NEW JERSEY — A lucky individual in the Garden State is now a millionaire after winning the $1.13 billion Mega Millions jackpot on Tuesday night. This marks the first big winner of 2024 and ends a winless streak that dates back to December.
The winning ticket matched all six numbers drawn on Tuesday night: 7, 11, 22, 29, 38, and 4. The ticket was sold at ShopRite Liquor #781 in Neptune Township, Monmouth County. The lucky winner has the option to take home the estimated prize of $1.13 billion in annuity payments or a cash payout of $537.5 million.
This jackpot is the eighth-largest in US lottery history and the fifth largest in Mega Millions history. The official jackpot amount will be determined later based on actual sales.
In addition to the jackpot winner, there were 13 tickets that matched all five white balls to win the game’s second-tier prize. The next big US lottery drawing will be for the Powerball jackpot, estimated at $865 million.
Mega Millions is played in 45 states, Washington D.C., and the US Virgin Islands, while Powerball is played in those states as well as Washington D.C., the U.S. Virgin Islands, and Puerto Rico. The odds of winning the Mega Millions jackpot are 1 in 302.6 million.