Mega Millions Set to Change in October 2017
Tuesday April 25th 2017A series of changes are set to come into effect on Mega Millions later this year as the game is refreshed in a bid to create even larger jackpots. The changes will be made ahead of the drawing on October 31st, giving players the chance to win bigger prizes in many of the different tiers.
From October 28th, the number of main balls will decrease from 75 to 70, while the number of Mega Balls will increase from 15 to 25. Players will still have to match all five main numbers plus the Mega Ball to win the jackpot, and there will continue to be nine different ways to win, but the price of a ticket will go from $1 to $2.
The odds of winning the jackpot will lengthen from 1 in 258.9 million to 1 in 302.6 million, while the chances of winning any prize will go from 1 in 14.7 to 1 in 24. However, the odds of winning the $1 million prize in the second tier will improve, from 1 in 18.5 million to 1 in 12.6 million.
A number of the other fixed prizes will also be increased, including the third-level prize, which will go from $5,000 to $10,000. The fifth, sixth, seventh, eighth and ninth-level prize amounts will all be at least doubled.
Mega Millions tickets can be bought in 46 jurisdictions in the US and the changes to the game will help participating states to raise money for local good causes. Jackpots are also likely to grow more quickly, and it may be that one day the record for a Mega Millions top prize is broken.
The largest Mega Millions jackpot of all time stands at $656 million, which happened back in March 2012. The prize, which worked out at $471 million in cash, was split between ticket holders from Kansas, Illinois and Maryland.
Fans of the game can continue trying to win Mega Millions before the changes are made by going to any authorised retailer in participating states or choosing your numbers online. Good luck!
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