POWERBALL® JACKPOT REACHES ESTIMATED $275 MILLION FOR SATURDAY DRAWING

Slideshow from Powerball ticket giveaway at the HyVee on Fleur Drive in Des Moines.

Jackpot Ranks As Seventh Largest In Game's History

The jackpot for Saturday's Powerball drawing has grown to an estimated $275 million, making it the seventh-largest prize in the history of the game. The Powerball jackpot was last won on Wednesday, Jan. 16. The $97 million prize that night was won in Louisiana, but it has not yet been claimed. Saturday's drawing is the 17th in the current run.

Iowa Tickets Came Close On Wednesday

Three Powerball tickets sold in Iowa came within one number of winning the jackpot in Wednesday's drawing. The tickets each matched four of the first five numbers and the Powerball to win $10,000 prizes. The tickets were sold at: Hy-Vee Gas, 912 Jefferson in Indianola; Kum & Go at 8228 Douglas Ave. in Urbandale; and Kum & Go at 1465 Fourth St. S.E. in Mason City.

Time Is Running Out For $10,000 Powerball Prize In Dubuque

There are just a couple days left for the owner of a $10,000-winning Powerball ticket sold in Dubuque to claim the prize. The ticket was sold at AWN Stop Mart, 1401 Central Ave. in Dubuque, for the Powerball drawing on March 17, 2007. The ticket matched four of the regular numbers and the Powerball. The winning numbers that night were: 7-17-44-47-54 and Powerball 3. The winner has until 4 p.m. Monday to claim the prize.

About the Jackpot

Powerball jackpot winners can choose to receive their prizes as a lump-sum payment or in annuitized annual payments. Saturday's cash option amount is $135.7 million. The largest Powerball jackpot in the history of the game was $365 million. That prize was won in February 2006 by eight co-workers at a meat-packing plant in Nebraska.

Powerball Shopping

The $275 million Powerball jackpot would mean the winner could do some real power shopping. Among the luxury items that could be purchased with the winnings:

• More than 21,150 2-carat, princess-cut diamond rings with gold settings (retail price of $12,999).
• About 806 2009 Bentley Brooklands coupes (base price $340,990).
• About 68 Fairline Squadron 78 yachts (about $4 million each).
• Or, the winner could decide to share the prize with a few of his/her closest friends: With $275 million, you could give $92.03 to each resident of Iowa (2007 population of 2,988,046).

Powerball Winners Overall

Since its start in April 1992, the Powerball jackpot has been won 203 times, involving a total of 232 winners. Jackpot winners in Powerball have claimed prizes totaling about $7.7 billion. But in addition to the jackpot, Powerball winners have claimed smaller prizes totaling more than $5.2 billion. Iowa Lottery players have claimed jackpots totaling more than $393 million.

Iowa Jackpot Winners

Iowa Lottery players have claimed six Powerball jackpots:

• Ed Brown of Washington split a $10.4 million jackpot with a woman from Missouri in December 1992.
• Tim Schultz of Des Moines won $28 million in February 1999.
• The Larry Hasken family of Sabula claimed a $31.8 million jackpot in January 2000.
• Jacquelyn Moore of Omaha, Neb., won $14.4 million in October 2004. (She bought her ticket at a convenience store in Carter Lake in western Iowa.)
• Hugh Hawkins of Des Moines claimed a $113.2 million jackpot in December 2005.
• Tim & Kellie Guderian of Fort Dodge claimed a $200.8 million jackpot in October 2006.

Powerball History

Sales in the Powerball game began on April 19, 1992. Today, Powerball tickets are sold in Iowa, 28 other states, the District of Columbia and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Powerball jackpots start at a guaranteed $15 million. Players choose five numbers from a pool of 55 numbers and another number -- the Powerball -- from a pool of 42. Plays cost $1 and drawings are at 9:59 p.m. on Wednesdays and Saturdays. Players who purchase the Power Play for an additional $1 can multiply their winnings (except for the jackpot) by up to five times the amount.

Since the Iowa Lottery's inception in 1985, more than $2.1 billion has been awarded in prizes and more than $1.1 billion has been raised for state programs.