lottery

Winning $1.22 billion Mega Millions ticket, fifth-largest jackpot ever, sold in California

The jackpot comes with a $549.7 million cash option.

NBC Universal, Inc.

A single ticket sold in California won Friday's $1.22 billion Mega Millions jackpot, the lottery announced Saturday morning.

The winning ticket was sold at a Circle K (Sunshine Food and Gas) convenience store at 3505 Rhonda Road in Cottonwood, California, the California Lottery posted on X.

The numbers drawn for Friday night's jackpot were 3, 7, 37, 49, 55 and a MegaBall of 6 and a MegaPlier of 3x. This was the fifth-largest winning sum in the government-run game's history.

The jackpot had been growing for more than three months. The last time someone had hit the jackpot was on Sept. 10 after a player in Texas won $800 million.

The $1 billion prize was for the sole winner who chooses to be paid through an annuity with 30 annual payments. Winners almost always prefer the cash option, which for Friday night's drawing would be an estimated $549.7 million.

The Mega Millions is played in 45 states, D.C. and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Drawings are every Tuesday and Friday at 11 p.m. ET.

If you or someone you know has a gambling addiction, please call the National Council on Problem Gambling at 1-800-522-4700 to speak to a counselor. Help is also available via an online peer support forum at www.gamtalk.org, and additional resources can be found at NCPG website.

Forty-five states plus Washington, D.C., participate in the Mega Millions drawings. Find out which state has hit the jackpot the most and what numbers seem to come up most often.
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