HANNIBAL (WGEM) – Following a three-month wait, the Mega Millions jackpot was finally won by a player in Northern California.
On Tuesday, the Mega Millions lottery jackpot reached into 10 figures for the 7th time in history. Millions of tickets were purchased around the country, but no winner was picked for three months. However, on Friday, a victor was found.
One local lottery player said there’s no hard feelings for him even though he’s not taking home the jackpot.
“Anytime anyone wins money in this economy, it’s always a good thing so good for them,” said lottery player Don Hall.
The final total jackpot was $1.22 billion, the 5th highest total in the history of the game. However, despite the high number, the winner will not walk away with all of it and will have two options to take their prize.
The winner, who is anonymous, can take the money in annual installments or take a lump sum totaling around $550 million. Those totals do not include the high tax rate on large lottery winnings.
Another local lottery player said if you don’t play, you can’t win.
“Scared money doesn’t make money so you got to bet it to win it. I’m a fan of it, I support anyone that. Clearly it paid off this time,” explained Ryan Dempsey, another lottery player.
The next Mega Millions drawing takes place on Tuesday, with an estimated jackpot of $20 million.
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