A Mega Thousands and thousands lottery ticket: $2.
The payout: a whopping $1.28 billion.
This might make it the second largest jackpot within the sport’s historical past and the third largest lottery drawing general, officers mentioned. This comes after no profitable ticket was bought for Tuesday’s $830-million drawing.
The money possibility now sits at $747.2 million, Mega Thousands and thousands officers introduced Friday.
“We're thrilled with the chance Mega Thousands and thousands offers to retailers, gamers and good causes all through the nation,” Ohio Lottery Director Pat McDonald, present lead director of the Mega Thousands and thousands Consortium, mentioned in a information launch. “The Mega Thousands and thousands group, and certainly a lot of the nation, look with anticipation for tonight’s drawing.”
There’s a couple of 1-in-303-million likelihood of profitable the jackpot, in response to Mega Thousands and thousands.
Blue Chook Liquor retailer in Hawthorne is taken into account one of many luckiest lottery outlets within the state. Dozens of residents from throughout Southern California headed there Friday morning to attempt to maximize their luck.
The liquor retailer’s line wrapped across the block Friday morning.
Cindy McAdoo-Stewart, 62, left her house within the Antelope Valley about 6 a.m. in an effort to beat the road.
“I heard about Blue Chook a while in the past, so I got here from Lancaster. I picked my mom up and I mentioned, ‘Let’s attempt our luck and let’s go to Blue Chook,’” McAdoo-Stewart mentioned.
If she had been to win the historic jackpot prize, she plans to maintain her household and donate 10% of the cash to her church.
McAdoo-Stewart bought $6 value of tickets for herself, and her mom, Mary McAdoo, purchased $8, noting that “it solely takes one ticket.”
Mike Dietz, 46, made a two-hour trek from Riverside to purchase $40 value of lottery tickets at Blue Chook. Dietz, who used to reside in Hawthorne, mentioned that the drive was value it to attempt to win the billion-dollar prize. That is his first time ever shopping for a lottery ticket.
“I’m right here to attempt to hit this billion dollars and share the wealth with all my household and buddies and any charity I can and reside a wholesome life,” Dietz mentioned.
George Vazquez, 67, famous that he waited in a 45-minute line at Blue Chook in hopes of turning into a millionaire — not a billionaire, he mentioned, as a result of he's “keen to share.”
Vazquez, a self-proclaimed “animal lover” who owns an English bulldog and three chihuahuas, hopes to assist get animals off the streets if he wins the jackpot prize.
“If I win the entire thing, I need to open up a sanctuary for canine and cats — have a spot for them to reside and eat,” Vazquez mentioned. “I don’t like seeing [animals] strolling the streets with out meals or water, so I want to maintain them.”
Vazquez additionally assured that every of his 10 children and 14 grandchildren “will get a bit” of the prize.
The jackpot has been rolling over since April, with nobody profitable the highest prize. In 2022 alone, 4 Mega Thousands and thousands jackpots have been in California, New York, Minnesota and Tennessee. The best jackpot to date this 12 months was $426 million, gained by Kristen Wellenstein with a ticket bought in Woodland Hills on Jan. 28.
Regardless of troublesome odds, corporations are additionally hedging their bets.
After spending $100,000 on Tuesday’s drawing and never getting fortunate, Elevating Cane’s co-Chief Govt AJ Kumaran mentioned that the corporate is dropping the identical quantity for at the moment’s drawing.
If one in all their tickets is a winner, the leaders of the corporate plan to separate the billion-dollar prize evenly amongst its workers, which means every employee would obtain about $13,000.
"[We’re] hoping one in all these tickets works as arduous as our crew members do,” founder and co-CEO of the corporate Todd Graves mentioned on Twitter.
As folks prepare to purchase their tickets at the moment, consultants and the Mega Thousands and thousands firm warning them to pay attention to potential scams.
Aura, a private digital safety and identification theft safety firm, works to determine varied scams, together with these which might be lottery-related.
Based on Aura’s chief scientist and cyber safety knowledgeable Zulfikar Ramzan, lottery scams are commonest by way of official-looking emails, texts or cellphone calls that declare you could have gained the lottery. Often, they ask for a small prepayment, typically claiming it can cowl the taxes.
Then “the scammer goes darkish, and the “lottery winnings” by no means come,” Ramzan mentioned.
The Mega Thousands and thousands firm assures that no consultant of the corporate will ever contact anybody about profitable a prize.
“All Mega Thousands and thousands members encourage accountable play — please benefit from the alternative to play the sport whereas conserving your play in steadiness,” the corporate mentioned in a information launch.
Scams additionally happen by way of fraudulent web sites claiming to promote tickets on-line. Scammers may additionally attain out and declare to have gained the prize, Ramzan mentioned. They then declare to need to donate a number of the cash and infrequently ask for private or monetary info, which they'll use to empty cash out of your accounts.
“Earlier than signing up with Aura, one in all our clients was contacted by a ‘lottery winner’ after a latest massive jackpot saying that he was giving freely a big sum of cash,” Ramzan mentioned. “After giving freely monetary info to obtain the funds, the scammer positioned 1000's of dollars in expenses to a debit card, placing the caller’s account within the unfavorable.”
Ramzan mentioned there are numerous methods to keep away from lottery scams. He encourages folks to purchase tickets solely from approved shops for the usual value and to be careful for scammers who attain out claiming they've gained a prize.
Ramzan additionally warns in opposition to divulging delicate info to unknown numbers or e-mail addresses.
“Scammers will use the lottery as a approach to get you to purchase false tickets for a decrease value. Lottery tickets are set at a normal value. If somebody is providing to promote you an “official lottery ticket” at a reduced value, it's most probably a rip-off,” Ramzan mentioned.
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