ALBUQUERQUE − The New Mexico Lottery announced today that Powerball®, the world’s best-known jackpot lottery game, will change to create bigger jackpots, a $1 million-prize level and more overall winners.

Changes taking effect Jan. 4 for the Jan. 7 drawing include:

• A $20 million starting jackpot, up from $15 million;

• $1 million lump-sum cash prize for players who add the $1 Power Play® prize multiplier to their wager and match the five white numbered balls;

• Lower overall odds of one in 35.1, creating an additional 3 million non-jackpot prizes each year; and
• Increased jackpot odds of one in 195 million, creating a greater likelihood of jackpot run ups.

“Powerball fans play for ever-increasing jackpots so when the jackpot builds every week, excitement grows and more players get into the game,” Romero said. “These changes will give players more of what they want from the game while supporting the state’s goal to raise money for college scholarships.”

Today, the average winning Powerball jackpot is $95.5 million. As a result of the new odds, the average winning jackpot is expected to be $141 million.

To make these enhancements, the game’s mix of numbers will change. Players will pick five numbers from one to 59, up from the current 55, and one Powerball number from one to 39, down from 42 today.

The changes also set the stage for the Florida Lottery to join the 31 lotteries already playing Powerball, a move that will further enrich the game’s prize pool. The Florida Lottery enters in January.

The price for a Powerball wager will remain at $1. Power Play, an add-on feature that multiplies non-jackpot prizes between two and five times, will also remain at $1 per wager.