Another Mega Millions drawing, another night without a jackpot winner.
No one matched all six numbers or won the estimated $940 million jackpot, bringing the lottery prize to about $1.1 billion before the next drawing on Tuesday night.
The new jackpot is now the third largest in US history.
The numbers drawn on Friday night were: 3, 20, 46, 59, 63, with the Gold Mega Ball 13.
There are now 24 draws without a jackpot winner, draws dating back more than two months. The streak is due in large part to the extremely low odds of winning: one in 302.6 million.
The new jackpot will go to a winner who chooses to be paid an annuity over 29 years. Almost all of the winners opt for an immediate payout even though it is less, and for Tuesday night’s drawing it would be approximately $568.7 million.
“Mega Millions just passed the $1 billion mark again. It’s especially nice to see the jackpot grow over the holidays and New Year’s,” Pat McDonald, Ohio Lottery Director and Principal Director of the Mega Millions Consortium, said in a statement early Saturday. “As the jackpot grows, we encourage our players to stay within their entertainment budget and enjoy this jackpot along with us.”
The only Mega Millions jackpots larger than Tuesday’s drawing have been a $1.53 billion jackpot won in South Carolina in 2018 and a $1.33 billion win in Illinois last July, Mega Millions said in the statement.
Elijah Kouza, an assistant manager at the Buscemi convenience store in Livonia, Michigan, said the Mega Millions jackpot drew a lot of customers ahead of Friday night’s drawing. The $940 million jackpot was prominently advertised in the store and Kouza expected far more Mega Millions ticket sales than the 20 to 25 that are normally sold on Fridays.
“I find it funny, because if it’s $100 million, people say, ‘No. I pass,’” she explained.
Mega Millions is played in 45 US states, as well as Washington, DC and the US Virgin Islands.