Powerball jackpot grows as NJ ticket wins $2M

NEW YORK - The Powerball jackpot has grown to an estimated $1.5 billion after no one matched all of the numbers in Wednesday night's drawing.

But one New Jersey ticket won the $2 million second-tier prize after matching all five white balls and paying for the power play option that doubles the prize.

Another New Jersey ticket and a New York ticket won the $1 million prize by matching all of the white balls.

The Powerball winning numbers from Nov. 2, 2022, were 2-11-22-35-60 and the Power Ball was 23.

The next drawing will be Sat. Nov. 5, 2022.  The cash value for the jackpot is an estimated $745.9 million before taxes.

Additional $2 million tickets were sold in Arkansas and Montana.  $1 million tickets were also sold in Arizona, California, Colorado, Georgia, Maryland, Minnesota, North Carolina, Oregon, Texas, and Virginia.

It’s the fifth-largest lottery jackpot in U.S. history. The biggest prize was a $1.586 billion Powerball jackpot won by three ticketholders in 2016.

No one has hit all six numbers since Aug. 3, a testament to how slim the odds are of winning the jackpot: 1 in 292.2 million.

Massive lottery jackpots have become more common in recent years as lottery officials have adjusted game rules and ticket prices to pump up the top prizes. The most recent tweak came in August when Powerball officials added an additional weekly drawing — going from two drawings a week to three — in an effort to build larger prizes and boost sales.

Although the odds of winning are meager, the chances of someone — or even multiple players — coming up with the winning numbers is growing. That’s because as the jackpot grows, more people pony up to play.

Once a winning ticket matches the drawing, the Powerball jackpot starts over again at $20 million and continues to grow each drawing until it is won.