Mega Millions ticket wins $1.34 billion lottery jackpot
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A ticket sold in Illinois is the sole winner of the $1.34 billion Mega Millions jackpot, the second-largest lottery prize in the game’s 20-year history, according to results posted Saturday.
Why it matters: The jackpot rolled 29 times since April and if no one won Friday's drawing lottery officials said the prize had the potential to grow to $1.7 billion for Tuesday's drawing, which would have been the nation’s largest lottery prize.
- After ticket sales were tallied, the final value of the jackpot was higher than an initial estimate of $1.28 billion.
- The winner has the choice of a cash option worth an estimated $780.5 million if taken as a lump sum payment instead of the annuity option with 30 payments.
- Twenty-six tickets matched all five white balls to win the game’s second-tier prize worth $1 million, Mega Millions said in a news release.
- Six of those tickets included the optional Megaplier, available in most states for an extra $1, and doubled the prize to $2 million each.
Check Mega Millions numbers
The winning numbers in Friday’s drawing were 13, 36, 45, 57 and 67 with the Mega Ball 14.
- There are nine ways to win a Mega Millions prize, ranging from the jackpot down to $2 for only getting the Mega Ball.
Mega Millions next drawing
Mega Millions' drawings are held in Atlanta at 11pm ET Tuesday and Friday, which is 8pm PT.
- The Aug. 2 drawing has an estimated jackpot of $20 million.
How it works: Two machines pick the numbers in the drawings with the first picking five white balls and the other selecting a gold “Mega Ball.”
Mega Millions lottery ticket price
A Mega Millions ticket costs $2 but players in most states can "add the Megaplier for an additional $1 to multiply their non-jackpot prizes."
Context: Out of each $2 ticket, roughly 35 cents goes to non-jackpot prizes, about 75 cents goes to fund the jackpot, and the remaining 90 cents goes to the government.
Mega Millions game: How to play
Lottery players can pick six numbers from two separate pools of numbers — five different numbers from 1 to 70 (the white balls) and one number from 1 to 25 (the gold Mega Ball).
- “Quick Pick” or “Easy Pick” tickets can also be purchased where numbers are selected automatically.
Go deeper: The gamification of gambling
Editor's note: This story was updated with new jackpot figures and additional details on winners from Friday's drawing.
