A winning Powerball ticket was sold in South Carolina. Check your pockets
There hasn’t been a grand prize Powerball winner in three months, causing the jackpot to grow to $1.7 billion.
But someone came extremely close to resetting the sweepstakes, buying a ticket that turned out to be one number shy of winning the grand prize, South Carolina Education Lottery officials said Tuesday in a news release.
While the person who bought the ticket at Greenwood gas station/convenience store didn’t hit the jackpot, they will be rewarded with a $50,000 consolation prize, according to the release.
Now the search is on for the ticket buyer.
The ticket sold at the Quick Pantry at 232 Calhoun Ave., matched four of the five white numbers and the red Powerball number, lottery officials said.
The winning numbers in Monday’s drawing were 16, 34, 46, 55, 67 and Powerball: 14.
The winner has 180 days to claim the prize, according to lottery officials.
The winner will be allowed to retain some privacy, as South Carolina is one of 11 states — along with Arizona, Delaware, Georgia, Kansas, Maryland, New Jersey, North Dakota, Ohio, Texas and Virginia — that allow lottery winners to remain anonymous.
The odds of matching four white balls and the red Powerball for the prize are 1-in-913,129, according to the South Carolina Education Lottery website.
“Sign the back of your ticket and put it in a safe location until you’re ready to come forward to claim the prize,” lottery officials said.
For complete information on claiming prizes, go to sceducationlottery.com.
Quick Pantry will receive a commission of $500 when the winning ticket is claimed and turned in to lottery officials, according to the release.
The now $1.7 billion grand prize will be at stake in the next Powerball drawing on Wednesday night. It will mark the 36th drawing since the last grand prize winner back in July, lottery officials said. If the new jackpot is won, the ticket holder can choose a cash payout of $756 million.
Anyone looking to buy a ticket for Wednesday’s Powerball drawing, the second largest in the game’s history, must make a purchase by 9:59 p.m. for the 10:59 p.m. drawing, according to the release.
Tickets are $2, and could cost more with additional options.
The odds of winning the jackpot are 1-in-293 million.
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