Winner of Virginia's Biggest Ever Jackpot Claims Prize

Draw Details

To win the jackpot in Mega Millions, you need to match all five of the main number balls (from 1 to 70) and the Mega Ball (1 to 24). The odds of accomplishing this with a single ticket are a mind-boggling 1 in 290,472,336, but that's just what this Virginia player managed to do. Their lucky numbers were 18-21-29-42-50 and 2. Other than the jackpot, runner-up prizes were pretty thin on the ground, with only five players taking home more than $10,000.

Lottery Anonymity

According to Virginia law, lottery winners can maintain their anonymity if their prize is greater than $1 million. This particular prize is MUCH higher, and as you might have guessed, has been claimed anonymously. As far as winner stories go, that means the details are pretty scarce.

The winning ticket was purchased at a gas station on Northumberland Highway in Burgess, which is quite a tucked-away corner of Virginia. They were awarded a $50,000 bonus check as a reward for selling the winning ticket - standard practice in many US states. Other than this, not much is known other than what the winner chose to disclose via the lottery operator.

Plans for the Money

According to the Virginia Lottery, the winner plans to purchase a new zero-radius ride-on lawnmower! They'll be able to purchase the best of the best, since they have claimed their lottery winnings as an upfront cash prize valued at $155.6 million (before taxes). In order to claim the full $384 million jackpot (again, before taxes), the winner would have needed to accept their prize as a series of annuity payments.

The annuity option tends to be less popular than the smaller cash prize, since getting the cash upfront allows winners to make big purchases right off the bat, and savvy winners may be able to invest the money in such a way that it offers better yearly returns than the annuity. More risks though!

Getting involved in Mega Millions

Thanks to Mega Millions, this player's dreams will have come true. Maybe it's your turn next? Head on over to the Tickets page to get started with a selection of big US lotteries online.