Powerball numbers drawn, players await record jackpot result

The numbers have been drawn, but players were still awaiting the announcement of a possible winner in the record $1.6 billion Powerball jackpot Saturday night.

The numbers for the drawing were: white balls 28, 45, 53, 56 and 69, and red Powerball 20.

It was not immediately clear if there was a grand prize winner for the enormous jackpot. It can sometimes take hours for state lotteries to report in and determine if there is a winner.

A jackpot winner would face a choice of taking payment through an annuity, which doles out the money over 29 years, or opting for cash. Nearly all winners go with cash, which for Saturday night’s drawing would be an estimated $782.4 million.

The odds of any given ticket winning the Powerball jackpot are 1 in 292.2 million, and it’s those long odds that have led to three months without anyone matching all six balls.

The record jackpot has narrowly edged out the previous high, a $1.586 billion prize won by three ticketholders in 2016.

Powerball is played in 45 states as well as Washington, D.C., Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands.