Wednesday’s jackpot climbs to $1.5 Billion, $930 million lump sum
Office banter about winning the Powerball turned into more than talk for John Lee from Garland and Christina Ammons from Clinton after they bought a ticket that won $150,000.
Ammons and Clinton said the excitement about Powerball reached Prestage Farms in Clinton last week. And after all the buzz about the jackpot they decided to buy five tickets for the Jan. 9 drawing.
When Ammons realized they had a winning ticket, she immediately called Lee.
“We’re one number away from being millionaires,” she said.
“You got to be kidding me,” he replied.
To win $150,000, they bought $3 Power Play tickets and matched four of the five white balls and the red Powerball. The prize tripled from $50,000 to $150,000 when the 3x multiplier was drawn for Power Play tickets.
Lee and Ammons claimed their prize at lottery headquarters in Raleigh Monday afternoon. After required state and federal tax withholdings each took home $51,937. Ammons said she’ll use the money to pay off student loans and Lee said he hasn’t decided yet.
They bought the winning ticket at the Express Mart on Taylors Bridge Highway in Clinton.
In all, Saturday’s drawing resulted in four winning tickets worth $150,000 and five tickets worth $50,000 in North Carolina.
Wednesday’s jackpot has reached $1.5 billion with an estimated lump sum of $930 million.
Ticket sales from games like Powerball helped the lottery raise more than half a billion dollars for the state last year. A sale of a $2 Powerball ticket raises about 76 cents for education.
