Arizona Couple Claim $410 Million Mega Millions Jackpot
Saturday June 20th 2020The winners of Arizona's first-ever Mega Millions jackpot have come forward to claim their prize. The couple from Glendale became instant multimillionaires when they hit the game's 11th largest-ever jackpot.
The prize was also the biggest ever won by a single ticket in the Grand Canyon state.
Their ticket matched all six numbers in the Tuesday, June 9 draw: white balls 1, 5, 9, 10 and 23, plus the gold Mega Ball 22.
The 70-year-old husband and 63-year-old wife have chosen to stay anonymous, which is allowed by Arizona law for lottery winners of more than $100,000.
They've been playing the lottery for 38 years and revealed they had an extra-lucky feeling when they bought the winning ticket. They picked their own numbers using a combination of family birthdays.
"My birthday is next month, and my left hand had been itching for two weeks, which meant money was coming my way," the woman told the Arizona Lottery. "I also found a shiny new heads-up penny just before I bought our tickets, so I just knew I'd be lucky."
When she checked their ticket and saw the winning numbers, she yelled “Oh my God, oh my God, oh my God!” as she ran to tell her husband.
The man said they had always viewed lottery tickets as an entertainment expense: “It’s an amazing feeling, and this is proof that you can’t win if you don’t play.”
The winners bought their ticket on May 27 at Circle K, 20203 N. 67th Avenue in Glendale. The store received a $50,000 bonus, which it has committed to donate to United Cerebral Palsy of Central Arizona.
“We are so excited to see this couple claim our first-ever Mega Millions jackpot,” said Gregg Edgar, the Arizona Lottery's executive director.
“The Arizona Lottery is all about doing more good in our state and making dreams come true for our players. I’m sure this amazing prize will go a long way toward helping make this couple’s dreams a reality and inspiring many other Arizonans to dream bigger while doing good for Arizona.”
The winners chose to receive the cash option lump sum payout of $319.9 million. They'll enjoy a windfall of around $227.8 million after withholdings of approximately $76.8 million in federal taxes and $15.3 million in state taxes.
The couple said they will use the prize to pay off their mortgage, set aside funds to care for their children and grandchildren, invest, and of course enjoy their new wealth.
“You can’t take it with you so you might as well have fun,” said the husband. "I feel lighter now and it's incredible to know that there will never be another bill that I can't pay."
It was only the second time the Mega Millions jackpot was hit this year, after one ticket in New Jersey won $202 million on February 11. That prize is still unclaimed.
The Arizona claim comes just after Cristy Davis of Michigan came forward to receive the $70 million Powerball prize she won in February.
Do you have an extra-lucky feeling? The next Powerball drawing is tonight, Saturday, June 20 for a $25 million jackpot. And on Tuesday, June 23 there's a $35 million Mega Millions grand prize up for grabs. You can get your tickets online for both draws now.
Latest News