Second-largest in history winning Powerball ticket worth $1.76 billion was sold in California
Kit Roberts
Featured Image Credit: Francine Orr / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images / Francine Orr / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images
A lottery ticket winning the second-largest Powerball jackpot in history has been sold in California.
The ticket was purchased at Midway Market & Liquors in Frazier Park California, about 75 miles north of Los Angeles.
During Wednesday night's drawing, the winning numbers came up as 22, 24, 40, 52, 64, along with the red Powerball 10.
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And the grand prize?
Well, it's not exactly that big or life-changing... Just a paltry $1.76 billion.
For a little perspective, on an interest rate of 4% you'd get $70.4 million a year, just in interest. Even without interest, it's the equivalent of $29.33 million per year for 60 years.
No lottery splurge on luxury properties, supercars, private jets, holidays, private islands, or diamond-encrusted iPhones would ever be able to blow through that.
It is literally the real-life equivalent of using a money cheat code.
The winner now has the option to either claim a prize outright of $774.1 million, or to receive the $1.76 billion jackpot in 30 incremental payments over the next 30 years.
All the same, the odds on winning this prize are long, to put it mildly.
They are estimated as being a mind-boggling 292,201,338 to 1, so probably still better odds than someone not born into wealth becoming a billionaire.
The drawing on Wednesday means that that California has now produced the four largest scoops in the game's history - with it also marking the fifth time that the Powerball grand prize has been won this year.
The previous winning Powerball ticket was sold on 19 July, seeing the unidentified winner claim a prize of $1.08 billion.
But the biggest ever win on the Powerball was won by Edwin Castro, who won a mind-boggling $2 billion jackpot.
Castro chose a one time lump sum of $997.6 million, and set about buying three luxurious homes in California.
These included a five-bedroom and seven bathroom mansion in the Hollywood Hills costing $25.5 million.
The enormous mansion featured an infinity pool overlooking the Hollywood Hills, as well as some 13,500 square feet of space, including a car showroom with space for five vehicles.
He also bought a $4 million home in his home town of Altadena.
Other lavish purchases included a $250,000 vintage Porsche, as well as Castro adding to his real estate portfolio after buying a $47 million mansion in Bel Air.
In a statement at the time, Castro said: “As much as I am shocked and ecstatic to have won the Powerball drawing, the real winner is the California public school system.
“The mission of the California Lottery, which is to provide supplemental funding for California public education — both public schools and colleges — makes this a huge win for the state."