Arkansas Player Wins Historic $1.8 Billion Powerball Jackpot on Christmas Eve
It turned into a once-in-a-lifetime Christmas for one incredibly lucky Powerball player in Arkansas.
A single ticket sold at a Murphy USA gas station in Cabot matched all the numbers in the Christmas Eve drawing, locking in a jaw-dropping $1.8 billion Powerball jackpot. Thanks to a late surge in ticket sales, the final jackpot climbed to $1.817 billion, with a cash option of about $834.9 million—now officially the second-largest lottery prize in U.S. history.
What made this win extra special
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? Christmas Eve victory — the first holiday jackpot ever to cross $1 billion
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? 47 drawings in this run, a Powerball record
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? Biggest Powerball prize of the year
The winning numbers were 4, 25, 31, 52, and 59, with Powerball 19 and a Power Play of 2.
Powerball officials called it a life-changing moment, noting how rare and historic this win truly is. Cabot, a quiet suburb outside Little Rock with just over 27,000 residents, suddenly became the center of lottery history.
Plenty of other winners, too
While only one ticket hit the jackpot:
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8 tickets won $1 million each across seven states
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114 tickets scored $50,000
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31 tickets picked up $100,000
After this massive payout, the Powerball jackpot resets to $20 million for the next drawing.
Winners can choose between:
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A lump-sum payout (the most popular option), or
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An annuity plan with one upfront payment and 29 yearly payments that grow by 5 percent
Powerball drawings are held every Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday at 10:59 p.m. ET.
