The bad news is no one won the Mega Millions jackpot in Tuesday's drawing. The good news is the prize rolled over and has soared to $1.35 billion, the second-largest prize in the game's history and fourth-largest in U.S. lottery history.
The numbers drawn Tuesday night were: 7, 13, 14, 15, 18 and gold Mega Ball 9.
The massive $1.35 billion prize is for a winner who takes an annuity option, paid out in 30 annual payments. Most players choose the cash option, which for Friday's drawing would be $707.9 million, of which about one-third would go toward federal taxes with possibly more for state taxes, depending on where the buyer lives.
The jackpot has been growing since Oct. 14, when two tickets — one in California and another in Florida — matched all six numbers and won split the $494 million prize. Since then, there have been 25 consecutive drawings without a jackpot winner, allowing the grand prize to grow week-after-week. A likely surge in ticket sales will surely push the jackpot higher before Friday's drawing.
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Even as the big prize has increased, the odds of winning all that money have remained the same — a staggering one in 302.5 million.
The current Mega Millions record is $1.536 billion, sold in Oct. 2018. Tuesday's jackpot will be the nation's fifth biggest lottery prize overall. Powerball holds the U.S. record for a jackpot worth $2.04 billion won by a California resident on Nov. 8, 2022.
Mega Millions is played in 45 states as well as Washington, D.C., and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
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