South Carolina man who won nearly $400 million jackpot withholds name

By Harriet McLeod

CHARLESTON, South Carolina (Reuters) - The winner of a nearly $400 million Powerball jackpot has declined to be named, lottery officials said on Monday, but they said the winner who lives near Columbia, South Carolina, told them he bought the ticket while on a mission to buy hot dog buns.

The man stopped at a gasoline station in central South Carolina after his wife asked him to pick up the hot dog buns, but after finding they had none, he bought $20 of Powerball tickets instead, the officials said.

His big win late on Wednesday - the fourth-largest prize in the lottery's history - occurred on just the second time he had purchased tickets, the man told lottery officials.

"This is a life changing event - there are a lot of zeros in this money," Paula Harper Bethea, executive director of the South Carolina Education Lottery, had said last week while the winner remained unknown.

When he came forward on Monday afternoon, the man, who asked not be identified, told lottery officials that he was home alone when he discovered on Thursday that he won. He spun around repeatedly in his kitchen and told only his little dog about his good fortune, lottery officials said.

The man can claim his full prize of $399.4 million paid over 29 years or opt for a more immediate cash payout of $233 million, officials said.

For the state of South Carolina, the jackpot win means an additional $15 million in tax revenue, officials said. The lottery benefits education in the state, they said.

Murphy USA gasoline station in Lexington, South Carolina, where the man bought the machine-generated winning ticket on Wednesday afternoon will be rewarded $50,000 for its role, lottery officials said.

Powerball prizes have been getting larger, in part because the ticket price rose to $2 from $1 in January, and because California, the most populous U.S. state, joined in April.

Powerball is played in 43 states, Washington, D.C., and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Chances of winning the big prize are 1 in 175 million, the lottery said.

The largest Powerball jackpot was $590.5 million, won by a Florida woman in May. Ticket holders in New Jersey and Minnesota shared a $448 million jackpot in August.

The amounts paid to the winners were substantially smaller because they chose cash over an annuity.

(The story refiles to restore dropped word to headline)

(Editing by Scott Malone, Barbara Goldberg and Ken Wills)

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Man wins $31M double jackpot with identical lottery tickets

Harry Black has won an amazing double jackpot worth $31M. (British Columbia Lottery)

Harry Black won an incredible $31.7 million in the lottery. But the way he accomplished it is even more amazing.

As the BBC reports, Black, from British Columbia, won the money thanks to his purchasing two tickets with identical numbers.

"This is a wonderful surprise to all of us," said Kevin Gass of the British Columbia Lottery. "While it's not known how many people buy identical tickets for a draw, it is the first time in the company's recollection that we've had this unique sort of win."

The $63 million jackpot was ultimately split four ways. Meaning that if Black had used his winning numbers on just one ticket, the jackpot would have been split three ways and he would have walked away with a still whopping $20 million.

Black, 66, is not only a huge lottery winner, he's also patient. The Surrey resident has been playing the same lottery numbers since he was 31—which means he waited 35 years for his enormous payday.

Black said he has always purchased two tickets with the same numbers.

For the record, the winning numbers were 02, 10, 17, 19, 44 and 47.

Black already knew he was holding the winning pair of tickets since April 13, but he didn't step forward to claim the jackpot until the end of May while making plans for how he'd spend the money.

“After this is done, I’ve got to get out of Dodge and do something I've never done in my entire life: Go on a holiday,” he told CTV.

Interestingly, Black said he has no plans to retire on his winnings. Instead, he’ll use the proceeds from the jackpot to build a home and go on vacation. He also plans to share some of the winnings with friends and family.

"I already got enough toys,” he said at the press conference where he was awarded his giant lottery check. “I worked hard for them. Maybe I’ll have time to play with them.”

Black said he’d never won more than $10 off a single ticket before. He purchased the two winning tickets at a local Chevron gas station.

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Powerball jackpot could go higher than $600 million

By Karen Brooks

AUSTIN, Texas (Reuters) - The Powerball jackpot Saturday night could exceed the $600 million figure being advertised, possibly rivaling the largest lottery payoff in U.S. history, a Texas Lottery official said on Saturday.

"Oftentimes, the advertised amount is lower than what the actual jackpot ends up being," said Kelly Cripe, a spokeswoman for the Texas Lottery. "It's entirely possible this $600 million jackpot will end up being a bigger jackpot."

Chances of winning the Powerball on Saturday were one in 175 million, Cripe said, but that did not deter people from buying up tickets at staggering rates. California was selling $1 million in tickets every hour on Saturday, said Donna Cordova, a spokeswoman for the California Lottery, which has only been selling Powerball tickets since April 8.

Texas Lottery officials reported $1.2 million in hourly sales between 2 p.m. and 4 p.m. local time, with ticket sales for the Saturday draw topping $18.4 million.

The ticket sale rate on Saturday was nearly double Friday's rate, Cripe said, and a jump of some 686 percent over last Saturday.

The Powerball lottery, which has not had a winner in two months, is offered in 43 states, Washington, D.C., and the U.S. Virgin Islands.

A Powerball lottery record was set in November with a $587.5 million jackpot that topped the $550 million figure that was advertised, thanks to last-minute sales.

The largest jackpot in U.S. history was the $656 million in the Mega Millions lottery in March 2012. That prize was split between winners in Maryland, Kansas and Illinois.

If Saturday's Powerball drawing yields no winner, all records will be shattered as the jackpot for Wednesday's drawing would go to $925 million.

Many Americans were playing the "if I win" game ahead of Saturday's drawing.

"If I win, I'm going to spend a lot of it on liquor, women and gambling," said Austin lawyer Donald Dickson. "I'll likely squander the rest of it."

In New York City, talent acquisition agent Michelle Amici was more philanthropic.

"Not sure that I'd buy anything," she said. "Rather, I'd attempt to quench my wanderlust by traveling the world. I'd also donate a large portion to education reform."

Lottery players such as Austin marketing professional Becky Arreaga was not discouraged by the long odds.

"As long as the odds are 1 in anything, I'm in," said Arreaga, a partner at Mercury Mambo marketing firm. "I truly believe I could be the one."

"It's only a couple bucks for a small daydream," said Russell Williams, 35, a salesman in Austin, Texas.

Bonnie Carreno of El Paso, Texas, rarely plays but was taking a chance on this one. "I only ever buy a ticket when I see the amazing numbers in the headlines," she said.

The $2 tickets allow players pick five numbers from 1 to 59, and a Powerball number from 1 to 35. The numbers will be drawn Saturday at 10:59 p.m. EDT (0259 GMT on Sunday) in Tallahassee, Florida.

(Reporting by Karen Brooks; Editing by Greg McCune, Doina Chiacu and Bill Trott)

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