Tuesday wasn’t a merry Christmas for lottery players.
Christmas Eve ended without a winning ticket for the $1 billion jackpot prize. The next drawing will be held on Friday, December 27th at 11pm ET.
The winning numbers for Tuesday’s drawing are: 38, 45, 14, 46, 11, Mega Ball was 3. Megaplier was 3x.
So far, at least four winners have won the top prize of $1 million with a five-number combination, but were unable to correctly hit the Mega Ball.
The Mega Millions jackpot, the sixth-largest prize in lottery history, has been growing for more than three months, reflecting the long odds of winning the top prize of 1 in 303 million. The last time someone hit the jackpot was on September 10th, when a Texas player won $800 million.
The $1.15 billion prize will be awarded to the only winner who chooses to be paid through an annuity in 30 annual payments. Winners almost always prefer the cash option, with an estimated total of more than $448.8 million in Friday night’s next drawing.
Mega Millions is played in 45 states, Washington DC, and the US Virgin Islands. Drawings take place every Tuesday and Friday at 11pm ET.
Mega Millions top jackpots:
Amount Date Winning Ticket $1.602 billion 8/8/20231-FL$1.537 billion 10/23/20181-SC$1.348 billion 1/13/202 31-ME$1.337 billion 7/29/20221-IL$1.128 billion 3/26/20241-NJ$1.15 billion (estimated) December 27, 2024 $1.05 billion January 22, 2021 – Michigan $810 million September 10, 2024 – Texas $656 million March 30, 2012 3 – Illinois, Kansas, Maryland State $648 million December 17, 2013 – California, Georgia
If you or someone you know has a gambling problem, call the National Council on Problem Gambling at 1-800-522-4700 to speak with a counselor. Help is also available from the online peer support forum at www.gamtalk.org. Additionally, additional resources can be found on the NCPG website.
Mega Millions by the numbers
Forty-five states and Washington, D.C. participate in the Mega Millions drawing. Find out which states hit the most jackpots and which numbers appear most often.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
