Rob, right, buys Mega Millions tickets at Rossi’s Deli on Thursday, Dec. 26, 2024, in San Francisco.Jeff Chiu | AP
At least one Mega Millions player has enough dough to ring in the new year after drawing the winning numbers. After three months in which no one won the lottery’s top prize, an estimated $1.22 billion worth of lottery tickets were sold in California on Friday night, according to the Mega Millions website.
The California Lottery said the winning ticket was sold at the Circle K (Sunshine Food and Gas) on Rhonda Road in Cottonwood, about 250 miles south of Ashland on Interstate 5. . The winning ticket matched white balls 3, 7, 37, and 49. , 55, and Gold Mega Ball 6. The identity of the winner was not immediately known.
The total Mega Millions jackpot is distributed only to winners who choose an annuity that pays out over 29 years. Nearly all grand prize winners have chosen to pay in cash, with an estimated total of $549.7 million for Friday night’s drawing.
Despite the game’s long odds of 1 in 302.6 million, players continued to buy tickets as the prize amount increased. Until Friday, the last time a Mega Millions player won the top prize was on September 10th.
The largest Mega Millions jackpot ticket in history, worth $1.6 billion, was sold in Florida in August 2023. Two prizes in the country’s Powerball lottery have become even bigger.
Mega Millions and Powerball are sold in 45 states, Washington DC, and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Powerball is also sold in Puerto Rico.
Mega Millions ticket prices are set to increase from $2 to $5 in April. The increase is one of many changes that officials say will improve the odds of jackpots, increase the frequency of big prizes and make payouts even bigger.
— Associated Press
