An updated version of the Kentucky Lottery’s Powerball game is now available.
Plays will still cost $2 each but there will be “better overall odds of winning any prize,” a big jump up to $50,000 for the game’s third prize level, and a chance for players to multiply secondary prize winnings by up to 10 times when the jackpot is $150 million or less, according to a press release from Kentucky Lottery.
Sales of the redesigned game began Sunday, and the first drawing with the new features will be on Wednesday night.
There will be changes to both sets of numbers that players use. Players will choose their first five numbers from a set of 69 (currently 59) white balls and their Powerball from a pool of 26 (currently 35) red balls.
Powerball jackpots will continue to start at $40 million and the game’s second prize for matching the first five numbers but missing the Powerball will still be $1 million.
The game’s third prize level is getting a five-fold increase from $10,000 to $50,000 for matching four of the first five numbers and the Powerball.
The game’s Power Play option also will get a big expansion with a 10X feature for secondary prizes when jackpots in the game are at lower levels.
“Powerball sales in Kentucky – and as a whole across the nation – have not been where we want them to be,” said Kentucky Lottery President and CEO Arch Gleason. “That’s due in large part to the lack of major and sustained jackpot runs, which always capture the public’s attention. These changes should help us deliver the big jackpots players want, all while bumping up some of our secondary prizes as well.”
Powerball drawings will continue to be held at 10:59 p.m. Eastern on Wednesdays and Saturdays.
From the Kentucky Lottery