GOOD and BAD news for Tuesday PowerBall after jackpot reset

August 25, 2026 · The South African

Sadly, Tuesday PowerBall on 25 August 2026 has been reset after this weekend’s big win. Therefore, the straight, non-cascading PowerBall is playing for just R7 million. And PowerBall XTRA tags on an additional R20 million. Combined, this adds up to a R27 million. But there’s still good news on the horizon …

Because PowerBall XTRA is a guaranteed cascade on Friday 28 August 2026. Therefore, assuming tonight’s game goes unwon, there will be a sizeable split jackpot on offer. At the end of the week, after six rollovers (two games into August, PowerBall XTRA did see a small payout), the smaller of the two must payout.

Visit saltysenoritaaz.org for more information.

BAD NEWS FOR TUESDAY POWERBALL 25 AUGUST 2026

As we report regularly, crucial to game mechanics under Sizekhaya is knowing how many rollovers have occurred since the last big payout. And unfortunately, in the case of Tuesday PowerBall on 25 August 2026, the recent R95-million jackpot reset means winnings are meagre. Before last weekend’s big win, there had been six-and-a-half weeks of rollovers. That amounted to 13 games since Tuesday 3 July 2026 when R72 million was won.

Nevertheless, anyone who plays regularly knows that there’s no trick to beat a random lotto draw. Every number combination carries identical odds, no matter if you choose an automated Quick Pick or your numbers manually. While neither approach shifts the underlying math, do remember that picking relatives’ birth days is less effective, because they only go to 31 instead of the full 50.

HOW TO PLAY TUESDAY POWERBALL

Smaller jackpots means less entrants typically. But that doesn’t change your odds of winning outright. Image: File

For first-time players, Tuesday PowerBall involves choosing five main numbers from 1 to 50, plus one PowerBall number drawn from 1 to 16. While PowerBall XTRA is an optional second draw using the same numbers entered in the main game. This comes for an extra fee, of course. Pricing has jumped since 1 June 2026. A standard PowerBall board now costs R10 and PowerBall XTRA costs R5 per board. Therefore, playing both together costs R15 total.

Tickets are sold at authorised National Lottery retailers. You can also enter via participating banking apps, including FNB, Capitec, Standard Bank, ABSA and Nedbank. The largest percentage of winners do come from the banking apps, purely due to the ease and convenience of the medium. However, note that some banking apps force a minimum purchase of two boards per ticket, effectively doubling the entry cost. Players must be 18 years of age or older to enter.

WHAT ARE YOUR ODDS OF WINNING TUESDAY POWERBALL?

Here’s the good news, by shrinking the number pool, the jackpot odds for Tuesday PowerBall have improved from 1 in 42 million, to 1 in 33 million. And PowerBall XTRA carries identical odds to the main draw, since it uses the same number matrix. Of course, the big change to your odds is the cascading-jackpot rule. If nobody matches all the numbers in the final draw of the calendar month, as mentioned, the jackpot for PowerBall XTRA drops down.

It goes as far down as required to ensure a guaranteed payout, with winners sharing the pot as needed with a split jackpot. R139 million was split three ways back on Tuesday 30 June 2026 using this system. However, that’s small potatoes compared with the record payout back in February 2019, when a Cape Town man collected R232 million after 24 consecutive rollovers.

DRAW TIMES AND CLAIMING POWERBALL WINNINGS

If you choose numbers manually, be sure to spread them out all the way to an allowable 50. Image: File

PowerBall and PowerBall XTRA draw every Tuesday and Tuesday at 21:00. Sizekhaya brought back live televised draws using physical draw machines. Ticket sales cut off before the draw typically at 20:30, half an hour before the draw. All PowerBall prizes must be claimed within 365 days of the draw date. Anyone who misses that window forfeits their prize and the money is transferred to the National Lottery Distribution Trust for charitable causes. How and where to claim Tuesday PowerBall winnings depends on the amount won:

Small prizes (up to R4 999) get paid out directly at licensed retailers.
Mid-tier prizes (R5 000 to R49 999) can be claimed at selected partner banks.
Online and banking-app players have prizes up to R249 999 deposited automatically into their accounts.
And anything above R49 999 (none banking app) requires an in-person visit to a Sizekhaya regional office, with the original ticket and a valid South African ID.

Anyone unsure where to start can call the Sizekhaya helpline on 0861 026 000.

And one final note, around R257 million in lottery prizes currently sits unclaimed across South Africa from the previous operator. Therefore, checking old ticket numbers against those drawn (up to one year ago) costs you nothing and might just turn up forgotten money. You can do so by clicking past results HERE.

Read full story at source