Would you like to know you were just one number off becoming a Powerball multi-millionaire? Or would you prefer to remain blissfully unaware?
For the past five draws, no entry has sported the winning combination of seven winning numbers and the all-important Powerball number needed to score division one.
This Thursday, Powerball is offering Aussies the chance to win a massive $160 million – the biggest jackpot ever offered by an Australian lottery game.
However, since the jackpot started rolling in mid-September, 34 players in the past five draws have been just one number shy of pocketing a multi-million-dollar division one prize. These players had the seven winning numbers, but not the Powerball number, meaning they won division two instead.
The 34 Powerball division two winners of the past five weeks have collectively pocketed more than $4.17 million in prize money.
Eleven of these division two winners were from New South Wales, nine were from Queensland, six were from Western Australia, five were from Victoria, and three were from South Australia.
In last week’s draw alone, 15 division two winners each banked a prize of $139,057.90.
With up half of Australian adults expected to have an entry in Thursday’s Powerball draw, The Lott spokesperson Matt Hart said players would be on tenterhooks waiting to see if they collected the $160 million prize.
“We’re not quite sure if the recent Powerball division two winners realise how agonisingly close they’ve been to taking home a life-changing windfall,” he said.
“Remarkably, if any one of these division two winners had played a PowerHit entry, an entry that guarantees you the Powerball number, they would have won division one.
“Of course, regardless of what type of entry you have, as long as you have it in your hand before the draw’s close at 7.30pm AEST on Thursday night, you’re in with a chance to win!
The tickets that have won Powerball this year
QuickPick Vs marked
- Two-thirds of the 2022 Powerball division one winning entries have been QuickPicks – where the lottery terminal randomly chooses the numbers for you.
Entry types
- About a quarter (26.6%) of the 2022 Powerball division one winning entries have been PowerHit entries – an entry unique to Powerball that guarantees the all-important Powerball number you need to win division one.
- Another quarter (26.6%) of the 2022 Powerball division one winning entries have been 18-game entries.
- A 4-game entry is the smallest entry to have won a multi-million-dollar Powerball prize this year.
Tickets into Powerball draw 1380 on Thursday 27 October 2022 can be purchased at any licenced lottery outlet, online from thelott.com or via The Lott mobile app.
In FY22, 16 Powerball division one winning entries across Australia pocketed more than $681.7 million in prize money.
Of the 16 Powerball division one winning entries in FY22, seven landed in New South Wales, four in Victoria, three in Queensland and two in Western Australia.
The official home of Australia’s lotteries, The Lott operates and markets Australia’s leading lottery games customers know and love creating everyday winners, winning every day.
In FY22, more than 133.5 million winners took home more than $3.93 billion in prize money from their favourite games at The Lott, including Saturday Lotto, Monday & Wednesday Lotto, Powerball, Oz Lotto, Set for Life, Lucky Lotteries, Keno, Super 66, Lotto Strike and Instant Scratch-Its.
Last financial year, Australia’s official lotteries contributed more than $1.6 billion via state lottery taxes and donations to help community initiatives, such as hospitals, health research, disaster relief and education.