Powerball nears $1 billion prize right before the holiday weekend

The Powerball on Saturday will be the sixth-largest prize in the game's history

If won Saturday, the jackpot offers a $950 million annuity or a $428.9 million cash payout before taxes (Getty Images)

Who wants to be a multi-millionaire?

The Powerball jackpot has skyrocketed to an estimated $950 million, becoming the sixth-largest prize in the game's history, after no player matched the winning numbers in Wednesday’s drawing.

The numbers drawn were 9, 12, 22, 41, 61, with the red Powerball 25.

The next drawing is set for Saturday, and the winner will have the option to claim the $950 million annuity or take a lump-sum cash payout of approximately $428.9 million before taxes.

Although no one claimed the top prize, six players still secured significant secondary winnings.

If won Saturday, the jackpot offers a $950 million annuity or a $428.9 million cash payout before taxes (Getty Images)

Three tickets purchased in Mississippi, Ohio, and Virginia each earned $2 million after matching all five white balls with the Power Play multiplier.

Another three tickets, sold in Arizona, New York, and Virginia, also matched all five white balls but without the Power Play option. Each of those players walked away with $1 million.

It has been roughly four months since the last jackpot winner, with the game now on a 38-drawing roll-over streak.

The jackpot’s growth dates back to May 31, when a player in California claimed a $204.5 million prize. Since then, 56 tickets have won $1 million or more, and 558 have pocketed $50,000 or more.

Saturday's Powerball will be the sixth-largest prize in the game's history (Getty Images)

The biggest jackpot to date reached $2.04 billion in November 2022, setting a U.S. lottery record. It was followed by a $1.765 billion prize awarded last October.

In January 2016, a historic $1.586 billion jackpot was split among winners in three different states.

More recently, this April, another massive prize reached $1.326 billion.

A Powerball ticket costs $2, with an optional $1 Power Play that multiplies non-jackpot prizes up to 10x when the jackpot is $150 million or less, and up to 5x for larger jackpots.

The game is sold across 45 states, Washington, D.C., Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands.

Since its inception in 1992, the lottery has raised more than $36 billion for jurisdictions across the U.S.