Winning Powerball Numbers For May 20, 2017: $250 Million

It happens every Wednesday and Saturday, and it's an event followed by millions of people around the nation. It's the Powerball, and let's get right to it: Here are the winning numbers for Saturday, May 20: 5, 22, 45, 47, 54 and Red Powerball number 3. Did you win anything?

Before you get upset, don't worry, because the jackpot remained untouched, which means the kitty rises to $250 million. That's what will be at stake in the draw to take place on Wednesday, May 24 (there were $1 million Match 5 Winners in Saturday's draw in California and Florida).

Want to know where to buy your lucky tickets? Click here for the Texas lottery retailer database.

The record in the Powerball game was a $1.6 billion drawing in January 2016, which was won by a group of Tennessee workers. Just recently, on Feb. 22, a lucky player in Indiana won the $435 million Powerball jackpot, the 10th largest in the game's history.

Each ticket costs $2. Saturday's jackpot is small compared with the January 2016 record Powerball jackpot, which was worth nearly $1.6 billion. But Americans will still drop by the nearest convenience store with dreams of cash and buy a ticket. The billion-dollar-plus prize won in the Jan. 13, 2016, drawing was the largest lotto jackpot awarded in U.S. history and was split by three winners. In the summer of 2016, a New Hampshire player won a $478 million prize.

If you still want to take a chance — someone has to win, right? — you have better odds of hitting the jackpot if you let the computer pick your numbers. The Multi-State Lottery Association, which operates the Powerball game, says about 75 percent of winning tickets are chosen by a computer.

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The Powerball lottery game is played in 44 states, plus the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Powerball draws can be seen on hundreds of TV stations nationwide. It also may be available on cable or on your mobile device. The draws are also posted on YouTube and on our site.

Claiming, Safeguarding Winnings
So, what should you do if you win the big prize? Many lottery winners hire an attorney, financial planner, or both, since most people don’t exactly know what to do when they suddenly come into so much money. Some even bring their lawyer with them to claim their prize. The lottery does not offer any counseling services or advice for winners.

You have two choices when you claim your prize: the full value paid in 30 installments over 29 years, or a one-time lump sum that is smaller than the actual total.

Then there are the taxes. The federal tax on lottery winnings is 25 percent. Then, any extra income taxes like state or city would apply.

Financial experts say that if you can get more than a 3 or 4 percent return on an investment, the lump sum is actually the best way to go in the long term.

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(Patch Editors James Brock and Deb Belt contributed to this story.)
Image: Powerball