Mega Millions Jackpot Won in Illinois Before Major Rule Changes
The Mega Millions jackpot has been hit - and it's an incredible $344 million that is going to a lucky player from Illinois. This takes place on the eve of Mega Millions going through some major game changes on April 5 - could this be the last jackpot win before then?
With just over a week before the rule changes take place, this win is a great way to mark Mega Millions in its current format. After this, the jackpots will get even higher, so we could see some billion dollar top prizes in our midst…
Another Illinois Jackpot Winner
Tuesday's draw was certainly an eventful one. With Mega Millions not having been won since January 17 (where a total of $113 million went to a player from Arizona) the jackpot had rolled over to land on a total of $344 million - before being snatched away by one lucky ticket holder in the Prairie State.
The lucky numbers came out as 1, 5, 17, 39 and 62 with the Mega Ball number 8 and a Megaplier of 2. A total of 619,890 players won prizes across the states. 18 players won the third tier prize of $10,000, and those who picked the Megaplier option got their prizes doubled!
Significantly, a player from Florida matched all five of the main numbers - just missing out on the Mega Ball - to win an impressive $1 million!
However, the majority of the celebrations will take place in Illinois. It was soon revealed after the draw took place that the winning ticket was sold at Casey General Store on S Somonauk Road in Cortland - about an hour from Chicago.
This is the 16th time the Mega Millions prize has been won in Illinois - making it a very lucky state indeed. In fact, the very first Mega Millions jackpot was won in Illinois, where $28 million was won in May 2002. You can go to our participating states page to learn more interesting facts about Illinois lottery wins.
Will the player take the cash sum of $159.1 million, or will they take the annuity option to be paid in installments, either way they have one year to claim their prize before it is lost forever. If you played in Tuesday's draw, make sure to check your tickets!
The jackpot now resets to $20 million for Friday's draw, but as of next week Mega Millions is set for some ground breaking changes.
What Exactly Are The Changes?
One of the major Mega Millions developments will be that the minimum jackpot will rise to $50 million, instead of the $20 million that we have seen since 2020. This means jackpots will rise to higher amounts much quicker and some record-breaking jackpot could be on their way.
Another great addition will be a multiplier that is set to be attached to every ticket! This replaces the optional Megaplier, which is drawn alongside the main numbers. Instead, every person will receive a randomly selected multiplier (either 2X, 3X, 4X, 5X or 10X) which will automatically boost any non-jackpot prize you win. Everyone's multiplier will be different, so no two prizes will be the same.
All these additions means a Mega Millions ticket will go up from $2 to $5 (which includes your automatic multiplier). Since most money from ticket sales goes into the prize fund, we could see bigger jackpots than ever before!
These changes will officially take into effect on April 5, the first draw with these new rules will occur on April 8. Mega Millions draws will still take place every Tuesday and Friday, so make sure to purchase your tickets to be involved in these historic changes.
Published: Wednesday, March 26, 2025