Someone in Ohio is a million dollars richer this week, thanks to Mega Millions.
A ticket sold in Ohio won $1 million in the drawing on Friday, June 9. In that very same drawing, a ticket sold in Indiana won $3 million. Those tickets were the two largest prizes won in that drawing, while hopefuls were vying for the $240 million jackpot.
To win $1 million on Mega Millions, a ticket has to match all five of the white balls drawn, but not the yellow Mega Ball. Matching all six numbers wins the jackpot.
The winning Ohio Lottery ticket was sold at a Sunoco gas station in Moraine. If you bought a ticket there, check your numbers. The Lottery only knows where a winning ticket was sold; they don’t know who has that ticket until the winner claims their prize.
The Friday, June 19 winning numbers were 3-19-53-60-69 and Mega Ball 13.
Indiana Mega Millions winner won with Megaplier
The Indiana ticket matched the same five numbers but won three times the prize because of the Megaplier.
The Megaplier is a $1 ticket add-on that multiplies all prizes other than the jackpot. At each drawing, a Megaplier number is also drawn, which determines the amount those prizes will be multiplied by. The Megaplier drawn on Friday was 3x.
With the Megaplier, the second-tier prize can be worth up to $5 million. The possible multipliers are 2x, 3x, 4x and the most rare, 5x.
Current Mega Millions jackpot is still soaring
Mega Millions and Powerball jackpots are both reaching lofty heights at the moment. For the next drawing on Friday, June 16, the Mega Millions top prize is an estimated $281 million. The cash value of that prize is $145.2 million. If no one hits the jackpot, the prize keeps climbing.
As of Wednesday, June 14, the Powerball jackpot is up to a whopping $340 million, with a cash option of $175.5 million.
Winners have the option to take the cash value in a single lump sum payment or the annuity value that is paid out in smaller payments annually over 30 years.
Odds of hitting the Mega Millions jackpot in Ohio
The odds of hitting the jackpot are extremely slim. Any single ticket has about a 1 in 302.6 million chance of matching all six numbers drawn. Winning the second-tier prize is much more likely, but still quite rare. Those odds are 1 in 12.6 million.
After those prize tiers, the awards get much smaller. The third-tier prize without the Megaplier will pay $10,000. Your odds are a little better than 1 in 1 million to match four of the five white balls, plus the Mega Ball, to win that prize.
The lower prizes range from $2 to $500. You have a 1 in 24 chance of hitting any prize on a Mega Millions ticket.
There have been 20 Mega Millions jackpot winners in Ohio since the game launched in 2002. The most recent Ohio jackpot was also the largest. The lucky winner bought their ticket at Giant Eagle in Mentor and won $372 million in the Dec. 17 drawing. The cash value of that prize was $253 million, before tax withholding.
An Ohio resident also won the most recent jackpot on America’s other big jackpot game, Powerball. That lucky winner has yet to claim their $252.6 million prize with a cash value of $134.7 million, won on April 19.
Where to buy Mega Millions tickets in Ohio
Buy Mega Millions tickets at any of nearly 10,000 licensed lottery retailers throughout Ohio. Tickets are $2 per play, with the option of the additional $1 for Megaplier.
Mega Millions tickets are sold in all states except for Alabama, Nevada, Utah, Alaska and Hawaii. That leaves 45 states and Washington, D.C. Tickets can also be purchased in the U.S. Virgin Islands. Not all states that sell Mega Millions tickets offer the Megaplier option.
For added convenience in Ohio, residents can buy tickets online through a third-party provider. The Ohio Lottery doesn’t have an official online option for lottery tickets yet. But two companies offer mobile apps that allow you to purchase tickets online at no extra charge.
Jackpot.com recently launched in Ohio and is partially backed by the owners of the Cleveland Browns and Columbus Crew. Another option, Jackpocket teamed up with Circle K to offer online lottery tickets in Ohio. These services act as lottery ticket couriers, which buy and store your tickets for you. They’ll cash them for you as well, up to $600. For prizes above that, they’ll deliver your winning ticket to you.
