Ohio Player Wins $372 Million Mega Millions Jackpot
Wednesday December 18th 2019A Mega Millions player from Ohio has landed one of the largest jackpots of the year, matching all the numbers in the draw on Tuesday December 17th to win an early Christmas present worth $372 million.
Winning Mega Millions Numbers
The winning Mega Millions numbers were 22, 30, 53, 55 and 56, with a Mega Ball of 16. There were more than a million winning tickets in total across all the prize categories, but only one entry matched all five main numbers plus the Mega Ball.
It was quickly announced that the ticket had been sold in Ohio, making it the state’s 20th Mega Millions jackpot win since 2002. It later emerged that the ticket was sold at a Giant Eagle store on Tyler Boulevard in the city of Mentor. The winning retailer will receive a bonus of $100,000.
The lucky ticket holder now has 180 days, until June 14th 2020, to claim their prize. They can decide to take the full jackpot amount as an annuity or opt for a cash lump sum worth around $251 million.
Ohio is also one of the few states where lottery players are not compelled to go public when they claim big prizes. The latest winner could therefore decide to remain anonymous rather than share their identity with the world.
As well as the jackpot winner, the draw on December 17th created four other millionaires in the second prize category. Three players - one each from Iowa, New York and West Virginia - matched all five main numbers without the Mega Ball to scoop $1 million each. A fourth player, from Pennsylvania, also hit five numbers and played the Megaplier, boosting their payout to $2 million.
Third-Biggest Mega Millions Jackpot of 2019
The jackpot had reached $372 million after a run of 23 rollovers, having most recently been won on Tuesday September 24th when a player from Texas banked $227 million to become the state’s biggest-ever winner.
The last time a bigger jackpot was given away was more than six months ago, on Friday June 7th. On that occasion, Laarni Bibal from San Diego in California won $522 million. She only came forward in September after keeping the ticket in a ‘secret hiding place’ for three months.
A New York player also won $437 million on January 1st, making the latest jackpot the third-largest to have been won in 2019. The top prize will now reset to $40 million for Friday’s draw. You can find the latest Mega Millions Numbers after every draw and take part for your chance to become the next big winner.
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