POWERBALL® CHANGES:
BIGGER JACKPOTS, BETTER OVERALL ODDS

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New Features In Game Debut Jan. 4

DES MOINES, Iowa – Changes coming to Powerball will create larger, faster-growing jackpots, improve the overall odds of winning in the game and create more $1 million winners.

The changes that take effect Jan. 4 are designed to meet player expectations for big jackpots and accommodate population changes in the game. Powerball sales began in April 1992 with 15 lotteries, including Iowa, participating in the game. In January, Florida will become the 32nd lottery selling Powerball tickets.

The major updates that begin Jan. 4 include:

• the starting jackpot will increase from $15 million to $20 million.
• the Match 5 prize with the Power Play® option will always have a 5X multiplier, pushing the second prize with the Power Play option to $1 million.* Players can increase their prizes (except the jackpot) up to five times with the Power Play. The cost is $1 per play.
• the overall odds in the game will improve to 1 in 35.1, which will result in more than 3 million extra prizes won per year across the Powerball game.
• four white balls will be added to the first pool in the game, meaning players will choose five numbers from 59. But three red balls will be removed from the Powerball pool, meaning players will choose one number from 39. The net effect is that one ball will be added to the overall mix, a design that should create faster-growing jackpots while making it easier for players to win other prizes. The average jackpot in the game is expected to increase from $95.5 million to $141 million.
• the odds of winning the jackpot will increase to 1 in 195.2 million.
• the game’s drawings on Wednesday and Saturday nights will move from Iowa to Florida, although the Powerball's headquarters office will remain in Urbandale, Iowa.

Iowa Lottery acting CEO Ken Brickman said that Powerball's changes are part of a popular product's evolution over time.

"Powerball has proven to be the country's most popular jackpot game and its sales have raised billions of dollars for the worthy causes benefited by lottery proceeds," Brickman said. "Players tell us they expect large jackpots in the game and we'll continue to deliver those. We'll also turn up the excitement level for those players who hit Powerball's Match 5 prize."

The number of advance plays that Powerball players in Iowa can purchase will temporarily decrease as the date of the changes approaches. Players currently can buy Powerball tickets for up to seven drawings in advance. That number will continue to decrease by one with each drawing for the next couple of weeks. On Jan. 4, players again will be able to buy Powerball tickets for up to 10 drawings in advance in Iowa.

Even with the changes, Powerball plays will still cost $1 and the game's drawings will be held at 9:59 p.m. on Wednesdays and Saturdays.

"Powerball's appeal will continue to be that it only costs $1 to play," Brickman said. "You can do a lot of dreaming for just a dollar!"

Powerball began in April 1992 as a 5/45 + 1/45 game. The upcoming change is the game's fifth design. Powerball's largest jackpot to date was $365 million in the drawing on Feb. 18, 2006. That prize was won by eight co-workers at a Nebraska meatpacking plant.

Since the Iowa Lottery's start in 1985, its players have won more than $2.2 billion in prizes while the lottery has raised more than $1.1 billion for state programs.

* The set prize amounts are based on the expected number of winners sharing in the prize pool. In some cases, these prizes may be paid on a pari-mutuel basis and will be lower.