Michigan Winner Hits $1 Billion Mega Millions Lottery Jackpot

[Amber]

On Saturday, it was discovered that the third-largest lottery prize of all time was won by someone in Michigan. The ticket was apparently purchased at a Kroger grocery store in Novi, which is a suburb of Detroit. The winning numbers of the Friday night Mega Millions drawing were 4, 26, 42, 50, and 60, with a Mega Ball of 24. 

January of 2016 held the largest lottery jackpot ever in the US, totaling $1.586 billion. That prize, however, was split by three different tickets from California, Florida, and Tennessee. October of 2018 held the second-largest lottery prize of $1.537 billion, which was won by one ticket purchased in South Carolina. 

This week, the Powerball jackpot was nearly as high as the Mega Millions, totaling $731 million. On Wednesday, someone in a small Maryland town won this massive prize. 

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While we obviously don’t know the identity of the lottery winner, it is clear that this unfathomable prize will completely alter the life of the person who receives it. Since lottery winnings are taxable income and the IRS will tax winners at the highest possible bracket, they will only receive about 60.4% of your winnings. Therefore, the winner of this week’s massive jackpot will likely receive about $600 million of their winnings. 

[Via]

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