ticket, from Indiana)

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Did you enjoy this article? Continue to read more stories  here.