Pennsylvania Man Becomes First Powerball Millionaire of 2022
The annual Powerball First Millionaire of the Year award went to Brian Mineweaser from Pennsylvania just minutes after 2022 began. He was randomly selected from the shortlist of five finalists during the live television broadcast of ‘Dick Clark’s New Year’s Rockin’ Eve with Ryan Seacrest’.
The First Millionaire of the Year promotion has now been running for three years, after Blaine Marston from Maine won in 2020 and Washington D.C.’s Carlos Mabry won 12 months ago.
It begins with lucky players being selected by their respective state lotteries, before these semi-finalists are narrowed down to just five prior to New Year’s Eve.
The other finalists for the latest promotion were Linda Perkins from Aurora, IL; Aaron Rose from Slaughter, LA; Robert Long from Waterloo, IA, who represented a group of 22 lottery players called Lotto 22; and Shari Beenken from Titonka, IA.
All five received a party package including a $10,000 cash prize, karaoke system, 70-inch LED TV and much more, and were all in the running to receive a $1 million payout. It was Mineweaser, from Chester County, PA, who was selected as the winner, and he was stunned to be picked out.
He said: “It’s just so surreal. It’s amazing to win $1 million! This will help me put my four kids through college.”
Pennsylvania Lottery Executive Director Drew Svitko said: "The Pennsylvania Lottery congratulates Brian on his $1 million Powerball prize. It was exciting to watch the winning moment live on television. We remind our players that it only takes one ticket to win a life-changing prize and playing the lottery in Pennsylvania helps the older residents of our commonwealth.”
“Powerball games generate hundreds of millions of dollars each year, but it’s great to capture the moment of one’s victory on live television at the beginning of the New Year,” said May Scheve Reardon, the Powerball Product Group chairman and Missouri Lottery executive director.
Double Play Winner As Jackpot Grows
There was another big Powerball winner later on 1st January, as a single player from Florida landed the $10 million Double Play jackpot. They matched the numbers 4, 6, 7, 10 and 30, plus the Powerball of 9.
The jackpot for the main Powerball game, meanwhile, kept growing over the Christmas period. It now stands at $575 million, making it the ninth-largest prize ever seen.
Check the latest winning numbers as soon as drawings have taken place every Monday, Wednesday and Saturday night.
Page Last Updated: 1/4/2022 6:39:18 AM ET
