After three months without any winner, a lucky player in California has won the Mega Millions jackpot worth an estimated $1.22 billion. The winning ticket was sold for Friday night’s draw, according to the Mega Millions website. The ticket matched the numbers 3, 7, 37, 49, 55, and the gold Mega Ball 6. The identity of the winner has not yet been revealed.
Prize Options
The $1.22 billion jackpot is available only to a winner who chooses the annuity option, which is paid over 29 years. However, most winners opt for the cash payout, which for this draw is estimated at $549.7 million.
Long Wait for a Winner
Despite the odds of winning being 1 in 302.6 million, players continued buying tickets as the jackpot grew larger. The last Mega Millions jackpot winner was on September 10. The largest-ever Mega Millions jackpot, worth $1.6 billion, was won in Florida in August 2023. However, there have been two larger prizes in Powerball history.
Mega Millions and Powerball
Mega Millions and Powerball tickets are sold in 45 states, Washington, D.C., and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Powerball is also sold in Puerto Rico. In April, the price of a Mega Millions ticket will increase from $2 to $5, and changes are expected to improve jackpot odds, create more frequent giant prizes, and offer larger payouts.
How to Play Mega Millions
Each Mega Millions ticket costs $2. To play, you must choose six numbers: five different numbers from 1 to 70 (which are drawn with white balls) and one number from 1 to 25 (which is the Mega Ball).
Another Mega Jackpot in December
Before this draw, the last winning jackpot ticket was sold in New Jersey for the March 26, 2024 drawing, which offered a prize of $1.1 billion. The winner of that draw collected the prize on December 25. Their identity remains anonymous, according to Univision’s website.
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