A Mega Millions ticket holder in California struck it big on Friday night, winning an estimated $1.3 billion jackpot—the fifth largest in the game's history. By Saturday morning, the lucky
individual had become one of the wealthiest lottery winners in the country.
The winning ticket, which matched all six numbers—3, 7, 37, 49, 55, and the gold Mega Ball 6—was purchased at a Circle K convenience store in Cottonwood, California, a small town located about 200 miles north of San Francisco.
"This is an extraordinary holiday gift! At such a special time of year, this win marks an unforgettable moment for our lucky player," said Joshua Johnston, lead director for the Mega Millions Consortium, in a statement.
The jackpot had grown to $1.269 billion after 30 consecutive drawings without a winner. The odds of hitting all six numbers in the Mega Millions are an astronomical 1 in 302,575,350.
The Circle K store where the ticket was sold has become a hub of excitement, with locals flocking to celebrate the historic win. Christina Sherman, one of the store's patrons, was seen filling out lottery slips at the location, which is now tied to one of the game’s biggest payouts.
The prize is dwarfed only by a $2.04 billion Powerball jackpot, the largest lottery win in U.S. history, claimed by a single ticket holder in California in November 2022. Photo by Tony Webster from Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States, Wikimedia commons.
