COLUMBIA, SC (September 30, 2015) – Changes are coming to the Powerball® game.
Get ready for better overall odds and a chance to multiply winnings up to 10 times starting next Wednesday.
Also changing, your odds of winning the jackpot. In a move designed to lift jackpots to records not seen since 2013 when the prize soared to $590 million, the odds are increasing to 1 in 292,201,338 up from 1 in 175,223,510.
And while the jackpot will be harder to win, your chance at winning any prize is improving. Overall game odds will be their lowest ever, down from 1 in 31.8 to 1 in 24.9.
Another first is a possible $500,000 win.
For players spending the extra $1 for PowerPlay®, a new 10X multiplier will be added to the mix when jackpots are $150 million or less. This means players matching four numbers and the red Powerball® number could win up to $500,000, that’s up from $50,000. The 10X multiplier disappears when jackpots exceed $150 million.
The changes take effect for the Wednesday, October 7 drawing.
“The positives are many, and we feel the possibility of more overall winners will appeal to our players,” said Education Lottery Executive Director Paula Harper Bethea.
It has been three years since Powerball® has made any significant changes, then doubling the cost to play to $2 and adding a $1 million prize to create more millionaires. Since those changes, South Carolina has celebrated a $399 million jackpot winner and produced 19 millionaires.
“Our players will have to decide if they like what the new Powerball® has to offer,” said Bethea, who isn’t making any sales predications ahead of the game change. “And if we see a boom in jackpots, we want our players to above all else to please, play responsibly.”
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Get ready for better overall odds and a chance to multiply winnings up to 10 times starting next Wednesday.
Also changing, your odds of winning the jackpot. In a move designed to lift jackpots to records not seen since 2013 when the prize soared to $590 million, the odds are increasing to 1 in 292,201,338 up from 1 in 175,223,510.
And while the jackpot will be harder to win, your chance at winning any prize is improving. Overall game odds will be their lowest ever, down from 1 in 31.8 to 1 in 24.9.
Another first is a possible $500,000 win.
For players spending the extra $1 for PowerPlay®, a new 10X multiplier will be added to the mix when jackpots are $150 million or less. This means players matching four numbers and the red Powerball® number could win up to $500,000, that’s up from $50,000. The 10X multiplier disappears when jackpots exceed $150 million.
The changes take effect for the Wednesday, October 7 drawing.
“The positives are many, and we feel the possibility of more overall winners will appeal to our players,” said Education Lottery Executive Director Paula Harper Bethea.
It has been three years since Powerball® has made any significant changes, then doubling the cost to play to $2 and adding a $1 million prize to create more millionaires. Since those changes, South Carolina has celebrated a $399 million jackpot winner and produced 19 millionaires.
“Our players will have to decide if they like what the new Powerball® has to offer,” said Bethea, who isn’t making any sales predications ahead of the game change. “And if we see a boom in jackpots, we want our players to above all else to please, play responsibly.”
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