What a waste! $77 million Powerball jackpot expires after winner fails to claim their prize
Last updated at 11:25 PM on 27th December 2011
A winning Powerball ticket, sold in west Georgia last summer, expired Monday after no one came forward to claim the jackpot.
Georgia Lottery spokesman Kimberly Starks said on Tuesday that it was 'the largest unclaimed ticket in Georgia' since the lottery began in 1993.
Players have 180 days to claim their prize.
An unfulfilled dream: The winning ticket was sold at a truck stop in June
The winning ticket had the numbers 24, 30, 45, 57 and 59 with a 'Powerball' of 26, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports.
It was sold at the Pilot Travel Center truck stop on I-20 in Tallapoosa on June 29.
The unclaimed money will be returned proportionately to each participating state based on that state's sales for the particular drawing.
The Powerball is played in 32 states and the District of Columbia.
Lottery spokesman Tandi Reddick said that in Georgia, unclaimed prize money goes back into the prize pool for future games and for special prize promotions, so it is actually paid out to players.
A winning ticket was sold Saturday in Maryland and the current estimated jackpot for Wednesday's drawing is $20 million.
Mega Millions is the other multi-state lottery game.
It has a $206 million jackpot for Tuesday night's drawing.
