Powerball player just misses $71 million jackpot — but still wins big in California
One lucky Powerball player in California won $1,391,550 after narrowly missing the $71 million jackpot prize.
The ticket matched five out of the six numbers during the Wednesday, Dec. 18, drawing, according to the California Lottery.
No one won the grand prize, which rises to an estimated $88 million, with a cash value of $41 million, for the next drawing on Saturday, Dec. 21, the national Powerball site said.
The winning numbers were 6, 15, 18, 33, 49, with a Powerball of 7, the lottery said. The Power Play was 2x.
The ticket was sold at an ARCO gas station in the Sacramento area at 4224 Marconi Ave.
More than 288,000 other Powerball tickets sold in the United States also won prizes ranging from $4 to $50,000, the lottery said.
The last Powerball jackpot was hit Dec. 7 when a New York player won $256 million, lottery officials said.
What to know about Powerball
To score the jackpot in the Powerball, a player must match all five white balls and the red Powerball.
The odds of scoring the jackpot prize are 1 in 292,201,338.
Tickets can be bought on the day of the drawing, but sales times and price vary by state.
Drawings are broadcast Saturdays, Mondays and Wednesdays at 10:59 p.m. ET and can be streamed online.
Powerball is played in 45 states, Washington, D.C., Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
This story was originally published December 19, 2024 at 9:09 AM with the headline "Powerball player just misses $71 million jackpot — but still wins big in California."
