After nearly three months of lottery losing, will someone break the trend Tuesday night and win a $1.1 billion Mega Millions jackpot?
An estimated $1.1 billion Mega Millions jackpot drawing Tuesday night has people lined up at convenience stores nationwide to buy tickets in longshot hopes of winning a massive prize, but shop and gas station owners selling the tickets also have a chance at a big-figure bonus.
State lotteries usually reward the owners of business that sell winning jackpot tickets thousands of dollars or even up to $1 million, even before those giant prizes are claimed.
Regardless of how long it takes, the odds of winning the top lottery prize don’t change, and they’re formidable at 1 in 302.6 million. But someone will eventually match all six numbers and win the jackpot, which now ranks as the fifth-largest in U.S. history.
The drawing is set for 11 p.m. EST but it usually takes a couple hours before it’s clear if there is a winner.
The $1.1 billion prize is for a winner who chooses to be paid through an annuity with 30 payments over 29 years. Winners usually prefer cash, which for Tuesday night’s drawing would be an estimated $568.7 million.
Mega Millions is played in 45 states as well as Washington, D.C., and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
“Mega Millions has just reached the $1 billion mark again. It’s especially nice to see the jackpot grow throughout the holidays and into the new year,” Pat McDonald, the Ohio lottery director and lead director of the Mega Millions Consortium, said in a statement early Saturday. “As the jackpot grows, we encourage our players to keep within their entertainment budget and enjoy this jackpot run right along with us.”
The only Mega Millions jackpots larger than the estimated $1.1 billion opportunity on Tuesday have been the $1.53 billion won in South Carolina in 2018 and $1.33 billion winning ticket in Illinois in July, Mega Millions said in the statement.
