The Mega Millions jackpot skyrockets to an approximate $944 million for the Christmas Eve raffle
With no victor in the jackpot draw on Friday, the grand prize for Tuesday's draw swelled from $862 million to an astonishing $944 million, as per the lottery report. A lucky winner in Tuesday's draw could select between receiving the earnings in periodical payouts or opting for a lump sum estimated at $429.4 million.
The winning numbers for Friday were: 2, 20, 51, 56, 67, and the Mega Ball was 19.
Although no tickets hit thesix-number jackpot in Friday's night's draw, five tickets won a million dollars each by matching the first five numbers. These fortunate tickets were purchased in Arkansas, Illinois, Indiana, and Pennsylvania, as revealed by the Mega Millions website.
The holiday draw is a part of what the Mega Millions organization has dubbed as the "most peculiar jackpot year". Since Mega Millions was introduced in 2002, there hasn't been a year where all the jackpots won fell within the top 10 largest prizes awarded at the time.
In March, a resident of New Jersey won an astounding $1.13 billion through Mega Millions. In June, an anonymous player in Illinois walked away with $552 million after keying in the winning numbers in an online lottery purchase. And in September, a Houston-area resident claimed a jaw-dropping $800 million Mega Millions jackpot prize a month after purchasing the winning ticket at a gas station convenience store in Sugar Land.
Historically, December has been quite fortunate for Mega Millions players, with 13 jackpots being won during the holiday season. However, a jackpot has only been won once on Christmas Eve, as per Mega Millions.
In essence, the chances of winning the Mega Millions jackpot are roughly 1 in 302.5 million.
As Joshua Johnston, the lead director of the Mega Millions Consortium, told CNN, "We usually see sales increase during the holidays." He added that the surge in ticket sales happens as people are indulging in their shopping sprees.
"There’s just not a product available for two bucks that will offer you an opportunity to imagine and dream about winning that massive amount of money over the course of a few days," he said. "And that’s such a whimsical thought, especially during the holidays when there's already a sense of enchantment in the air."
The excitement around the holiday draw continues to attract more participants to the Mega Millions business, as people indulge in their shopping sprees. Despite the odds being 1 in 302.5 million, the prospect of winning such a substantial prize remains an alluring dream for many during the festive season.
