Staggering $1.73 billion Powerball prize is up for grabs: Second-highest ever lottery prize is set to be drawn tonight after 35 straight drawings without a winner

The second-highest lottery prize ever will be announced tonight at 10:59 pm. drawn after the Powerball has gone through 35 draws in a row with no winner.

The Powerball jackpot climbed to a shocking $1.73 billion after another drawing with no one matching the game’s six numbers on Oct. 9.

The $1.73 billion prize would be the second highest lottery prize of all time – but the winner would take home $757 million if they chose the lump sum option.

The largest US lottery jackpot in history was a staggering $2.04 billion won on November 8, 2022 in California.

Edwin Castro was the lucky winner who used his fortune to buy luxury real estate in Los Angeles from celebrity realtor Mauricio Umansky.

The Powerball jackpot climbed to a shocking $1.73 billion after another drawing with no one matching the game’s six numbers on Oct. 9

The $1.73 billion prize would be the second highest lottery prize of all time

He dropped $47 million on an LA mansion with 11 bathrooms, a koi pond, an enormous infinity pool and seven bedrooms.

Castro, 31, came forward to claim the winnings from the $2.04 billion draw, opting to take the lump sum of $997.6 million. Since then, he has been spotted in a Porsche and at his multiple homes.

The winning ticket — 10, 33, 41, 47, 56 and Powerball 10 — was sold at the Altadena store, which also earned a $1 million payout for the historic win.

Castro’s identity was revealed at a press conference he declined to attend to remain ‘private’. But California state law requires lottery winners to reveal their full names, whether they want to or not.

The previous runner-up was $1.586 billion on January 13, 2016 won by three tickets from California, Florida and Tennessee.

Powerball drawings are held three times a week on Monday, Wednesday and Sunday at 10:59 PM EST.

When someone wins the lottery, they usually have two options on how to claim their prize money.

Either they accept a lump sum, which is paid to them immediately, or they claim the full ‘headline’ jackpot amount, which will be paid to them in annuities over the next 30 years.

Edwin Castro was the lucky winner of the top jackpot of $2.04 billion. He used his fortune to buy luxury real estate in Los Angeles from the famous realtor Mauricio Umansky

If the winner of Wednesday’s $1.73 billion Powerball chooses a lump sum payment, as nearly 98 percent of past winners have, they will receive about $757 million immediately.

That may be a lot of money, but as a percentage of the advertised jackpot amount, it’s the lowest it’s been since at least 2003, just 44 percent.

Powerball’s outrageous odds of 1 in 292.2 million are designed to generate huge jackpots, with prizes getting bigger and bigger as they repeatedly roll over when no one wins. And victories in recent months have been few and far between.

That didn’t bother those eager to plunk down their money for a long shot at instant riches.

Robert Salvato Jr., a 60-year-old electrician, bought 40 Powerball tickets at a hardware store in Billerica, Massachusetts.

“I would take care of family and give my cat that extra leg she needs and make her a good kitten,” said Salvato, who got married Saturday.

“I could put a ring on her every finger, I think,” Salvato said of his new wife.

Nevada is one of five states without Powerball, so friends Tamara Carter and Denise Davis drove from Las Vegas across the state line to California to buy tickets. But the line was so long at their first stop that they gave up and went looking for another store.

“The line was about three hours long,” Carter estimates. “I waited maybe half an hour, and it didn’t move.”

The jackpot has grown enormously as a result of a long dry spell. The previous Powerball winning ticket was sold on July 19 and was worth $1.08 billion after 39 draws without a jackpot win.

At the same hardware store as Salvato, Kevin Button seemed to understand the long odds when he bought a ticket.

“I usually only buy them when the jackpot is high,” Button said. ‘Looks like it’s been pretty high lately. So I’ve tried quite a few times and haven’t even won a free ticket yet. But maybe tonight is the night.’

The largest US lottery jackpot in history was a staggering $2.04 billion won on November 8, 2022 in California

The $1.73 billion jackpot is for a single winner who opts for payment through an annuity, distributed over 30 years. Winners almost always take the cash option, which is estimated at $756.6 million for Wednesday night’s drawing

In most states, a Powerball ticket costs $2 and players can choose their own numbers or leave that task to a computer.

The $1.73 billion jackpot is for a single winner who opts for payment through an annuity, distributed over 30 years. Winners almost always take the cash option, which is estimated at $756.6 million for Wednesday night’s drawing.

Winnings will be subject to federal taxes, and many states also tax lottery winnings.

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