A person wins a jackpot of 1.3 billion dollars in the Powerball lottery

A person won a $1.3 billion jackpot in the US Powerball lottery, ending more than three months without a grand prize winner.

The winning numbers in Sunday morning's drawing were 22, 27, 44, 52, 69 and 9 on the red Powerball.

No one had won the top prize since New Year's, making it 41 consecutive drawings without a winner. The mark equaled the streaks of 2022 and 2021.

The $1.3 billion prize is the eighth largest in U.S. lottery history, and will be awarded if the winner chooses to receive an annual fee paid for 30 years. Winners who opt for a single cash payment will receive $608.9 million. Prizes will be subject to federal taxes, and many states tax lottery winnings as well.

As the prizes grow, the drawings attract more buyers and tickets, making it more difficult to get the first prize. The odds of winning this draw were one in 292.2 million.

The drawing, originally scheduled for Saturday night, was delayed and held at the Florida Lottery studio shortly before 2:30 a.m. to allow one of the organizers to complete required procedures before the scheduled draw. 10:59, Powerball said in a statement.

“Powerball gaming rules require that every ticket sold in the country be checked and verified on two separate computer systems before the winning numbers are drawn,” the statement said. “This is done to ensure that every ticket sold for the Powerball drawing has been counted and has an equal chance of winning. Tonight we have a jurisdiction that needs extra time to complete that pre-draw process.”

Powerball is played in 45 states, as well as Washington, DC, Puerto Rico and the US Virgin Islands.

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