It’s Wednesday, and that means another Powerball drawing with big payout potential. For May 4, the top prize has reached an estimated $37 million. Tonight’s jackpot has a cash value of $22.1 million before withholding. That’s the amount a jackpot winner can choose to take in a single payment, instead of spreading the larger payout over 30 annual payments.
There was no Grand Prize winner in the previous drawing, and no second-tier $1 million winners, either. However, the rare 5x Power Play multiplier was drawn on Monday, triggering some larger-than-usual prizes for players that used the Power Play option on their tickets. A lucky player here in PA won $250,000 with the multiplier.
Check your numbers below after the drawing at 11:00 p.m. ET.
Powerball winning numbers for Wednesday, May 4, 2022
Winning numbers: 37 – 39 – 55 – 63 – 69
Powerball: 23
Multiplier: 2x
How rare is the 5x multiplier?
That lucky PA player bought their ticket at Tiger Mart in West Mifflin, Allegheny County. The ticket matched four of the five white balls, plus the red Powerball. Without Power Play, that ticket would be worth $50,000.
The odds of the 5x multiplier coming up, as it did on Monday, are one in 21.5 draws. In comparison, the 2x multiplier has a one in 1.79 chance, and the odds of drawing the 3x multiplier are one in 3.31. The highest multiplier is 10x, and the odds of seeing it are one in 43.
Two other players on Monday hit the $250,000 win by using Power Play, and seven others matched the same numbers without Power Play.
Power Play is the $1 Powerball add-on that multiplies all prizes other than the jackpot, based on the multiplier number drawn. The only exception is the second-tier $1 million prize, which is only doubled on a Power Play ticket, no matter what multiplier is drawn.
Skip the line, buy online
Whether you opt for Power Play or not on your Powerball ticket, you can opt to skip the line and grab your tickets at the PA online lottery. New customers to the site get a $20 free play bonus just for signing up. Add money to your player account and enjoy the deposit match bonus that can increase your bankroll up to $500.
