Mavis Wanczyk Powerball Winner of $758.7 Million Jackpot
Mavis Wanczyk, a Powerball winner from Massachusetts, won a $758.7 million jackpot, which was at the time, the second-highest jackpot prize ever, also the biggest win by a single ticket.
The popular American Powerball lottery did not break its own world record at the time, the $1.58 billion jackpot won in January 2016, but it did record another entry in the record books!
Mavis Wanczyk, 53, was the sole winner of the Powerball’s $758.7 million prize – the second-highest lottery jackpot ever awarded at the time. The 23 August 2017 win was also the fourth-highest annuitized jackpot and cash value prize ever won by a single ticket.
Wanczyk’s winning ticket matched the five numbers and the Powerball selected in the draw: 6 - 7 - 16 - 23 - 26 / Powerball 4
Mavis Wanczyk Powerball winner and her pipe dream come true
Surprisingly, Wanczyk went public just one day after the draw, something most lottery winners don’t do. At a press conference staged by the Massachusetts Lottery, Wanczyk said the win was, for her, “a pipe dream come true.”
“It's just a pipe dream I've always had,” she told reporters. “It's just a chance I had to take.”
Wanczyk chose to take the lump sum cash payment of the prize. After taxes, her check will amount to $336,350,655.
After learning she had won the jackpot, Wanczyk immediately quit her job at the Chicopee Medical Centre where she had worked for 32 years. She said she had purchased five tickets for the draw. Two of them were quick picks, but on one of the tickets she used numbers relating to family birthdays as well as 4, which is her lucky number.
After the draw, one of Wanczyk’s colleagues told her to check the numbers, and that she had won the jackpot. Wanczyk, who still appeared stunned when talking to reporters, said, "I couldn't drive anywhere, I couldn't do anything.”
Wanczyk is the mother of a 31-year-old daughter and a 26-year-old son. Following the announcement of her incredible lottery win, police increased security around her home.
When will Powerball set another jackpot record?
In addition to the jackpot prize, 34 Powerball players became instant millionaires in the draw by winning the $1 million Match 5 prize. And on top of that, 6 players won a $2 million prize by matching the five main numbers and including the Power Play option when they purchased their tickets. Over all, there were 9,397,723 other players who won non-jackpot prizes totalling $134,981,575.
Probably sooner, rather than later, Powerball will award another record-breaking jackpot. After all, Powerball stages some of the biggest lottery draws anywhere!
No matter what the prize, winning the Powerball would still change your life around! (Would you turn to a psychic to choose your lottery numbers? Maybe that would guarantee a win!)
You don’t have to live in the U.S. like Mavis to play, and the cost of a Powerball ticket on Lotto Simple doesn’t even come close to the price of a plane ticket! To have a chance at winning the Powerball, purchase your Powerball tickets now!