Mega Millions player strikes $800 million jackpot

The Mega Millions' estimated $800 million jackpot was won in Tuesday night's drawing, and the winning ticket was purchased in Texas.

The winning numbers drawn on Tuesday were 1, 2, 16, 24 and 66 with a gold Mega ball of 6. The Megaplier was 4X.

The grand prize in Tuesday's drawing was the seventh-largest prize in the game's history.

In addition to the jackpot, four players in California, Florida, New York and Washington state matched all five white balls to win $1 million.

The estimated $800 million grand prize carries a one-time cash payout option of $404.2 million.

FILE - A woman fills out a Mega Millions lottery ticket.

Winners typically select the cash prize rather than the annuity paid out as one immediate payment followed by 29 annual payments.

The odds of winning the grand prize are 1 in 302,575,350, according to megamillions.com.

Before Tuesday's drawing, the Mega Millions jackpot was last won on June 4, when a player in Illinois matched all six numbers to take home the $552 million prize, which is the 10th-largest jackpot in the game's history.

The record Mega Millions jackpot of $1.602 billion was won in Florida on Aug. 8, 2023. That prize is the world’s third-largest lottery ever won on a single ticket, just behind two Powerball winning tickets of $2.04 billion and $1.765 billion, both of which were won in California within the last two years.

The next drawing will be held on Friday, when players will attempt to win the estimated $20 million grand prize, which carries a cash option of $10.1 million.

Mega Millions is played in 45 states as well as Washington, D.C., and the U.S. Virgin Islands. The deadline for purchasing a ticket is 9:45 p.m. on the night of the Tuesday and Friday draws.