Mega holiday winnings.
A Mega Millions player in California won the estimated $1.22 billion jackpot Friday night — ending the lottery’s three-month drought of having no grand prize winners.
The winning numbers were 3, 7, 37, 49, 55, and the gold Mega ball of 6.
The ultra-lucky ticketholder matched all six numbers, defeating the 1 in 302,575,350 odds of winning the grand prize.
The ticket was sold at a Sunshine Food and Gas station in Cottonwood, located in northern California, 146 miles north of Sacramento.
The new billionaire can claim the estimated $1.22 billion in annual payouts or choose the one-time cash payout of approximately $549.7 million.
“What an amazing present this holiday season! At an incredibly special time of year, this is both an incredibly special moment for our winner, and for all the great organizations and causes that benefit from lottery ticket sales around the country,” said Joshua Johnston, lead director for the Mega Millions Consortium.
It is the 37th time a Mega Millions jackpot was won in the Golden State, behind only New York’s 44 for the state with the most wins.
Five additional ticketholders walked away with $1 million each after they were Match 5 winners, matching all five white balls for the Match 5 win.
Those lucky winners hail from Arizona, Missouri, Texas and two additional players from California.
It is the fourth time a Mega Millions ticket holder has won the jackpot in 2024.
The $1.22 billion jackpot is the fifth largest in Mega Millions history, beating out the $1.12 billion drawn on March 26, 2024, at a ShopRite in Neptune, New Jersey.
The winner of the now sixth-largest jackpot in Mega Millions history came forward and submitted their $1.128 billion ticket on Monday to start the collection process — nine months after the drawing.
The last time a jackpot was won in California was on Dec 8. 2023, when two tickets were sold at the same gas station in Encino, Calif. matched the winning numbers for the $394 million prize.
Faramarz Lahijani, who was announced as the holder of one of the tickets, claimed he was the rightful owner of a second ticket that went unclaimed.
Lahijani publicly stepped forward in June to claim his half of the $394 million prize for the drawing that was held on Dec. 8, 2023.
In a breach-of-contract suit filed in Los Angeles Superior Court on Dec. 6, hours before the expiration date, Lahijani argued he was the rightful winner of the remaining $197.5 million but had lost the ticket.
Mega Millions next drawing, set for Dec. 31, reverts back to the default $20 million.
A Mega Millions jackpot has never been won on New Year’s Eve, the lottery said.
Friday’s winner could be one of the last before the lottery game undergoes a “mega overhaul” next spring.
Mega Millions announced in October that it is eliminating the $2 lottery tickets and increasing the prices to $5 per ticket. The new cost is expected to feature higher cash prizes beginning in April.
