Happy birthday, California Lottery!
Forty years is quite a milestone − and throughout its tenure, the state lottery has had quite a few hits. Record-setting wins, in fact.
California is on a hot streak when it comes to lottery wins. The big lottery wins. The Golden State claims:
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the largest lottery jackpot in U.S. history at $2.04 billion
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the most wins for billion-dollar lottery jackpots
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$1 million commissions for the retailers that sold winning tickets for the billion-dollar jackpots
California Lottery celebrates its 40-year anniversary in a month that includes (what else?) National Lottery Day.
Every year, lottery players and fans celebrate July 17 as National Lottery Day, a non-federal, fun holiday that recognizes the ways lotteries contribute to local and state programs, according to the National Day Calendar site. In Florida and California, for example, the state lotteries promote the millions of funds that go toward education annually from ticket sales.
And when there’s a big winner, whether it’s at a convenience store, chain grocery store or small business retailer, it’s a big to-do, with a press conference, media interviews and celebrations.
Where shopping is a pleasure: Mega Millions, Powerball biggest prizes ever tied to ‘Today’ show, Florida Publix and a Kroger
Keep reading for more information about California Lottery and when the popular lottery phrase “it could happen to you” resulted in record-setting wins for California Lottery players.
The first time a lottery jackpot hit $1 billion, a ticket in California won
Powerball made history Jan. 11, 2016, the first time a lottery jackpot hit $1 billion. After no one matched all five numbers plus the Powerball in the (Saturday) Jan. 9, 2016, drawing for $949 million, the Monday jackpot soared to $1.4 billion. (No one won that drawing either.) Powerball made history again when three tickets matched all six numbers to win $1.586 billion in the (Wednesday) Jan. 13, 2016, drawing.
The jackpot started Nov. 4, 2015, at $40 million. It had rolled over almost 30 times from Nov. 4, 2015, to Jan. 13, 2016, before three tickets from California, Tennessee and Florida claimed the grand prize.
Ticket from California won part of $1.586 billion Powerball
Three tickets purchased in California, Florida and Tennessee won the Jan. 13, 2016, Powerball drawing, splitting $1.586 billion.
In 2016, FLORIDA TODAY reported Maureen Smith and David Kaltschmidt bought their winning Powerball ticket at a Publix in Melbourne Beach. The couple waited until February 2016 to claim their share of the grand prize.
Six months after the drawing, Marvin and Mae Acosta of California claimed their Powerball winnings of $528.8 million, according to the California Lottery.
The Tennessee Lottery announced a family from Munford, Tennessee, was the third winner in the $1.586 billion Powerball jackpot. John and Lisa Robinson claimed their share of the jackpot, according to CNN.
What is the biggest lottery prize in U.S. history?
The $2.04 billion Powerball jackpot won by Edwin Castro of Altadena, California. After months of rollovers, the Nov. 7, 2022, Powerball drawing ballooned to a whopping $2.04 billion. The jackpot was an estimated $1.9 billion days before the drawing, but lottery ticket sales pushed it to more than $2 billion after updated calculations. The drawings had rolled over 40 times since Aug. 3, 2022. Edwin Castro finally won the lottery with these winning numbers: 10-33-41-47-56 and the Powerball was 10. Castro officially came forward to claim his winnings on Valentine’s Day, Feb. 14. 2023, almost three months later.
Ticket from Los Angeles, California, won $1.08 billion Powerball
A single ticket was purchased in California for the July 19, 2023, Powerball drawing for $1.08 billion. The winning ticket was sold at Las Palmitas Mini Market in Los Angeles, which received a $1 million bonus commission, according to California Lottery officials. Owner Nabor Herrera was not aware that he’d sold the winning ticket until he saw media gathered in front of his store, the morning after the drawing. Yanira Alvarez of California claimed the prize.
Ticket from Frazier Park, California, won $1.73 billion Powerball
For the $1.73 billion Powerball prize for Oct. 11, 2023, Theodorus Struyck of California came forward to claim the ticket. California Lottery said he represented a group of winners. In California, a big jackpot winner must claim the ticket in person. It was purchased at Midway Market in Frazier Park, California.
Ticket from Cottonwood, California, won $1.269 billion Powerball
One lucky lottery player had quite a holiday season: Just after Christmas and Hanukkah and ahead of New Year’s Eve, a ticket in California correctly matched all five numbers plus the Mega Ball to win the $1.22 billion Mega Millions drawing for Dec. 27, 2024. Months later, the winner was revealed on the luckiest holiday of all — St. Patrick’s Day 2025. Rosemary Casarotti of California officially collected her prize, which had ballooned to $1.269 billion after final ticket sales.
Casarotti opted for the lump sum, valued at more than $571 million less federal taxes.
The ticket was sold at a Circle K in the small town of Cottonwood, California. The convenience store on Rhonda Road in Shasta County received a $1,000,000 bonus. Retail bonuses vary by state — for example, two Publix stores in Florida received $100,000 each during previous billion-dollar jackpots. The $1,000,000 bonus is the largest amount a California Lottery retail partner can earn.
Two other California Lottery players missed the jackpot by just one number, matching the first 5 numbers correctly. One was sold at a Chevron gas station in Roseville, California, and the other came from Cardenas Market in San Bernardino, California. According to the California Lottery, each of those winning tickets was worth more than $787,500, and the winners had six months to claim their prize. Jackpot winners have one year from the date of the draw.
In California, can lottery winners remain anonymous?
In California, big lottery jackpot winners cannot remain anonymous or claim their prize as a trust (such as in other states like Michigan and Florida). So someone, such as Theodorus Struyck, has to come forward.
Lottery experts have said there are ways to maintain privacy such as Powerball billionaire winners Marvin and Mae Acosta of California, who split the $1.586 billion Powerball on Jan. 13, 2016, with two other couples from Tennessee (John and Lisa Robinson) and Melbourne Beach, Florida (David Kaltschmidt and Maureen Smith). The Acostas, and largest lottery jackpot winner ever Edwin Castro declined to have their photo or video footage released to the public during their respective California Lottery press conferences.
In a March 16, 2025, news release, California Lottery spokesperson Carolyn Becker said the $1.269 billion Mega Millions winner would not be present at its news conference and had declined to appear in photos, video and other media interviews. The press conference was held at Sunshine Food and Gas, Circle K, 3505 Rhonda Road, Cottonwood, California.
How long does it take for a Powerball or Mega Millions lottery to reach $1 billion?
It varies depending on number of rollovers and ticket sales. In the past nine years, a jackpot would reach $1 billion or more after just two months of rollover drawings.
As of July 21, days after National Lottery Day, there has not been a billion-dollar Powerball or Mega Millions lottery jackpot for 2025.
Sangalang is a lead digital producer for USA TODAY Network. Follow her on Twitter or Instagram at @byjensangalang. Support local journalism. Consider subscribing to a Florida newspaper.
This article originally appeared on Treasure Coast Newspapers: National Lottery Day: Edwin Castro, Theodorus Struyck, California wins
