TEXAS LOTTERY COMMISSION APPROVES POWERBALL® RULE
(Austin) – The Texas Lottery Commission today voted 3-0 to approve the new Powerball® game rule. Sales of Powerball tickets in Texas are expected to begin as early as Sunday, January 31, with the first Powerball drawing for Texas Lottery® players occurring on Wednesday, February 3.
The introduction of Powerball in Texas was made possible by an agreement in principle announced in October 2009 between the Mega Millions® states and the Multi-State Lottery Association to allow
for the sale of both Mega Millions and Powerball tickets in all U.S. lottery jurisdictions. Powerball and Mega Millions are the two multi-jurisdictional lottery games played in the United States and its territories. Mega Millions is currently played in 12 states, including Texas, with a total population of
approximately 161 million. Thirty-one state lotteries, the District of Columbia and the U.S Virgin Islands currently participate in Powerball, with a total population of approximately 130 million.
Powerball Grand/Jackpot prizes begin at $20 million and increase based on projected sales. There are nine prize levels, with prizes starting at $3 for matching only the Powerball. Overall odds of winning any prize are one in 35, and odds of winning the Grand/Jackpot Prize are one in 195,249,054. Players can opt to play the Power Play® multiplier feature for an extra $1 per play for a chance to increase their non-Grand/Jackpot prizes up to 5 times.
The largest advertised jackpot for Powerball was $365 million in February 2006, while the $370 million Mega Millions jackpot record was set in March 2007.
http://www.txlottery.org/export/site...al-Release.pdf