$50K Winning Powerball Ticket Sold In Connecticut As Jackpot Soars To $510 Million

There's going to be a lot of people typing into Google around 11 p.m. Saturday "Powerball winning numbers for August 19, 2017" as no one won the $430 million jackpot Wednesday, which means the grand prize is now at a staggering $510 million and if you're the lucky winner you'd clear $324.2 million.

Though no one won the jackpot Wednesday, again there was another $50,000 winning ticket sold in Connecticut. In fact, the Connecticut Lottery says there were 41,722 "winning" tickets sold in Connecticut on Wednesday, August 16. But don't get too excited as most of those range from $4 to $21.

Besides one $50,000 ticket sold in Connecticut, 26 people won $300, and 90 people won $100. If you want to see if you won some money, the winning Powerball numbers for Wednesday, Aug. 16 are: 64-43-60-9-15. The Powerball is 4.

Powerball drawings are held every Wednesday and Saturday at 10:59 p.m. Eastern time. The record in the game was a $1.6 billion drawing in January 2016, which was won by a group of Tennessee workers. And five months ago, on Feb. 22, a lucky player in Indiana won the $435 million Powerball jackpot, the 10th largest in the game's history.

Each ticket costs $2. Find out where you can buy your Powerball tickets here. The Powerball game is played by matching all five white balls in any order and the red Powerball number. The odds of picking the correct Powerball grand prize numbers are one in 292,201,338.

Last night's jackpot is small when compared with the January 2016 record Powerball jackpot, which was worth nearly $1.6 billion. But Americans will still drop by the nearest convenience store with dreams of cash and buy a ticket.

The billion-dollar-plus prize won in the Jan. 13, 2016, drawing was the largest lotto jackpot awarded in U.S. history and was split by three winners. In the summer of 2016, a New Hampshire player won a $478 million prize; the June 10 win of $447 million was the eighth largest jackpot in the game's history.

If you still want to take a chance — someone has to win, right? — you have a better chance of hitting the jackpot if you let the computer pick your numbers. The Multi-State Lottery Association, which operates the Powerball game, says about 75 percent of winning tickets are selected when the numbers are chosen by a computer.

The lottery game is played in 44 states plus the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Powerball draws can be seen on hundreds of TV stations nationwide. It may also be available on cable or your mobile device. The draws are also posted on YouTube and on our site. Where to watch the Powerball drawing on TV.

Claiming, Safeguarding Winnings
So, what should you do if you win the big prize? Many lottery winners hire an attorney, financial planner or both, since most people don’t exactly know what to do when they suddenly come into so much money. Some even bring their lawyer with them to claim their prize. The lottery does not offer any counseling services or advice for winners.

You have two choices when you claim your prize: the full value paid in 30 installments over 29 years, or a one-time lump sum that is smaller than the actual total.

Then there are the taxes. The federal tax on lottery winnings is 25 percent. Then, any extra income taxes like state or city would apply.

Financial experts say that if you can get more than a 3 or 4 percent return on an investment, the lump sum is actually the best way to go in the long-term.

Patch Editor Deb Belt contributed to this story.

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