Powerball player just misses $429M jackpot, but still wins big in North Carolina
A Powerball player just missed a $429 million jackpot prize — but still won big in North Carolina.
The player bought a ticket that matched all but one number picked in the Aug. 4 drawing, making it worth $50,000, results show.
The winning numbers: white balls 8-9-19-31-38, with red Powerball 21.
The player got richer in Lenoir, a roughly 75-mile drive northwest from Charlotte. The lucky ticket was sold for $2 at the Food Lion grocery store on Wilkesboro Boulevard Northeast, an N.C. Education Lottery spokesperson told McClatchy News via email.
It turns out, the ticket matched four white balls and the red Powerball to win big. But it was one number from hitting the jackpot, which stood at an estimated $429 million the night of the drawing, according to the state lottery and Powerball websites.
Lottery officials shared news of the $50,000 win early Aug. 5, before the lucky ticket holder would have been able to claim their prize in person. In North Carolina, Powerball winners have about six months to cash in, rules show.
What to know about Powerball
To score the jackpot in the Powerball, a player must match all five white balls and the red Powerball.
The odds of scoring the jackpot prize are 1 in 292,201,338.
Tickets can be bought on the day of the drawing, but sales times and price vary by state.
Drawings are broadcast Saturdays, Mondays and Wednesdays at 10:59 p.m. ET and can be streamed online.
Powerball is played in 45 states, Washington, D.C., Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
