Winning numbers for announced $ 1 billion Mega Millions jackpot – CBS San Francisco

SAN FRANCISCO (CBS SF / AP) – A $ 1 billion Mega Millions jackpot is up for grabs, offering a chance to win the third biggest lottery prize in US history.

The winning numbers in the Mega Millions Friday night draw were: 4, 26, 42, 50, 60 and a Mega Ball of 24.

The top prize of the Mega Millions has been increasing since September 15, when a winning ticket was sold in Wisconsin.

The California Lottery Twitter account posted Friday morning that the jackpot had hit the billion dollar mark.

the #MegaMillions the jackpot is now $ 1 billion, yes we said BILLION. Do you still have your ticket? Tickets should only be purchased for essential races. #PlayForMillions #Play it safe #CALoterie pic.twitter.com/NhNdvrTeLO

– California Lottery (@calottery) January 22, 2021

With the rush of people buying last-minute tickets on Friday, the final price of Mega Millions could rise even more. The draw will take place at 8 p.m. PST on Friday evening.

The prize has become so big that it has overtaken digital lottery billboards which can only display a jackpot of up to $ 999 million.

A steady stream of lottery hopefuls were buying tickets Friday afternoon at a gas station in Hercules. Everyone has a dream. A man said he would help Richmond’s junior football league Snoop Dogg. Another player named Rosa said she felt lucky for her birthday.

When asked how many tickets she had bought, Rosa replied, “Just one. You only need one to win, right? “

Lottery spokesman Jorge De La Cruz said via Zoom that he is looking forward to a historic night.

“If the jackpot is hit it will be the third biggest in US history,” said De La Cruz.

Two weeks ago, a Mega Millions lottery ticket was purchased at a gas station in Brentwood that was worth more than $ 2.3 million, California Lottery officials said.

While the massive Powerball prize worth an estimated $ 731.1 million was won by a single lucky ticket buyer in Maryland earlier this week, Bay Area players still have a chance to gain ground with the game Mega Millions.

This winning Powerball ticket was formerly in Allegany County, located in northwest Maryland, but additional details were not immediately available, the Maryland Lottery said in a statement. We may never know exactly who obtains this wealth: in Maryland, the winners have the right to remain anonymous.

The Powerball jackpot was the fifth largest lottery jackpot in the United States. The winning numbers for Wednesday night’s Powerball draw were: 40-53-60-68-69 and a Powerball of 22.

This week marked the first time the two lottery jackpots have exceeded $ 700 million. The biggest prize for either game was a $ 1.58 billion Powerball jackpot won by three people in 2016.

No one had won any of the jackpots since mid-September, which allowed the prices to grow steadily for months. Such a long period without a winner is rare, but also reflects the incredibly low odds of winning – 1 in 292.2 million for Powerball and 1 in 302.5 million for Mega Millions.

Mega Millions and Powerball are both played in 45 states as well as Washington, DC and the US Virgin Islands.

© Copyright 2021 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All rights reserved. The Associated Press and Don Ford of KPIX 5 contributed to this report