Virginia Powerball players were on the wrong coast to cash in the $2.04 billion jackpot. But, even if you know you aren’t a Virginia Powerball billionaire, you should check your ticket for lesser prizes anyway.
- The winning white ball numbers on Nov. 7 were 10, 33, 41, 47 and 56.
- The red Powerball was 10.
A ticket sold in Altadena, CA, matched all six numbers. The town is in the foothills northeast of Los Angeles.
So, in geography terms, Virginia players were nowhere near the win. But, the Virginia Lottery said a handful of local VA Powerball numbers were a near miss. Here’s what the lottery said in a 4 p.m. update on Tuesday:
“Although the jackpot-winning ticket in the historic Powerball drawing was not bought in Virginia, the Commonwealth benefitted from all the excitement. During the 41 drawings of the jackpot run that began in August and ended with the world-record $2.04 billion drawing Tuesday morning, sales of Powerball tickets in Virginia generated an estimated $42.3 million in profit. By law, all of that profit goes to K-12 public education.”
It’s hard to win at Powerball. Odds are about 1-in-25 for any prize. But, the sheer volume generated by the mega-jackpot produced hundreds of thousands of Virginia winners.
In the Nov. 7 drawing alone, more than 303,000 Powerball tickets bought in Virginia won. Prizes ranged from $4 to $100,000. One ticket won $100,000 and three tickets won $50,000 each in Monday’s drawing.
The $100,000 winning ticket was bought at the South Amherst Highway Smile Gas station in Madison Heights.
The three $50,000 winning tickets were bought at:
- Publix on Monticello Avenue in Williamsburg,
- the North Armistead 7-Eleven in Hampton and
- the Wytheville Go-Mart on East Main Street.
Players lost sleep over Virginia Powerball Billionaire dreams
Folks in Virginia who waited for the numbers to drop on Monday night lost sleep for nothing. Powerball delayed the draw by almost 10 hours because one of the game’s 48 jurisdictions failed to meet security protocols. They all need to meet the standards before the balls drop into the tumblers.
People with Twitter accounts blamed faulty machines. Others suspected the Multi-State Lottery Association of a conspiracy.
In reality, the Land of 10,000 Lakes made the big mistake. The Minnesota Lottery owned up to the delay — they said the state’s sales verification system gave sleepless Virginians a Paul Bunyan ax to grind.
The California winner of the $2.04 billion jackpot can opt for a cash option of $997.6 million. From there, California tax rates will kick in.
The Powerball’s jackpot resets to $20 million.
Some Virginia players set their sights to Mega Millions where the draw for a $154 million jackpot was just — cross your fingers — hours away on Election Night.