Powerball · United States · 13 January 2016
John Robinson bought four computer-picked Powerball tickets at 6:56 p.m. on draw night at Naifeh's Food Mart, a grocery one block from the family home in Munford, Tennessee. He said he always bought four - one for each member of the family.
Advertised prize
$1,586,000,000
Cash value $327,835,000
Ticket
Quick pick
Outcome
Stayed private
Took the money, kept their life, said little since.
John and Lisa Robinson bought four Powerball tickets at Naifeh's Food Mart, a grocery one block from their home in Munford, Tennessee, at 6:56 p.m. on 13 January 2016, with the terminal picking the numbers. Their line, 04-08-19-27-34 and Powerball 10, was one of three nationwide to match the record $1.586 billion jackpot. On their lawyer's advice they appeared on NBC's TODAY show on 15 January before presenting the ticket at Tennessee Lottery headquarters in Nashville. Their share was $528.8 million, and they elected the cash option of $327,835,000 rather than 30 annual instalments. Lisa, who worked at a dermatologist's office, said she would be back at work on Monday; John, a maintenance worker at a distribution centre, said, "Now I'll be nervous because everybody knows." Lisa added, "We just wanted a little piece of the pie, but instead we got a big piece!" The selling retailer received $25,000. It was Tennessee's second consecutive Powerball jackpot and its fifth overall.
(2024) The Robinsons have stayed out of public view since 2016. FOX13 Memphis reported in November 2019 that they had bought a 10-bedroom, eight-bathroom estate on 320 acres with a private lake for $6.2 million and had parted ways with the attorney who managed their public announcement. The Tennessean repeated that account in June 2024.
One detail worth keeping
John bought exactly four tickets - one for each member of his family - at 6:56 p.m. on draw night, at a store one block from his front door.
Cheng 'Charlie' Saephan
Ended in tragedyPowerball · United States · 2024
$1,326,000,000
Laiza Chao joked to the Saephans before the draw that they were already "billionaires"; her $100 stake in a 20-ticket batch made it true.
Theodorus Struyck
Stayed privatePowerball · United States · 2023
$1,765,000,000
He bought the second-largest winning ticket in Powerball history about 500 yards from his own front door, at a cabin he had paid $90,000 for in 2010.
Edwin Castro
Went wellPowerball · United States · 2022
$2,040,000,000
The draw ran a day late: Minnesota's sales-verification system held up all 48 lotteries, so the $2.04bn numbers were drawn at 8:57 a.m. ET on 8 November 2022.
Manuel Franco
Stayed privatePowerball · United States · 2019
$768,400,000
He told reporters he had under $1,000 in his bank account when he spent $10 on the quick picks that won $768.4 million.
Cheng 'Charlie' Saephan
Ended in tragedyPowerball · United States · 2024
$1,326,000,000
Laiza Chao joked to the Saephans before the draw that they were already "billionaires"; her $100 stake in a 20-ticket batch made it true.
Two anonymous winners: a Singleton (NSW) couple and a Hawthorne (Brisbane) woman
Stayed privatePowerball (Australia) · Australia · 2024
A$200,000,000
The Brisbane winner found out at 6am, scanning her ticket on The Lott app while getting ready for the gym: every number lit up and A$100 million appeared on her phone.
Theodorus Struyck
Stayed privatePowerball · United States · 2023
$1,765,000,000
He bought the second-largest winning ticket in Powerball history about 500 yards from his own front door, at a cabin he had paid $90,000 for in 2010.
Saltines Holdings, LLC (Miami, Florida)
Stayed privateMega Millions · United States · 2023
$1,602,000,000
The biggest Mega Millions winner in history is a company: Saltines Holdings, LLC of Miami. The Publix that sold the $2 Quick Pick collected a $100,000 retailer bonus.
Every figure and quotation above comes from these.
Last verified: 2026-09-13