Illinois Lottery gives away free Powerball tickets for $1 billion jackpot winning numbers drawing
Illinois Lottery hosting 'Halloween Ticket Grab Challenge'
CHICAGO (WLS) -- Powerball fever has swept Illinois with the jackpot at $1 billion for the drawing Monday night.
If someone wins Monday, it will be the second-largest jackpot in Powerball history.
The winning numbers are 13, 19, 36, 39, 59 and the Power Ball was 13. The Power Play was 3X.
The jackpot rolled over on Saturday night after no ticket matched all six numbers drawn.
Feeling lucky? Powerball jackpot rises to $1 billion for Monday's drawing
To celebrate Monday, the Illinois Lottery hosted a "Halloween Ticket Grab Challenge," hoping to turn the spookiest day of the year into the luckiest for some players.
The Illinois Lottery will give players the chance to scoop up over 1,000 free Powerball tickets at one of the top ten "winningest" Powerball stores in Illinois.
The Lucky Mart on the Southwest Side has sold the most winning Powerball tickets in Illinois this year.
It's located in the 2900-block of West 87th Street. The event took place 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. Players had a few seconds to grab as many tickets as they could from inside a machine.
Lottery officials are encouraging players to wear their costumes and show their Halloween spirit.
"I'm going to go in the machine and hope for the best," lottery player Marsha Patterson said. "I'm going to grab, it only takes one, so whatever I grab the rest of them will be a bonus."
"I'm gonna try and grab the winner," lottery player Frank Clark said.
When asked what he would do with the money, Clark said, "Well I could tell you 1 million things but I really don't know."
The line was nearly two blocks long at one point.
"People want a reason to dream, and this game offers that opportunity. And people do win, so it's not an impossible dream," said Illinois Lottery Director Harold Mayes.
It is, however, a one in 300 million dream, but still one worth having for those wanting to take their chances.
"It's the excitement, it's the thrill it's the rush. You probably are going to get struck by lightning before you win but it's just something to do. It's fun. The thrill of it," said Rhonda Robinson.
Deborah Matlock bought her tickets at the Southwest Side store.
"I feel like I'm going to be a winner. I don't have to have it all. I'm amongst the needy not the greedy. Several of us can win now," she said.
But, what is in those billion-dollar champagne wishes and caviar dreams? As it turns out, a lot of charity.
"Bless everybody that needs it. Everybody that needs it. That's my main goal. Bless everybody who needs it and in this times right now a whole lot of people need," said Denete Mason.
MORE: What are the odds of winning the Mega Millions lottery jackpot?
Saturday's jackpot has a cash value of $497.3 million.
RELATED: What to consider if you win the lottery
The biggest all-time lottery jackpot was a $1.5863 billion Powerball prize in 2016.
SEE ALSO: Why does the Powerball jackpot get so high?
Powerball is played in 45 states. Odds of winning the Powerball jackpot is 1 in 292 million.
10 biggest Mega Millions, Powerball jackpots won in US lottery history
1. $1.586 billion, Powerball, Jan. 13, 2016 (three tickets, from California, Florida, Tennessee)
2. $1.537 billion, Mega Millions, Oct. 23, 2018 (one ticket, from South Carolina)
3. $1.337 billion, Mega Millions, July 29, 2022 (one ticket, from Illinois)
4. $1.05 billion, Mega Millions, Jan. 22, 2021 (one ticket, from Michigan)
5. $768.4 million, Powerball, March 27, 2019 (one ticket, from Wisconsin)
6. $758.7 million, Powerball, Aug. 23, 2017 (one ticket, from Massachusetts)
7. $731.1 million, Powerball, Jan. 20, 2021 (one ticket, from Maryland)
8. $699.8 million, Powerball, Oct. 4, 2021 (one ticket, from California)
9. $687.8 million, Powerball, Oct. 27, 2018 (two tickets, from Iowa and New York)
10. $656 million, Mega Millions, March 30, 2012 (three tickets, from Kansas, Illinois and Maryland)
