Some people win the lottery the first time they play and for others it takes years. But as the oldest Powerball winners can attest, scooping the jackpot is a fantastic experience even if it happens later in life. Here are the captivating stories of the oldest winners in the history of this American lottery:
Gloria MacKenzie – 85 Years Old – $590 Million
Gloria MacKenzie was 85 years old when she won a whopping $590 million Powerball jackpot in 2013. Mrs. MacKenzie was the largest single Powerball winner until Mavis Wanczyk’s incredible $758 million win in 2017.
Her luck had a lot to do with the kind person that let her cut in line at the grocery store.
Mackenzie bought the winning Powerball ticket using Quick Pick, which would have gone to the good Samaritan, had they not been so kind! Of course, online Powerball players don’t have to worry about losing their winning ticket to an act of kindness, they can play US Powerball from the comfort of their home.
Mrs. MacKenzie eventually put her Powerball fortune to good use. She gave half of the money to her son, and with her half she started a foundation in her name that funded education projects throughout the country. One of the major projects performed by the foundation was restoring the high school where Mrs. MacKenzie taught when she was young.
Maureen Smith – 71 Years Old – $528 Million
In January 2016, the US Powerball broke the world record for the largest lottery jackpot. There were three winning tickets for the legendary $1.58 billion prize, and one of them belonged to Maureen Smith (71) and her husband David Klatschmidt (56).
In 2016, they came out to collect their share of the prize, worth $528 million and $328 as a lump, but they did not want to reveal a lot of details to the public. Even after their legendary win, they tried to stay out of the public eye as much as possible.
In fact, the Florida couple did not move into a larger house, nor did they upgrade their lifestyle dramatically after their lottery win. Maureen bought a brand new Tesla, but that is the peak of their extravagance. Also, Maureen and David continued to play the Powerball, even after their enormous win.
Robert Bailey – 67 Years Old – $343 Million
Robert Bailey from Harlem is a perfect example of the steel perseverance you need to become a lottery winner. For the last 25 years, he has been playing week after week, and, moreover, he has been using the same numbers.
“A family member gave me the numbers over 25 years ago and I faithfully play them,” he said. When he bought his winning tickets, he strayed from his routine. It was pouring outside and Mr. Bailey went into a deli to get out of the rain. He decided to get his tickets from there and it seems that this was the pinch of luck that he needed to finally scoop the Powerball jackpot.
Robert Bailey won half of a huge $687.8 million Powerball jackpot in 2018 and he chose the lump sum payout for his win. After taxes, this left him with $125 million. He plans to use his new fortune to get his mother a big house, to travel, and to make some wise investments. Mr. Bailey said “It’s a good life-changer. I plan to do the right thing with the money”.
Theodorus Struyck – 65 Years Old – $1.765 Billion
Theodorus Struyck & Co became the biggest Powerball syndicate winners.
For context, Mr Struyck is a sexagenarian born in Hawai that represented an Anonymous group of winners. Together, they won $1.765 Billion on October 2023. In California, a Powerball prize cannot be claimed anonymously, so Mr Struyck claimed it for the group. Howerver, we do not kow how many members the group has or if they are friends/ family members…etc… This means we do not know exactly how much Theo did get in the end.
Mr Struyck moved to Frazier Park in 2010 and really integrated well in this small community of 3,000. His neighbors described him as a very humble and caring human being that loves spending time with his family.
He claimed the jackpot in San Diego where his son, which is in the US Marines, is apparently stationed and where several of his grandchildren are staying as well.
We wish the best to this older Powerball winner with his extraordinary jackpot!