1 winner of Mega Millions $1 billion prize; 3rd largest ever in U.S.

Lottery Jackpots
A customer shows the ticket she bought for the Mega Millions lottery drawing at a vending kiosk in a store on Friday in Cranberry Township, Pa.
Keith Srakocic | AP

One winning ticket was sold in Michigan for Friday night's $1 billion Mega Millions jackpot, making it the third-largest lottery prize in U.S. history.

The winning numbers drawn Friday are: 4, 26, 42, 50, 60 and a Mega Ball of 24. The winning ticket was purchased at a Kroger store in Novi, Michigan — a city about 10 miles northwest of Detroit — according to the Michigan Lottery website.

The Mega Millions top prize had been growing since Sept. 15, when a winning ticket was sold in Wisconsin. The lottery's next estimated jackpot is $20 million.

Friday night's drawing comes two days after a Powerball ticket sold in Maryland matched all six numbers drawn and won that game’s $731.1 million jackpot.

Only two lottery prizes in the U.S. have been larger than Friday's jackpot. Three tickets for a $1.586 billion Powerball jackpot were sold in January 2016, and one winning ticket sold for a $1.537 billion Mega Millions jackpot in October 2018.

The jackpot figures refer to amounts if a winner opts for an annuity, paid in 30 annual installments. Most winners choose a lump-sum cash prize, which for the Mega Millions jackpot is $739.6 million.

The odds of winning a Mega Millions jackpot are incredibly steep at one in 302.5 million.

The game is played in 45 states, including Minnesota, as well as Washington, D.C., and the U.S. Virgin Islands.