Pa. ticket hits Powerball jackpot of $59.9 million

For the first time since early 2009, a Pennsylvania ticket has hit the jackpot in Powerball.

The ticket matched all the numbers drawn Saturday night - 9, 16, 17, 28 and 30, with a Powerball of 11 - to win a prize worth $59.9 million in 30 payments, or about $37 million cash.

Fittingly, as Thanksgiving approaches, it was purchased at Turkey Hill convenience store.

The location, apparently, is at 980 Wyoming Ave. in Exeter, north of Wilkes-Barre, Luzerne County.

The state lottery announced a news conference there at 3 this afternoon, and a store employee confirmed by phone the store had a major winner Saturday.

It wasn't a runner-up prize, because the only two $1 million winners were in New Jersey and Iowa (they matched the first five without the Power Play); Florida had two of the three $200,000 winners, and New Mexico had the other one (first five, no Power Play).

The Jersey ticket was sold at Buddy's Budy's Wine & Liquors, 139 Hudson St. in Hackensack.

Pennsylvania's last Powerball winner was Wyndmoor's Palmira Nicolo, who taught Italian at Cherry Hill High School West. The annuity jackpot of $174.4 million in February 2009 was also hit in by an anonymous ticketholder in Delaware, so her cash share was worth $46.6 million, before taxes.

Wednesday's jackpot will be worth $20 million, or $12.6 million cash.

Tuesday's Mega Millions jackpot will be worth $47 million for the annuity, $34.5 million for the cash, because no one matched all the numbers drawn Friday night: 4, 13, 33, 39 and 55, with a Mega Ball of 3.

Matching all but the Mega Ball were two tickets sold in California, and one each in Pennsylvania, Minnesota and Washington. The Pennsylvania ticket - sold at Allison Park Mini Mart, 1675 Duncan Ave., Allison Park, northeast of Pittsburgh - didn't have the Megaplier option, which would have boosted the payout from $250,000 to $1 million.

For more, go to www.powerball.com, www.megamillions.com, or www.philly.com/philly/news/lottery.