'The least drawn number' as Powerball's $150 million jackpot beckons

Powerball jackpots have delivered almost $300 million to 11 Powerball champions around Australia since July 2023.

Economist Jason Murphy shared his tips for picking numbers based on Powerball data.

He said Powerball numbers that were selected infrequently by other players "reduce your chance of splitting the pot".

The least chosen Powerball number was one, he said.

From the main barrel Mr Murphy said 6, 15, 31, 33 and 34 were rarely chosen, according to his data.

The most frequently drawn numbers were 2, 7, 9, 17 and 28.

But Mr Murphy said "you can't beat the house".

"If you must play, buy the fewest tickets that still let you fantasise about winning."

The Lott spokesperson Anna Hobdell said calling the winner with life-changing news, straight after the numbers were drawn, was the best part of her job.

"If we have a division one winner or winners in Thursday night's $150 million Powerball draw, we'll be wanting to let them know straight after the draw," she said.

"They may not need to head into work on Friday - or ever again!"

Entrants in the nationwide lottery, drawn at Channel Seven studios in Queensland's Mount Coot-Tha, could register their selected numbers to an online account or player number.

"That way, we can call them straight after the draw should they win a slice of the life-changing prize," Ms Hobdell said.

The jackpot is the second highest in the lottery's history with a $160 million prize in 2022, split between three winners, holding the record.

A nurse from Sydney is the highest individual prize winner. She received a call from Ms Hobdell directly after her 2019 windfall of more than $107 million.

Ms Hobdell said she wondered if she would be speaking to a new record holder, for individual prize money, on January 25.

"The thrill of not knowing whose life we might change is what makes our job truly special. The studio is always abuzz as the balls tumble in each draw," The Lott head of draw conduct Geoff Hackney said.

But it's not all celebrations and novelty-sized cheques at the Powerball headquarters. Mr Hackney said they maintained "transparency and fairness in lottery draws".

"A lot of people might not know this, but each lottery ball used in the draw is subject to rigorous testing at the National Measurement Institute and undergoes regular washing and weighing to ensure each one is fit for task," he said.

"The lottery balls must weigh within the same small range, and we're provided a report by the Institute that confirms the weight of each ball to within one-thousandth of a gram."