Win Powerball Or Mega Millions And You’re Rich — But Not Rosemary Casarotti Rich

The name “Rosemary Casarotti” doesn’t sound particularly Irish, but that name was synonymous with good fortune this St. Patrick’s Day. On Monday, in between sips of green beer, the California Lottery announced that Casarotti was the winner of last December’s $1.22 billion Mega Millions jackpot.

In terms of annuity payment amounts, it was the ninth-largest U.S. draw jackpot ever, the fifth-largest Mega Millions jackpot ever, and the largest Mega Millions jackpot ever won in California.

Casarotti bought her ticket at the Sunshine Food and Gas Circle K in Cottonwood, off Interstate 5 in Shasta County, and she chose to collect her life-changing money as a lump-sum payout of $571 million (before taxes).

And that’s all that we, the public, know about Ms. Casarotti at this time, as she declined to participate in the press conference announcing her win and told lottery officials she prefers to remain as private as she can. (Lottery Geeks will respect her wishes … especially since a Google search and a quick check for social media accounts turned up nothing on her.)

California Lottery spokesperson Carolyn Becker did say that she spoke to Casarotti on the phone, “and I can tell you with certainty how grateful she is and how happy she is to have won this money and to have supported public schools,” a reference to the fact that public education is the primary recipient of funds raised by the California Lottery.

Nearly three months on from Casarotti’s big win, both the Powerball and Mega Millions jackpots are on the rise again — though someone could win them both this week and still not be nearly as loaded as Casarotti is.

Jackpot sizes for mid-week drawings

Powerball is the top prize in the land at the moment, clocking in at an estimated $416 million (cash value: $194.1 million) for Wednesday’s drawing.

Nobody went a perfect six-for-six on Monday, when the numbers drawn were 11, 18, 23, 38, and 60 with a red Powerball of 9. Two players did, however, nail all five white balls — one in Colorado, one in Pennsylvania — to win a million bucks apiece.

This was the 25th consecutive Powerball drawing without a grand prize winner, since that jackpot was hit in Oregon on Jan. 18.

Lottery Geeks estimates about 12.6 million tickets were sold for the St. Patrick’s Day drawing.

As for Mega Millions, the estimated jackpot has crossed the $300 million mark for the first time since Casarotti’s win. It sits at $301 million for Tuesday nights’s drawing, with a cash option of $139.5 million.

Nobody won last Friday when the winning numbers were 3, 17, 39, 42, and 70 with a gold Mega Ball of 1, and there weren’t even any million-dollar winners in that drawing. The top prize awarded Friday was a relatively modest $10,000.

Mega Millions is now at 16 straight drawings without a jackpot winner. The jackpot was last claimed on Jan. 17, the same weekend Powerball was last won.

Lottery Geeks estimates ticket sales of about 12.1 million for Friday’s drawing.

Tickets for either lottery cost $2, with most states offering the multiplier option — which impacts any prize won except the jackpot — for an additional $1.

Both Powerball and Mega Millions are legal in all states except Alabama, Alaska, Hawaii, Nevada, and Utah. Tickets for both draw games are also sold in Washington, D.C. and the U.S. Virgin Islands. In Puerto Rico, customers can buy tickets for Powerball, but not for 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. $1.22 billion, Mega Millions, Dec. 27, 2024, won in California
10. $1.13 billion, Mega Millions, March 26, 2024, won in New Jersey

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. $571.9 million, Mega Millions, Dec. 27, 2024, won in California