The eighth-largest jackpot in U.S. lottery history, and the biggest prize for Mega Millions in two years, was up for grabs on Tuesday night.
The winning numbers in the $625 million drawing were 12, 14, 26, 28, 33 and Mega Ball 9. The lump sum cash option is $458.8 million.
It’s the fourth largest jackpot in the game’s existence and just the second time that the grand prize has topped $500 million.
If nobody bought a ticket that matched all five white numbers and the gold Mega Ball, Friday’s jackpot will become the second largest in the game’s history. The prize has steadily climbed since the fall, with 33 drawings without a winner since September, when a $119 million jackpot was won in Wisconsin.
Carole Gentry, a spokeswoman for Maryland Lottery and Gaming, speculated that more people were buying tickets because “it’s something fun to focus on in the new year,” causing prizes to rise more quickly.
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As fun as it can be to play, people’s chances of winning the big prizes are incredibly small: the odds of winning Mega Millions are 1 in 302.5 million.
The Powerball jackpot has also swelled, to $550 million ahead of Wednesday night’s drawing — the 12th biggest prize in history.
Both jackpots are far from the largest prize — a $1.58 billion Powerball jackpot split by three winners in 2016
Mega Millions is played in 45 states as well as Washington, D.C., and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Powerball also is offered in Puerto Rico.
Contributing: The Associated Press.
2021-01-12 20:11:16
