Kentucky Powerball Winners Waste No Time Redeeming $167.3 Million Jackpot

The fortunate winners of the $167.3 million ($77.3 million cash) Powerball jackpot from the Saturday, April 26, drawing quickly stepped forward to claim their winnings in Kentucky. 

On Monday, coinciding with the reopening of the Kentucky Lottery Headquarters in Louisville after the weekend, Linda Grizzle and her son, Shannon Farthing, both from Georgetown, submitted the winning ticket featuring the five white drawn numbers of 1-12-14-18-69, along with the red Powerball number 2. The mother and son frequently participate in the lottery, including Powerball.

"It’s going to be a good Mother’s Day. This is going to pay off my debt. I would have never dreamed it. It hasn’t sunken in yet,” Grizzle said.

Generally, significant Powerball and Mega Millions winners take a significant amount of time before they announce their identities. They frequently consult with financial and legal advisors prior to claiming their prize. 

In Kentucky, though, lottery regulations permit winners to step forward to validate their ticket. They are subsequently allotted 60 days to decide whether to accept the instant cash sum or the total jackpot amount distributed over 30 yearly installments. 

Grizzle and Farthing, who claim they will share the prize equally, informed lottery representatives that they will now consult a financial advisor to determine which payout serves their best interests. The majority of significant jackpot winners choose the lump-sum cash option, although rising interest rates have complicated this decision somewhat in recent years. 

If Grizzle and Farthing opt for the cash, the $77.3 million would decrease to $48.7 million following federal taxes. Kentucky would subsequently withhold 4% to decrease the net payout to $45.6 million. 

Jackpots of the Kentucky Powerball 

The Kentucky Lottery was one of the first jurisdictions to participate when Powerball began in April 1992. In the last 33 years, individuals in Kentucky have won the interstate lottery game’s jackpot on 19 occasions. 

The Powerball jackpot from last weekend was the largest ever claimed in Kentucky. The prior record was a $128.6 million jackpot, also claimed by a ticket purchased in Georgetown, back in December 2009. 

Kentucky Lottery President and CEO Mary Harville expressed her excitement that the Bluegrass State has a Powerball jackpot winner after over 15 years without one. Harville stated in the Kentucky Lottery’s announcement that players frequently inquire about when a ticket in Kentucky will win Powerball’s grand prize. 

The chances of winning the Powerball jackpot are one in over 292.2 million. The Clark’s Pump N Shop located at 490 Connector Rd., where Grizzle and Farthing bought the winning ticket, earned a commission prize of $37K. 

$100K Prize Redeemed at Final Moment 

In Massachusetts, a woman almost couldn't claim a winning $100K Mass Cash ticket. Last month, local television stations aired a news report about a remarkable $100K winning ticket as the deadline for redeeming the ticket approached. 

Margot Garstka from Chicopee mentioned that her son informed her about a Mass Cash ticket being in her junk drawer. Upon inspection, the ticket corresponded with the winning numbers of 6-11-18-24-25. 

The ticket won in the drawing on May 1, 2024. In Massachusetts, winners of Mass Cash and other draw game prizes have a year from the drawing date to collect their winnings. Garstka received her $100K (before taxes) on April 15, 2025.