Californian Mega Millions player wins 530 million dollars

For many people it’s a dream to suddenly wake up one morning as a millionaire. This really happened to a Mega Millions player from Southern California. Friday night he won the Mega Millions Jackpot of 530 million dollars. His ticket had the six matching numbers, which obviously doesn’t happen a lot.

What were the lucky numbers?

CBS Los Angeles reported that the new millionaire bought the winning ticket in San Diego. The lucky numbers were 17, 19, 27, 40 and 68 with Mega Ball 2. The megaplier, which can double or even three double your money, was 3x this time. If the winner chooses the so-called ‘cash option’, 345 million dollars will be added to his or her bank account.

Other winner with one Mega number less
Interestingly enough, another player also had five matching numbers on the ticket. However, the Mega number was missing and so a near-miss of more than 500 million dollars took place. This person won about 1 million dollars, so we guess he or she won’t be sad. This winning ticket was bought at a Seal Beach gas station, journalists reported.

What are the odds of winning the Mega Millions Jackpot?

Perhaps you find the big MegaMillions win inspiring. Did you know that a ticket only costs 2 dollars? Besides that, you can buy a ticket all over the United States, in 44 states including Washington D.C and the Virgin Islands. It’s always interesting to take a look at the odds of winning, which are 1 in 302.5 million for the Mega Millions Jackpot. To compare: it’s 1:292.2 for the Powerball Jackpot.

Americans like to dream big
Americans absolutely love to gamble, because about two-third of the people often buys a lottery ticket. Main reason to buy a ticket is the thought or feeling that ‘I can be next’. Jill Schlesinger, who works as a CBS News Business analyst, also said that some people play just for fun and don’t necessarily want to win. They just ‘like to dream big’, Schlesinger commented.