The Lotto Matrix: Growing Mega And A ‘Won’ That Feels Like A Loss

First things first

How much is Friday’s Mega Millions jackpot drawing worth?

Mega Millions is a solid “Big Boy” with a $346 million jackpot up for grabs. Those pressed for cash can select the $156.1 million option and be quite comfortably well off.

The final drawing of the month last Friday did give us one last Mega Millionaire as a ticket sold in Florida provided a $3 million payday.

Tuesday’s drawing, however, was the roughest one of the young year for Mega players: No one matched five numbers and there were only three tickets with four numbers and the Mega Ball. Each ticket had the 2x Megaplier, meaning a total payout of a paltry $60,000 for top second-tier prizes.

How much is Saturday’s Powerball jackpot drawing worth? 

We have a “Growing Boy” for Saturday night’s drawing as the jackpot crossed into nine figures at $102 million. The cash option is a solid $46.1 million which could get you a mid-rotation pitcher after paying Detroit Tigers staff ace Tarik Skubal his $32 million arbitration win.

After a five-drawing drought in which no one matched all five non-Power Ball numbers, the drawings Monday and Wednesday nights provided five such tickets. Winners in Pennsylvania and Oregon claimed $2 million payouts for ticking the Power Play option from Wednesday night’s drawing.

January ninja napkin math, Mega edition

We’re still a ways from the one-year anniversary of the switch to the $5 price point, so the following are not true like-for-like comparisons. But it can be argued the randomly assigned Megaplier is doing its job in terms of creating strong second-tier prize payouts. The seven tickets that matched five numbers in January paid out a combined $19 million compared to the $9 million from six tickets in the first month of 2025.

The 58 tickets that matched four numbers and the Mega Ball were a steep fall-off from the 92 in the opening month of 2025, but three 10x payouts helped push the payout total on those winners to $1.71 million. That was 20.4% higher than the $1.42 million won on such tickets for January 2024.

Estimated ticket sales for January were $52.1 million, with an average of $5.8 million for the nine drawings. With the jackpot crossing $300 million, the last two drawings bracketing the end of the month both surpassed an estimated $6 million in sales.

January ninja napkin math, Power edition

The Power Ball crowned 11 millionaires in January, the same amount as in the first month of 2025. But this year saw an extra $1 million paid out on those tickets as four people checked off the Power Play option, including both winners from Texas.

Despite a jackpot reset mid-month following a player in North Carolina winning $209 million on the Jan. 21 drawing, the 169 tickets that matched four numbers and the Power Ball represented an 8.3% increase from last year. The $12.45 million in payouts for such winners was up 20.9% as 40 tickets contained the Power Play versus 33 the previous year.

Estimated ticket sales averaged nearly $10.9 million per drawing, cresting at $14.9 million for the Jan. 17 drawing.

Roll damn Tide, lottery edition

The Alabama legislature will again consider authorizing a state lottery as part of a comprehensive bill that proposes to bring multiple gambling veritcals to the Heart of Dixie.

SB 257, sponsored by State Sen. Merika Coleman-Evans, is a bill that would present lottery authorization, online sports wagering, and commercial casinos to voters as part of a constitutional amendment. It is the first time authorizing the lottery has been considered since 1999, when voters rejected a similar measure by a margin of more than eight percentage points.

One interesting aspect of Coleman’s bill is it would block future amendments that would allow local exceptions; any future gaming amendment would have to apply to the entire state. Alabama came right to the edge of legalizing a comprehensive gaming package in 2024, but a compromise struck by a conference committee fell one vote short of passage in the Senate.

Missouri Lottery could regulate VLTs

A bill that would have the Missouri Lottery in charge of regulating Video Lottery Terminals (VLTs) took its first small steps forward this week in Jefferson City.

HB 2989, sponsored by State Rep. Bill Hardwick, advanced from both the Emerging Issues and Legislative Rules committees this week by slim margins. Hardwick introduced a series of amendments to the bill prior to the vote in the Emerging Issues Committee on Monday, when it passed by an 8-5 count.

The margin was slimmer in the Legislative Rules Committee, 6-5, with one absent. While there does not seem to be much debate about the Missouri Lottery overseeing VLTs, the gaming vertical’s history in the “Show Me State” has been a star-crossed one. It was delayed for multiple years by current Missouri Secretary of State Denny Hoskins, who tried to legalize it in tandem with sports wagering while serving in the statehouse.

The legislation may also bring some needed clarity to the “grey gaming” issue in Missouri as the state has yet to truly define its legality. Attorney General Catherine Hanaway looks to be waiting on this bill’s fate, having signaled her office would take action if VLTs are not legalized this session.

Newsworthy Nuggets

Illinois Lottery re-certified at highest standard: The Illinois Lottery announced Thursday it was re-certified at Level 4 — the highest possible standard — under the World Lottery Association’s (WLA) Responsible Gaming Framework.

The WLA’s Responsible Gaming Framework includes 10 core principles that involve research, employee training, retailer programs, game design, and treatment referral. Allwyn, the Illinois Lottery’s operating partner, guided the state agency through the process.

The Illinois Lottery first achieved Level 4 Certification in 2022.

“This re-certification reflects our unwavering commitment to ensuring the Illinois Lottery remains a leader in responsible gaming,” said Illinois Lottery Director Harold Mays. “Protecting our players and promoting healthy play are fundamental to everything we do. Achieving Level 4 status demonstrates that commitment through measurable actions and accountable practices.”

Big Georgia raffle scratcher nets big winner: The Georgia Lottery announced a player in Warner Robins claimed one of the $2 million top prizes in the Big Georgia Raffle scratch-off. The winning ticket was sold at Hop In off Highway 96 in Kathleen, which is approximately 130 miles southwest of Augusta.

Nutmeg numbers added up for someone: The Connecticut Lottery had a winning ticket for Tuesday’s $6.8 million drawing sold in Groton. The jackpot was the fifth-largest drawing in state history and has a cash option worth $4.1 million.

When the “Won” isn’t a big win: It looks to be tough times for lottery players in South Korea as The Korea Times is reporting the average post-tax jackpot is worth less than the cost of an apartment in Seoul.

The average jackpot in 2025 was 2.06 billion South Korean Won (SKW), which converts to $1.41 million. After taxes, a winner would net 1.4 billion SKW, which comes out to $956,840. The average price of an apartment in South Korea’s largest city is 1.5 billion SKW ($1.03 million). Declining jackpots have been a multi-year trend in the Asian country, which had an average jackpot of 2.55 billion SKW ($1.74 million) in 2022.

The decline in jackpots is due mainly to a larger player pool. Data released by Dong Hang Lottery, which is the state-run operator, showed 6.2 trillion SKW ($4.2 billion) in ticket sales last year, which was up 4.6% compared to 2024.

Where is the biggest active individual state lotto jackpot? It’s still a big-state world as California and Texas are 1-2 heading into drawings this weekend. The Golden State had a pair of rollovers, lifting its jackpot to $26 million with an $11.8 million cash option.

Texas slides into the No. 2 spot after someone claimed Florida’s $21.5 million top prize Wednesday night. The Lone Star State has a $21.25 million jackpot up for grabs, with an $11.6 million cash option at the ready.

Our new podium member is Indiana, where the Hoosier Lotto Plus is offering $13 million Saturday night. Massachusetts remains just outside the top three as its Megabucks lottery has a top prize of $11.75 million and cash option of nearly $8 million. Oregon slides into the top five with an $8.4 million prize for Saturday night’s Megabucks drawing.

The multi-state Lotto America has a drawing Saturday worth $14.98 million, and the winner can opt for the $6.86 million cash option.

Until next week, dream big, check your numbers, keep your tickets where you can find them, and play responsibly!