Mega Millions
Mega Millions Online Lottery and History
Have you ever heard about Mega Millions before? Do you consider participating in this game in the nearest future or purchasing a ticket online? Perhaps you are already an experienced player who would like to learn some interesting facts about your favorite lottery? In any case, if you are interested in gambling, lotteries, and Mega Millions, in particular, you have come to the right place! So, as you have probably guessed, we are going to have a closer look at Mega Millions in this article. The text will be covering different aspects of the game from basic rules to ways of playing Mega Millions from abroad.
Without a doubt, it would be logical to explain what this game is at the beginning, and what we are planning to do. All in all, Mega Millions (formerly known as The Big Game) is an American lottery game. Participants try to predict the winning combination of six numbers in order to win the prize. The more numbers they manage to get, the higher their winnings will be. Evidently, Mega Millions is all about sheer luck – similar to other gambling titles; this game does not require any additional skills to play. Still, it is possible to analyze the odds mathematically, so you always know what you get yourself into. Of course, we will discuss it in detail later on, but this is enough to grasp the general idea.
It is safe to say that this lottery has become one of the most popular gambling brands worldwide, advertising an astonishing minimum jackpot of $40 million to the players. Yes, you have heard it right: this amount is just the bare minimum of what jackpot winners tend to get! In 2018, a player from South Carolina won a breath-taking sum of $1.537 billion! Sounds crazy, doesn’t it? However, it is important to learn more about the topic before rushing in to buy a few tickets. Make sure to get yourself familiar with the lottery by reading further information.
History of Lottery Game
As you can see, Mega Millions clearly has some serious money behind it! But how has it all started?Well, Mega Millions began as long ago as 1996 by the name Big Game. The first-ever drawing was held on September 6, 1996, with six ‘founder’ states participating: Georgia, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, and Virginia. There was initially only one weekly drawing that was organized every Friday. However, the game had quickly become so popular that a Tuesday drawing was added two years later, in 1998.
In May 2002, the multistate lottery was given the new name of “Mega Millions.” It was not the only innovation that took place that year. For example, New York and Ohio became member states, and the game matrix and prize amounts were changed to “offer players more excitement.”
With time, there were many changes made in the rules of Mega Millions. Still, they have proven to be successful, as various new states joined the game. The most notable event happened in 2010 when 23 more state lotteries joined Mega Millions. This was the result of a cross-selling agreement between Mega Millions and Powerball that went into effect the same year.The lottery’s popularity has only increased ever since. As of now, Mega Millions is played in 47 jurisdictions: 45 states plus the District of Columbia and the US Virgin Islands, which is an impressive feat by itself.
How to Play Mega Millions
Now that you are familiar with the historical development of the game in question, it would make sense to move to the subject most readers are interested in. So, how do you play Mega Millions?As mentioned above, the goal is to guess the six winning numbers correctly.
You may pick these six numbers from two separate pools – five different numbers between 1 and 70 from the first pool (the so-called white balls) and one other number from 1 to 25 (the gold Mega Ball). It is essential to understand that you win the jackpot only by matching all six winning numbers. The odds of such a match are, in all honesty, extremely low, as they equal to 1 in 302,575,350. Nevertheless, winning the jackpot is undoubtedly not the only option to win a prize. It is enough to guess the Mega Ball only – you will get 2$ by doing it. One Mega Millions ticket also costs $2.00, and winning even the lowest possible award allows you to break even.
Likewise, if you manage to match at least one white ball in addition to the golden one with the winning combination, your prize will already be 4$, meaning you will get some profit, albeit marginal one. Naturally, the more numbers you get right, the more money you will receive. Unfortunately, it is really crucial to guessing the Mega Ball. In case your Mega Ball number was chosen incorrectly, you will win only by guessing three white balls at a minimum. As you can see, the winning chances do not seem to be that high. Nevertheless, even if the separate odds are relatively low, the overall chances of winning any prize are 1 in 24.
Additionally, you have the option to activate a multiplier called Megaplier. If you add $1 for your basic Mega Millions ticket, you can multiply a prize that you win (excluding the jackpot) by 2, 3, 4, or even 5. The Megaplier is drawn before each Mega Millions drawing. The odds for the possibilities that Megapliers gives are not uniform, with 2x multiplier being the most probable option, and 5x – the least probable one.
Interestingly, the rules differ in California quite a bit. For example, all prizes there are pari-mutuel, meaning payouts are based on sales and the number of winners. This is not true for other places, as all other states that participate in Mega Millions set the prizes between the second and ninth place at a pre-determined amount. Moreover, Megaplier is not offered in California because of its state penal code. It is worth noting that you should always pay attention to the laws of the state where you buy the tickets, as the whole gaming process may change depending on it.
In some states, even a special offer called Just the Jackpot is available. For a price of $3, you will receive not one, but two tickets that will be valid only for the jackpot. This means that you will only win the jackpot or nothing at all, even though the numbers would match.
Biggest Mega Millions Jackpots of All Time
Although the winning odds may not seem amazingly attractive, some people have won huge money just by playing Mega Millions. So, how much can you hypothetically gain? Well, the jackpot is not limited at all – it increases each time when there is no top-prize winner. But what were some of the highest prizes in Mega Millions though the years?
As mentioned earlier, on October 23, 2018, Mega Millions set an industry record with a $1.537 billion jackpot. In fact, this was the second time that a lottery prize was over a billion dollars. Moreover, this jackpot was won by one single ticket that was sold in South Carolina. It was the biggest jackpot ever won on a single ticket at that moment. The record Mega Millions jackpot was claimed in 2019, with the winner choosing to remain anonymous under South Carolina law.
The second-largest Mega Millions jackpot of $656 million was won back in 2012. There were three jackpot-winning tickets from states of Illinois, Kansas, and Maryland.Mega Millions’ third-largest jackpot, $648 million, was won in December 2013. Two winning tickets were sold in California and Georgia.The fourth-largest jackpot was won on July 24, 2018. There were 11 participants who were co-workers in San Jose. The annuity value of the prize was $543 million, but the group decided to split the lump sum of $320 million. Finally, Mega Millions’ fifth-largest jackpot, $540 million, was for the July 8, 2016 drawing. It was won by one ticket from Indiana.
Of course, there have been many more huge jackpots claimed by happy winners. As you can see, it really is possible to win astronomically big money by playing Mega Millions. These sums are clearly enough to change people’s lives, so who knows? Perhaps it will be you who will win the next record sum?
What if I Win
Now that you know the basics, will come the real question: what happens when you win a jackpot in Mega Millions lottery ?It must be said that if you win a Mega Millions jackpot, you will choose how it will be paid: Cash Option or Annual Payout (of course, prize claim parameters vary from state to state).
The annual payout of Mega Millions will be paid in 30 payments. One of them will be immediate, and the rest 29 will follow. However, the amount of each payment will increase by 5% compared to the previous amount. This is a positive thing in order to protect the winners’ lifestyle and purchasing power in periods of inflation. For instance, if your jackpot is $100 million, the first payment would be around $1.5 million, and the following annual payments would grow to around $6.2 million.Accordingly, when the jackpot is $200 million, each payment is twice as big. When the jackpot is $50 million, each payment is half as big, etc.
Another way would be to claim a one-time, lump-sum payment that is equal to the cash in the Mega Millions jackpot prize pool. In other words, you will be paid the approximate present value of the installments. Therefore, by choosing the first option, you will get more money in total, but the whole sum will be divided into separate, long-term payments. In contrast, the cash option allows you to receive everything at once, but to put things plainly, you will not get as much as you could have by selecting the annual payout.
Where Can I See the US Mega Millions Results?
The drawings of Mega Millions take place at 11 p.m. Eastern Time (UTC-5) on Tuesday and Friday evenings, including holidays. These drawings are held at a WSB-TV studio in Atlanta, Georgia. The Georgian lottery is supervising them. Evidently, you can just check the results on the Mega Millions official website afterward. The drawn numbers will be added to the site soon after the event. The number of winners will be added on Wednesday and Saturday morning. Besides, many individual lotteries offer an email or texting service where you can automatically receive winning numbers after each draw.
How to Buy Your Mega Millions Online Ticket
Naturally, if you are a US resident, this task will hardly be difficult for you. Local retailers in participating states distribute the tickets. Kindly see the official information on the places where they are available in your chosen state.You can get your Mega Millions ticket online by using the lotteries of the states in case you live in Georgia, Illinois, Kentucky, Michigan, New Hampshire, North Carolina, North Dakota, or Pennsylvania. The purchase can be made in New York or Virginia if you want to subscribe to Mega Millions online. Remember that you must be a resident of the mentioned states in order to participate.
However, it becomes much more challenging if you are not living in the USA. In this case, one option would be to travel directly to the country and purchase a ticket. Mega Millions officially states that “visitors to the United States are always welcome to purchase tickets for our game from an American lottery retailer while they are visiting this country.” Furthermore, you do not need to be a resident to win.
Best Website to Play Mega Millions
Is it possible to buy a lottery ticket online from overseas without actually going to the US? The answer is yes! That is where theLotter comes in. The company’s agents will buy tickets on your behalf just for the original ticket price and a small fee. There are many ways to play Mega Millions at theLotter – go have a look at what the platform has to offer!Of course, if you win a prize, it will be entirely yours to claim! No commissions are taken from winning tickets, so you do not have to worry about it. Moreover, such operations are entirely legal, which is an obvious advantage. There are already numerous stories of people who have used the service and won a prize in Mega Millions without suffering any traveling costs whatsoever!
We hope we have answered all your questions regarding the Mega Millions lottery. We wish you all the luck in your future lottery journeys!
