As of this writing, tonight's Mega Millions lottery jackpot stands at $660 million, which makes the 10pm drawing now the 3rd biggest jackpot ever. Only two billion-dollar jackpots have ever been higher; $1.537 billion won in South Carolina on October 23rd, 2018, and $1.050 billion won in Michigan on January 22nd, 2021.
After reading about Clark Gas, a Loves Park gas station selling a winning Lucky Day Lotto ticket worth $400,000 a couple days back, I thought it might be fun to see who's won the big money and how much they walked away with (pre-tax).
As I look at an email I just got from the Illinois Lottery, I see that tonight's Powerball drawing has about $730 million reasons for you to consider playing. As the Illinois Lottery's Jessica Perez explains, "This is the fourth largest Powerball prize in game history and the sixth highest jackpot in U.S. lottery history."
A 24-year-old Powerball winner from Wisconsin didn't forget where he came from. And, on Mother's Day, he decided to go out and try to share the wealth a little bit.
For someone in Wisconsin, it's a dream come true. One ticket, one winner. However, after the initial celebration--it's time to settle up the tax bill that comes with winning big money.