Winning $1.5 Billion Mega Millions Ticket Purchased In South CarolinaWinner's Identity May Be Kept Secret According To State Rules |
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The Mega Millions lottery jackpot last hit in July, when 11 California co-workers chopped up a prize worth $543 million. Three months later, and the lack of another Mega Millions jackpot winner had seen the payout jump to a record $1.537 billion!
On Tuesday night, lottery officials confirmed that a ticket purchased in South Carolina matched all six numbers (05, 28, 62, 65, 70, and 05). This is the first Mega Millions jackpot winner in South Carolina history.
“The moment we’ve been waiting for finally arrived, and we couldn’t be more excited,” said Gordon Medenica, director of the Mega Millions Group and head of Maryland Lottery and Gaming. “This is truly a historic occasion."
So just who is this ten-figure winner? We may never know.
South Carolina is one of a number of states that allow lottery winners to remain anonymous. Delaware, Kansas, Maryland, Ohio, Texas, Georgia, North Dakota and Arizona all have some version of privacy laws for jackpot winners.
The unidentified winner, or group of winners, now has the option to take a one-time cash payment of about $878 million, or collect the full $1.5 billion in annuity payments over the next 29 years.
A total of 36 tickets were sold that matched five of the six numbers for a second prize of $1 million each, depending on the ‘megaplier.’
Mega Millions is played in 44 states, as well as Washington D.C. The jackpot will reset to $40 million for the next drawing, scheduled for Friday night.
The U.S. lottery industry generates about $80 billion in sales each year, more than the American casino industry wins from gamblers on an annual basis.
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