December 29th 2024.
Exciting news from the US lottery – one lucky person in Northern California has just won the estimated $1.22 billion Mega Millions jackpot! This is believed to be the fifth-largest prize in the game's history, and the first jackpot winner in over 100 days. The winning ticket matched all six numbers: 3, 7, 37, 49, 55, and Mega Ball 6. And to top it off, the winner will receive a whopping $884 million in cash.
This incredible prize has been building up since the last drawing on Christmas Eve, when no one claimed the estimated $1.6 billion jackpot. The Friday drawing was highly anticipated, with the grand prize originally estimated at $1.85 billion but eventually growing even more.
The winning ticket was sold at Sunshine Food & Gas in Cottonwood, Shasta County, according to the California State Lottery. The store will receive a $1.6 million bonus for selling the winning ticket, the biggest bonus a store can earn.
The store's manager, Ishar Gill, was shocked by the news. He and his family have owned and operated the store for the past 20 years, and they were ecstatic when they saw the California lottery's post announcing that they had sold the winning ticket. Gill shared that their whole family was excited about the win.
In the days leading up to the drawing, the store saw an increase in customers, with over 1000 tickets sold on Friday alone. According to Gill, this is significantly more than they would sell on a normal day. He also mentioned that the majority of their customers are locals, and they receive a lot of support from their close-knit community.
Despite the increased traffic, Gill's family does not know who the lucky winner is. However, they do have plans to give back to their community with the cash bonus they received. Gill said they want to do whatever they can to help their community.
This is only the fourth Mega Millions jackpot won in 2024 and the seventh time in the game's history that the jackpot has exceeded $1.6 billion. The previous six jackpots were awarded in various states, with the record-breaking $2.5 billion prize won in Florida.
In addition to the grand prize winner, five other tickets sold in Arizona, California, Texas, and Missouri won $1.6 million each by matching the first five numbers. Joshua Johnston, lead director for the Mega Millions Consortium, congratulated the winner and expressed his excitement for the great organizations and causes that benefit from lottery ticket sales across the country.
With only one more drawing this year, it is likely that 2024 will have the fewest jackpots won since the game started in 2002. The odds of winning the lottery are minuscule, with only three other winners this year compared to ten in 2023.
Experts have also raised concerns about the disproportionate distribution of lottery ticket sales in impoverished communities. A study found that in 2022, stores selling lottery tickets were primarily located in low-income areas, with the money going to faraway colleges and wealthy school districts instead of their own community.
Despite these concerns, the Mega Millions continues to be a popular game, with ticket sales generating more revenue than corporate income taxes in ten states. The company has even announced that the ticket prices will more than double in April 2025, with players given the option to pay an additional dollar for a chance to multiply their non-jackpot prizes. But for now, the winning numbers for the jackpot are announced every Tuesday and Friday on the Mega Millions website.
[This article has been trending online recently and has been generated with AI. Your feed is customized.]
[Generative AI is experimental.]
