ATLANTA – Someone in Georgia woke up this morning as a new multimillionaire and the largest ever Georgia Lottery winner. A single Powerball ticket purchased in Buford matched all six numbers drawn last night to win a jackpot worth $478.2 million. The jackpot has a cash value of $230.6 million.
Quick Mart, located at 2155 Buford Dam Road in Buford, sold the lucky Quik Pik ticket.
“We are thrilled to congratulate Georgia’s newest Powerball jackpot winner, who happens to be the largest winner in our state’s history,” Georgia Lottery President and CEO Gretchen Corbin said. “With every Powerball ticket sold in Georgia supporting HOPE and Pre-K, Georgia’s students are also big winners. As we celebrate our lucky winner, we also thank our players and retailers for their support of our mission.”
The winning numbers for the Wednesday, Oct. 23 Powerball drawing were: 2-15-27-29-39 and the Powerball was 20. The Power Play multiplier was 2X.
Georgia’s lucky ticket holder will have the choice between an annuitized prize of $478.2 million or a lump sum payment of $230.6 million. Both prize options are before taxes. If the winner selects the annuity option, they will receive one immediate payment followed by 29 annual payments.
This is the highest single payout in Georgia Lottery history, surpassing the previous record held by a Mega Millions winner from Stone Mountain, who claimed half of a $648 million jackpot and was awarded a cash option of over $173 million before taxes.
This is also an exciting win for the retailer. Any Georgia Lottery retailer selling a winning Powerball jackpot ticket can earn the $50,000 retailer incentive bonus payment.
In Georgia, Powerball winners have 180 days from the draw date to claim prizes. Georgia Lottery players are reminded to check their tickets for one of the nine ways to win.
It only takes $2 to play Powerball for a chance to win big. Players can multiply non-jackpot prizes with the Power Play option for an additional $1 per play.
Powerball tickets can be purchased at Georgia Lottery retailers statewide. Georgia residents with a Georgia mailing address, who are located in Georgia at the time of purchase, can purchase tickets via the Georgia Lottery app or online at www.galottery.com.
Powerball drawings are held Mondays, Wednesdays and Saturdays at 11 p.m. (ET).
As with all other Georgia Lottery games, proceeds from Powerball will benefit education in the state of Georgia. Since its first year, the Georgia Lottery Corp. has returned more than $28.7 billion to the state of Georgia for education. All Georgia Lottery profits go to pay for specific educational programs, including Georgia’s HOPE Scholarship Program and Georgia’s Pre-K Program. More than 2.1 million students have received HOPE, and more than 2.2 million 4-year-olds have attended the statewide, voluntary prekindergarten program.