$800 Million Mega Millions Jackpot, Seventh-Largest Ever, Won In Texas

The 28th time was a charm for a lucky lottery player in Texas, as the $800 million Mega Millions jackpot was hit Tuesday night after 27 drawings without a winner.

The Texas Lottery says the winning ticket was sold in Sugar Land at Murphy USA 8848, a gas station located on Highway 90A.

The winning numbers were white balls 1, 2, 16, 24 and 66, plus the gold Mega Ball 6.

This prize marks the seventh-largest Mega Millions jackpot winner ever, the largest Mega Millions jackpot ever won in the month of September, and only the third jackpot winner this year. The other two were a June victory for a little over $550 million in Illinois and a $1.128 billion dollar score for a New Jersey player in March.

That billion-dollar-plus prize, for the record, remains unclaimed.

Sales figures show major jackpot fever

Lottery Geeks estimates over 50.6 million Mega Millions tickets were sold for Tuesday’s drawing — nearly 10 million more tickets than last Friday’s draw.

The winner will have the option to take the full $800 million as an annuity spread over 30 payments or to receive a $404.2 million lump-sum cash prize.

As with most things, Mega Millions is bigger in Texas, as this marks the 15th time a Mega Millions jackpot was hit in the Lone Star State.

An additional four millionaires were minted Tuesday night, with winners in California, Florida, New York, and Washington matching the five white balls to take home an even million bucks.

The next Mega Millions drawing will occur Friday, and the game will reset back to the standard opening $20 million jackpot.

Meanwhile, in Powerball land

Powerball’s jackpot prize for Wednesday night’s drawing sits at an estimated $134 million, with a cash prize of $67.6 million.

Monday’s drawing not only didn’t yield a jackpot winner, it also didn’t yield any second-tier millionaire winners, as none of the estimated 9.4 million tickets sold matched all five numbers without the Powerball.

Wednesday’s drawing will be the 10th since the last winner was crowned on Aug. 19, when a ticket in California hit for $44 million.

Tickets for either lottery cost $2, with most states offering a multiplier option for an additional $1.

Both lotteries are legal in all states except Alabama, Alaska, Hawaii, Nevada, and Utah, and tickets are also sold in Washington, D.C. and the U.S. Virgin Islands. In Puerto Rico, customers can buy tickets for Powerball, but not Mega Millions.

All-time biggest jackpots

Here is a list of the all-time top 10 U.S. lottery jackpots:

1. $2.04 billion, Powerball, Nov. 7, 2022, won in California
2. $1.76 billion, Powerball, Oct. 11, 2023, won in California
3. $1.6 billion, Mega Millions, Aug. 8, 2023, won in Florida
4. $1.59 billion, Powerball, Jan. 13, 2016, won in California, Florida, and Tennessee
5. $1.54 billion, Mega Millions, Oct. 23, 2018, won in South Carolina
6. $1.35 billion, Mega Millions, Jan. 13, 2023, won in Maine
7. $1.34 billion, Mega Millions, July 29, 2022, won in Illinois
8. $1.33 billion, Powerball, April 6, 2024, won in Oregon
9. $1.13 billion, Mega Millions, March 26, 2024, won in New Jersey
10. $1.08 billion, Powerball, July 19, 2023, won in California

And here’s the all-time top 10 by lump-sum cash value:

1. $997.6 million, Powerball, Nov. 7, 2022, won in California
2. $983.5 million, Powerball, Jan. 13, 2016, won in California, Florida, and Tennessee
3. $877.8 million, Mega Millions, Oct. 23, 2018, won in South Carolina
4. $794.2 million, Mega Millions, Aug. 8, 2023, won in Florida
5. $780.5 million, Mega Millions, July 29, 2022, won in Illinois
6. $776.6 million, Mega Millions, Jan. 22, 2021, won in Michigan
7. $774.1 million, Powerball, Oct. 11, 2023, won in California
8. $723.5 million, Mega Millions, Jan. 13, 2023, won in Maine
9. $621 million, Powerball, April 6, 2024, won in Oregon
10. $558.1 million, Powerball, July 19, 2023, won in California