Feeling Lucky? Mega Millions Jackpot Climbs to $550 Million

The excitement continues to build as no single ticket matched all five numbers plus the Mega Ball in the Dec. 13 Mega Millions drawing. As a result, the current estimated jackpot for the Dec. 17 draw is $550 million. At that level, it will be the second-largest Mega Millions jackpot in history and the fourth-largest jackpot ever experienced in the United States. The current record jackpot is $656 million, shared by players in Illinois, Kansas and Maryland on March 30, 2012.

Nine more $1 million winners came out of Friday’s drawing, bringing the total to 39 since the new game was launched in October. The $1 million second-tier prize is a new feature of the game – substantially larger than the previous second prize of $250,000. The latest $1 million winning tickets, which matched the first five numbers (19, 24, 26, 27 and 70) but not the Mega Ball number (12), were sold in Colorado, Connecticut and New Jersey, plus two each in Florida, Michigan and New York.

In less than two months, players in 16 different states have won at the $1 million level. Two lucky players added the Megaplier to their ticket for an extra $1 and were rewarded with super-sized prizes of $5 million and $3 million.