Powerball Jackpot Won in West Virginia
Thursday June 4th 2020Someone is waking up as an overnight millionaire this morning after a single ticket sold in West Virginia won the $136.4 million Powerball jackpot in last night's draw.
The ticket matched all six numbers drawn on Wednesday, June 3, which were white balls 1, 3, 26, 41, and 64 and the red Powerball 17.
The lucky ticket was purchased at Go Mart #93 on Stokes Drive, Hinton, in Summers County; the retailer will enjoy a $100,000 bonus commission.
Go-Mart Assistant General Manager Terry Smith said a Lottery representative called her this morning: “She informed us we had a winner at our Hinton store for the Powerball jackpot.”
Smith has no idea who the lucky winner is, but said that the staff are thrilled it was one of their customers. “It’s huge. HUGE!!! A hundred and thirty-some million dollars, that’s huge!”
She said that Go-Marts have previously sold Powerball tickets worth $1 million and $2 million, but she believed that selling a jackpot-winning ticket was a first for any of their stores.
“Congratulations to the winner or winners of this incredible jackpot,” West Virginia Lottery Director John Myers said. “West Virginia has had a long history of Powerball jackpot winners and we are so happy to have another winner of this magnitude from our great state.”
The Powerball top prize was last won in the state in August 2010, when Randy Smith hit a $77 million jackpot; he chose the $44 million cash option.
An even bigger win happened in March 2008, when eight coworkers at the Monongalia County Tax Office won a $276 million Powerball jackpot. They also took the cash option and shared $139.4 million.
The Lottery recommends that the winner sign the back of the ticket and keep it in a safe location until they are ready to claim. The Lottery also encourages the winner to contact a financial advisor and lawyer.
The winner will have the choice to receive their prize as an annuity of $136.4 million paid annually over 29 years, or a $108 million cash lump sum payment. Both options are before taxes.
The jackpot had been rolling since it was last won at $190 million on April 8 by a single ticket in New Jersey; that winner has not yet come forward.
A total of 960,796 players won prizes last night, ranging from $2 up to the jackpot. The Power Play number drawn was 2X, multiplying non-jackpot wins for players who had added the option to their ticket for an extra $1.00.
There were no $1 million Match 5 second place winners on Wednesday. At the third tier Match 4 plus Powerball level, there were five winners who will each take home $50,000. In addition, seven third prize winners benefited from Power Play as their tickets doubled in value to $100,000 each.
Have you won a prize? Make sure to head over to the Powerball ticket checker and find out.
About the West Virginia Lottery
West Virginia is one of the top 10 states that love the lottery, and offers the nation's second-highest payback ratio, the percentage of ticket sales players receive in prizes.
WV was one of the original six jurisdictions that formed the Multi-State Lottery Association, which oversees Powerball and Mega Millions.
This isn't the first time the state has seen a big Powerball jackpot win. In December 2002, Jack Whittaker won $315 million, which was the biggest prize ever won by a single ticket at the time.
And here's something for the latest jackpot winner to think about. Since January 1, 2019, winners of above $1 million in the state can stay anonymous - but there's a catch. Those who don't want any publicity have to take a five percent smaller payout!
Delaware winner claims $1 million Powerball prize
In other Powerball news, a Millsboro, Delaware woman has claimed a $1 million Match 5 prize she won in the May 16 drawing.
The 48-year-old, who recently came forward to collect her check from Delaware Lottery headquarters in Dover, has chosen to stay anonymous, but we do know that she bought the lucky Quick Pick ticket at Royal Farms #123 - Oak Orchard in Millsboro.
"This win puts the Powerball total payout at $1.93 million year-to-date," said Vernon Kirk, Director of the Delaware Lottery. "The 2020 Draw Games total payout has reached $17.1 million - we're happy to see Delaware residents playing these games and taking home big wins like this, especially during these tough times. Congratulations to our lucky winner!"
Powerball jackpot resets to $20 million
The jackpot has now reset to a starting level of $20 million for the next draw on Saturday, June 6.
The top prize also reset to a minimum $20 million after the Powerball jackpot was last hit on April 8. Powerball and Mega Millions removed their guaranteed starting jackpot and rollover increases in April amid concerns ticket sales were falling due to coronavirus.
However, jackpot growth has remained strong since then. It only took 12 rollovers for the Powerball top prize to increase to nine figures over six weeks. Prior to the change, it took a similar 10 rolls to reach $100 million.
Lotto America also announced last month that it would remove the minimum starting jackpot and rollover levels following the June 13 drawing.
Players have the chance to hit an impressive Mega Millions jackpot of $378 million on Friday, June 5. The top prize is at its highest level since last June and ranks as the 14th-largest ever in the game's history.
You can pick up your tickets now for these exciting upcoming draws, and by playing securely online, you won't even need to leave the house.
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