The winner of Missouri’s largest lottery jackpot said that before claiming the mind-blowing payday, it caused the “best problem” he’s ever had in his life, adding that it won’t change his modest lifestyle.
The Missouri Lottery confirmed its richest lottery champ on Monday after the $1.787 billion Powerball winner picked the lucky ticket at a QuikTrip in St. Louis for the record-shattering Sept. 6 drawing.
While claiming his prize money at the Lottery headquarters in Jefferson City, he admitted that winning the life-changing amount still hasn’t sunk in.
“I’m a millionaire, a multi-millionaire, and I’m doing laundry last night…” the winner, who was not identified since Missouri has a law that allows anonymity to lottery winners, said.
Despite his excitement about hitting the jackpot, the winner revealed that it had led to some sleepless nights.
“It’s the best problem I’ve ever had,” he said.
Turning to future plans, the winner said that he and his wife intend to focus on themselves for the first year.
“I’m going to just do me for a year,” the winner said.
The Show-Me State winner shared that the money will help lighten his wife’s workload and give them more cherished time together.
As for his own plans, he’s not eager to dramatically change his lifestyle despite the newfound fortune.
“I’m like a homebody. The perfect day is sitting at home doing what I do – relaxing,” he told the outlet.
However, he joked that his wife might have other ideas than letting him relax at home all day.
“She’s going to drag me out of town now,” he said.
Even though he must split the record-breaking jackpot with another lucky player in Texas, his share — worth $893.5 million — still secures him the largest lottery prize ever won in Missouri.
“It was a record-setting night for the Missouri Lottery, with the $893.5 million prize ranking as the highest jackpot prize won in Missouri to date,” Missouri Lottery Executive Director Lester Elder said.
“It exceeds the previous record of $293.7 million from a Powerball drawing held in November 2012.”
The winner has chosen the one-time payment of about $410.3 million.
The odds of winning a prize are 1 in 24.9 million, while the odds of winning the jackpot are 1 in 292.2 million, according to Powerball.
Including the most recent Powerball win, there have been four winning jackpots in 2025.
The most recent winner was a ticketholder who scored a $204.5 million payday in California on May 31.
Earlier this year, three other jackpots were hit: a $167 million winner in Kentucky on April 26, a $526.5 million ticket in California on March 29, and a $328.5 million winner in Oregon on January 18.
Californian Edwin Castro still holds the title for the largest Powerball win in history, winning the $2.04 billion pool on Nov. 7, 2022. He chose the $997.6 million payout.
Castro’s win is followed by a $1.765 billion prize split among winners in California, Florida, and Tennessee in October 2023. Another major jackpot was a $1.586 billion prize shared by three states in January 2016.
More recently, a single ticket in Oregon claimed $1.326 billion in April 2024, while California produced another big winner with a $1.08 billion prize in July 2023.
The rest of the top 10 jackpots were: $842.4 million in Michigan (2024), $768.4 million in Wisconsin (2019), $758.7 million in Massachusetts (2017), $754.6 million in Washington (2023), and $731.1 million in Maryland (2021), according to Powerball.
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