News writer, Interviewer
Mega Millions fever is heating up as the jackpot continues to rise.
After no lucky ticket matched all six numbers in Tuesday's drawing, the estimated prize for Friday, September 6, has soared to $740 million. This would make it the seventh-largest jackpot in the game's history.
Strangely, there has never been a Mega Millions jackpot won between $656 million and $1 billion. Every time the jackpot has reached this level, it has continued to grow past the $1 billion mark.
The growing jackpot has fueled excitement, leading to an increase in ticket sales and winners at lower prize levels.
In the September 3 drawing alone, there were over 1.5 million winning tickets. Two of these lucky tickets, sold in Kansas and Michigan, matched the five white balls, winning the game's $1 million second-tier prize.
Across the country, 32 tickets matched four white balls and the Mega Ball, winning the third-tier prize. Eleven of these tickets were worth $40,000 each due to the Megaplier option, which was 4X Tuesday night. The other 21 tickets won the standard $10,000 each.
The jackpot has been rolling since it was last won at $552 million in Illinois on June 4. In the 26 drawings since then, there have been more than 19 million winning tickets at all non-jackpot prize tiers. This includes 51 second-tier prizes of $1 million or more, won in 24 different states.
Only two Mega Millions jackpots have been won so far this year. Besides the Illinois win in June, a massive $1.128 billion was won in New Jersey. This prize is still unclaimed.
Mega Millions holds the record for the most jackpots exceeding $1 billion. All six of these record-breaking jackpots were won in different states: South Carolina, Michigan, Illinois, Maine, Florida, and New Jersey. The current record jackpot is $1.602 billion, which was won in Florida last August.
Tickets for Mega Millions are sold in 45 states, Washington, D.C., and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Tickets are $2 each, and players can add the Megaplier for an extra $1 to increase their non-jackpot winnings. Half of the proceeds from ticket sales go to support good causes and retailer commissions in the state where the ticket was purchased.
Drawings are held at 11 p.m. ET on Tuesdays and Fridays in Atlanta, Georgia. The overall odds of winning any Mega Millions prize are 1 in 24, while the odds of winning the jackpot are 1 in 302,575,350.
Did you know?
Did you know? Mega Millions has a rich history filled with surprising facts. From record-breaking jackpots to lucky streaks, there's always something interesting to learn about this popular lottery game.
- There was a jackpot winner in the very first Mega Millions drawing.
- Since the game began in 2002, 216 jackpots have been won by 243 individual tickets.
- Mega Millions has awarded 33 jackpots of more than $300 million.
- Seven Mega Millions jackpots have been won on a Friday the 13th.
Mega Millions is the only big jackpot game where second prizes can reach as high as $5 million with the Megaplier option. Since this option was introduced in 2013, there have been 1,653 Match 5 winning tickets worth $1 million or more.
Ready to play? Purchase your tickets now; sales stop 15 minutes before the drawing. Good luck!
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