Location For $1M NJ Powerball Winner As $768M Jackpot Is Won

There was a big winner in the Powerball jackpot for Wednesday, the third-largest prize in the game's history. And there was a big winner in New Jersey, too.

Somebody in Wisconsin won the jackpot worth an estimated $768.4 million — the fourth biggest jackpot in all U.S. lottery history, game officials said. The Powerball jackpot was last won by a player in New York in the Dec. 26, 2018, drawing, officials said.

In New Jersey, one ticket sold that matched five of the five white balls drawn winning the $1 million second-tier prize. That ticket was sold at Frenchtown Market, 28 Sixth St., Frenchtown in Hunterdon County.

In addition to the second-tier prize-winning ticket sold, there were nine New Jersey Lottery tickets sold that matched four of the five white balls and the Powerball drawn winning the $50,000 third-tier prize.

One of those tickets was purchased with the Power Play Multiplier option, multiplying the prize to $150,000. These winning tickets from Wednesday night’s drawing were sold at the following locations:

• Union County ($150,000): Wallis Stationary, 441 Park Ave., Scotch Plains;
• Atlantic County ($50,000): Mays Landing Lukoil, 6068 Harding Hwy., Mays Landing;
• Cumberland County ($50,000): Sunoco, Main St. & Fairton Pike, Fairton;
• Middlesex County ($50,000): Colonia Convenience, 498 Inman Ave., Colonia;
• Middlesex County ($50,000): 7-Eleven #33650, 290 George St., New Brunswick;
• Monmouth County ($50,000): Wine Utopia, 230 Shrewsbury Plaza Route 35, Shrewsbury;
• Morris County ($50,000): Garden State News, 43 Main St., Madison;
• Ocean County ($50,000): Plaza Liquors, 1023 Route 70 W., Manchester; and
• Union County ($50,000): US-1 Discount Liquor, 771-773 Edgar Rd., Elizabeth.

New Jersey, New York, Missouri, Indiana, California and Arizona each had $1 million winners, and Kansas and Minnesota each had $2 million winners in the Wednesday drawing.

The winning Powerball numbers for Wednesday, March 27, are: 16, 20, 37, 44, 62 and the Powerball of 12.

As the Powerball jackpot reached top-four territory, lottery officials reminded players to be mindful of what they can afford to spend.

"It's easy to get excited about such a life-changing jackpot," David Barden, Powerball chairman, said in a news release. "Just remember, it only takes one $2 ticket for a chance to win. Please, play responsibly."

Lottery officials say players should check their tickets for ways to win smaller prizes. Eight tickets matched all five white balls, but missed matching the red Powerball in Saturday's drawing to win a $1 million prize.

The $1 million-winning tickets were sold in Florida, Illinois, North Carolina, North Dakota, New Hampshire, two in New York and South Carolina. Two other tickets, sold in Florida and Wisconsin, matched all five white balls and doubled the prize to $2 million, because the tickets included the Power Play option for an additional $1. In total, there were more than 3.7 million winning tickets across all prize tiers.

The largest Powerball jackpot in history was $1.586 billion, which was shared by winners in California, Florida and Tennessee in January 2016. Someone in South Carolina claimed the $1.6 billion Mega Millions jackpot on Oct. 23, 2018.

The largest Powerball jackpots ever are:

• $1.586 billion, Jan. 13, 2016
• $758.7 million, Aug. 23, 2017
• $688 million, Oct. 27, 2018
• $590.5 million, May 18, 2013
• $587.5 million, Nov. 28, 2012
• $564.1 million, Feb. 11, 2015
• $559.7 million, Jan. 6, 2018
• $487.0 million, July 30, 2016
• $456 million, March 17, 2018
• $448.4 million, Aug. 7, 2013
• $447.8 million, June 10, 2017
• $435.3 million, Feb. 22, 2017

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. Powerball tickets cost $2 each, and are sold at thousands of Lottery retailers. Find out where you can buy your Powerball tickets here.

You have a better chance of hitting the jackpot if you let the computer pick your numbers, according to the Multi-State Lottery Association, which operates the Powerball game and reports that about 75 percent of winning tickets have numbers chosen by a computer.

When millions more players take part in the game at times there's a huge jackpot, that doesn't change your odds of winning, the lottery says. The odds of winning a prize are the same in every Powerball drawing — you have a 1 in 24.9 chance of winning a prize when the jackpot reaches $40 million or $1 billion.

The lottery game is played in 44 states plus the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Powerball drawings can be seen on 125 TV stations nationwide. They may also be available on cable or your mobile device. Drawing shows are also posted to Powerball.com under the video section and to YouTube.

Claiming, Safeguarding Powerball Winnings

So, what should you do if you are lucky enough to claim the Powerball jackpot? 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 counseling services or financial 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 suggest 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.