One winner emerges in record U.S. lottery drawing

DEARBORN, Missouri (AP) ― One winner emerged, and the other remained a mystery, for the record $588 million Powerball jackpot that had people across the U.S. scrambling to try their luck this week.

Missouri Lottery officials on Thursday verified one of two tickets that matched all six numbers to split the winnings and set a news conference for Friday morning. The other ticket was sold in Arizona.

A nationwide ticket-buying spree preceded Wednesday’s drawing, with the big money enticing many people who rarely, if ever, play the lottery to buy a shot at the payout.

Winners in both states have 180 days to claim their share of the prize money.

The $587.5 million payout represents the second-largest jackpot in U.S. history.

Tickets sold at a rate of 130,000 a minute nationwide ― about six times the volume from a week ago. That pushed the jackpot even higher, said Chuck Strutt, executive director of the Multi-State Lottery Association. The jackpot rolled over 16 consecutive times without a winner.

In a Mega Millions drawing in March, three ticket buyers shared a $656 million jackpot. This remains the largest lottery payout of all time.