Another Mega Millions drawing, another night without a big winner.
No one hit all six numbers and won the estimated $940 million jackpot, pushing the lottery prize to an estimated $1.1 billion ahead of the next drawing Tuesday night.
The prize is now the third-largest in U.S. history.
There have been 24 drawings without a jackpot winner, stretching back for more than two months. The winless streak is largely due to the game’s long odds of 1 in 302.6 million.
The new estimated prize of $1.1 billion is for a winner who chooses an annuity paid annually over 29 years. Grand prize winners usually take the cash option, which for Tuesday night’s drawing will be an estimated $568.7 million.
“Mega Millions has just reached the $1 billion mark again. It’s especially nice to see the jackpot grow throughout the holidays and into the new year,” Pat McDonald, the Ohio lottery director and lead director of the Mega Millions Consortium, said in a statement early Saturday. “As the jackpot grows, we encourage our players to keep within their entertainment budget and enjoy this jackpot run right along with us.”
Here’s what else you need to know.
What are my odds of winning the lottery? If you win the Mega Millions jackpot, here’s what you need to know
Money:Powerball jackpot still up for grabs. Here’s what to do if you win
Mega Millions winning numbers
The winning numbers for the drawing Friday night were 3-20-46-59-63, Mega Ball: 13 and Megaplier was 3x.
How do I play Mega Millions?
To enter Mega Millions, players pick six numbers — or choose to have the lottery machine generate a random “Easy Pick” or “Quick Pick”:
- Five numbers will go from 1 to 70 (white balls)
- One number can be picked from 1 to 25 (gold Mega Ball)
If your ticket matches all six of the winning numbers from the drawing, you’ll win the jackpot. There are also smaller prizes depending on how many balls your numbers match.
The cost to play Mega Millions is $2 a ticket. You can add the Megaplier for $1, which will increase the amount of your potential prize up to five times the original prize (except for the jackpot).
‘Everyone was going insane’:Woman wins $175,000 lottery jackpot at white elephant gift exchange
Where can I play Mega Millions?
Mega Millions can be played in 45 states, the District of Columbia and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
Five states — Alabama, Alaska, Hawaii, Nevada and Utah — do not offer Mega Millions.
What are my chances of winning?
Although the $1.1 billion jackpot might be tempting, it’s important to note that odds of taking home a top prize are extremely slim.
The odds of winning the jackpot are 302,575,350 to 1.
The odds to match all five white balls are 12,607,306 to 1.
In Delaware:A 70-year-old woman celebrated winning the lottery by buying another ticket. She won again.
Top 10 Mega Millions jackpots
According to Mega Millions, there have only been three jackpots in the game’s history larger than Friday’s estimated prize.
Here’s a look at the top 10:
- $1.537 billion, Oct. 23, 2018: Won in South Carolina.
- $1.337 billion: July 29, 2022: Won in Illinois.
- $1.1 billion (estimated): Jan. 10: Active.
- $1.05 billion, Jan. 22, 2021: Won in Michigan.
- $656 million, March 30, 2012: Three winners in Illinois, Kansas, Maryland.
- $648 million, Dec. 17, 2013: Two winners in California, Georgia.
- $543 million, July 24, 2018: Won in California.
- $536 million, July 8, 2016: Won in Indiana.
- $533 million: March 30, 2018: Won in New Jersey.
- $522 million: June 7, 2019: Won in California.
Largest lottery prizes in history
Here’s a look at the top 10 largest lottery prizes, between both Powerball and Mega Millions:
- $2.04 billion, Powerball, Nov. 7, 2022: Won in California.
- $1.586 billion, Powerball, Jan. 13, 2016: Three winners in California, Florida, Tennessee.
- $1.537 billion, Mega Millions, Oct. 23, 2018: Won in South Carolina.
- $1.337 billion, Mega Millions, July 29, 2022: Won in Illinois.
- $1.1 billion (estimated): Jan. 10: Active.
- $1.05 billion, Mega Millions, Jan. 22, 2021: Won in Michigan.
- $768.4 million, Powerball, March 27, 2019: Won in Wisconsin.
- $758.7 million, Powerball, Aug. 23, 2017: Won in Massachusetts.
- $730 million, Powerball, Jan. 20, 2021: Won in Maryland.
- $699.8 million, Powerball, Oct. 4, 2021: Won in California.
What’s everyone talking about? Sign up for our trending newsletter to get the latest news of the day
Contributing: The Associated Press, Olivia Munson and Natalie Neysa Alund, USA TODAY.
USA TODAY
Source link