North Carolina Powerball Player Who Missed Jackpot by One Number Will Buy Home with $2 Million Prize

Daryl Steinhoff, a 68-year-old Clayton, North Carolina, said he will use his $2 million Powerball prize to buy a home after matching all five white balls but missing the red Powerball in the early-September drawing.

Steinhoff matched the five white balls in the Sept. 1 drawing — 8, 23, 25, 40 and 53 — and paid an extra dollar for the Power Play option that doubled his $1 million prize to $2 million, the North Carolina Education Lottery said. He claimed the prize at the State Lottery headquarters in Raleigh and said he received $1.44 million after federal and state taxes.

Steinhoff said he used family numbers on the ticket and that he only learned he had won the next morning after receiving an email alert. "I was ecstatic and in disbelief," he told lottery officials, adding that he called his daughter and his girlfriend to share the news. The lottery posted a photo of Steinhoff holding a ceremonial oversized check when he claimed the prize.

The Sept. 1 drawing produced a handful of near-miss multimillion-dollar winners. An anonymous ticket holder in Missoula, Montana, similarly matched the five white balls and, by playing the Power Play, secured a $2 million prize; that ticket was claimed on Sept. 5. Lottery officials in Montana encouraged players to trust their instincts when buying tickets, saying, "Lesson of the day: Listen to your gut, even if you’re told that it’s a waste of time!"

Players in Kansas and Texas also matched all five white balls and used Power Play to double their $1 million prizes to $2 million. Fifteen other players across participating jurisdictions matched the five white balls without Power Play and won $1 million each.

The Sept. 1 drawing occurred amid a historic Powerball run that stretched through the summer. The jackpot continued to climb into early September and was ultimately claimed when ticket holders in Missouri and Texas split a $1.79 billion top prize, a prize the winners could take as an annuitized payout of $895 million over 29 years or a one-time lump sum of $410.3 million before taxes.

State and federal tax withholding significantly reduces advertised lottery payouts to net amounts winners actually receive. In Steinhoff’s case, the lottery said taxes left him with roughly $1.44 million. Lottery officials routinely encourage winners to consult financial, tax and legal advisors before claiming large prizes or making major purchases.

The September drawings highlighted both the breadth of prizes available in large jackpot cycles and the concentration of attention on multimillion-dollar ticket holders who fall just short of the top prize. While jackpot winners face the choice between sizeable annuitized payments and smaller lump sums, players who match the five white balls generally receive fixed prizes that can be doubled by electing Power Play at purchase.

Steinhoff said his immediate plan is to buy a home, and he claimed his winnings in person at the Raleigh lottery office. Lottery officials have confirmed the claim and disbursed the prize according to state procedures.