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First Calif. Powerball Sales Shatter Expectations

SACRAMENTO (CBS13) - It was a first for California Wednesday night as the winning numbers for the Powerball Lottery were drawn in Sacramento.

On a roll and on the record, there's a new power player in the California lottery system.

Just hours after the final tickets were punched in the Sacramento area, the first ever Powerball drawing in the state spun its way to center stage in the golden state as millions searched for their golden ticket.

"Well it's the first time that they've had it. So I thought why not try it?" one lottery player said.

For some diehard lottery players who've been longing for this day, it's finally here. California is now in the multistate mix of big money madness.

"What took so long is that we wanted to do our due diligence to make sure that adding Powerball made sense. Obviously, in the last three days,based on the sales we've seen in the excitement level of our customers, it more than made sense," said Alex Traverse, California Lottery.

The $8.5 million in Powerball ticket sales in California in just three days shattered expectations.

As for expectations of winning the $60 million inaugural jackpot, more than a few were hoping for a home grown winner.

"Hopefully someone from California will win, hopefully me," said one player.

The winning Powerball numbers were: 1, 36, 40, 52, 53, and Powerball 20.

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