At some point, you’ve probably fantasized how incredible it would be to win Powerball.
You’ve pictured yourself holding that huge check for millions of dollars.
You’ve contemplated what you would do if you were lucky enough to win all of that money.
- Where would you go?
- What is the first thing you would do?
- How big of a house would you get?
It’s safe to say almost no one has thought, “I would wonder what it would be like to win the Powerball twice. On the same day.”
The odds of winning the Powerball once are one in 292.2 million.
Well, “Joe B,” of Pueblo, pulled off one of the rare doubles on March 25 when he won the Powerball not once, but twice. He won two $1 million prizes from stops at two different locations.
He came forward to claim his cash prizes last week.
Persistence pays off
For 30 years, Joe B played the same numbers: 5-9-27-39-42
According to a press release from the Colorado Lottery, on that remarkably lucky day in March, Joe B bought a few Powerball plays in the morning at a 7-Eleven, then stopped and bought a few more plays in the evening at a Loaf N’ Jug, which is located about a mile away.
Joe B claimed his prizes via new contactless drive-thru claims offices the Colorado Lottery instituted in April due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. It’s for winning tickets worth $10,000 or more, and an appointment must be made beforehand.
Winners can also claim their prizes through the mail.
As for how Joe B will spend his winnings, he joked, “the Boss has plans for it.”
Has a double Powerball winner happened in Colorado?
At least when it comes to Powerball, nothing has happened like this in the history of the Centennial State. According to Colorado Lottery Communications Manager Meghan Dougherty, players of the Cash 5 and Pick 3 games have won multiple times at once. However, none of those prizes were valued at more than $20,000.
The lottery was introduced to Colorado in 1983. In 2001, the state joined the Multi-State Lottery Association and began offering Powerball. The largest Powerball prize handed out in Colorado was $133.2 million in September 2017.
Other double winners
CNN highlights two instances where people have won multiple Powerball checks.
Earlier this year, a man in Delaware accidentally bought two of the same Powerball tickets, resulting in a $100,000 win before taxes.
CNN said the same thing happened to a woman in Virginia, back in 2012. She also mistakenly bought two Powerball tickets with the same number, and — exactly like Joe B — won two $1 million prizes.
