AUSTIN (KXAN) — Tuesday could be a big night for Mega Millions players.
The fifth-largest jackpot prize in Mega Millions history, $555 million, is up for grabs. The estimated cash value is worth $316.9 million, the press release said.
If there is no jackpot winner for Tuesday night’s Mega Millions drawing, the jackpot prize for Friday’s drawing will roll to an estimated annuitized $630 million, the release said.
This is the largest Mega Millions jackpot up for grabs in nearly 18 months. The game’s second-largest jackpot prize, an estimated $1.05 billion, was won Jan. 22, 2021, by a player outside of Texas, the release said.
Tuesday’s drawing will be the 27th in the current Mega Millions jackpot run since starting as an estimated annuitized $20 million for the April 19 drawing, the release said.
Mega Millions winners in Texas
Texas has had 13 Mega Millions jackpot prize winners since it joined the game in 2003. A Leander resident was Texas’ most recent jackpot winner in September 2019, winning an estimated $227 million, the release said.
Mega Millions officials said, since the start of 2022, five Texas Lottery players have won second-tier Mega Millions prizes of $1 million or larger, including two during the current jackpot run. A Houston resident claimed just over $1 million in May and an Ingram resident claimed a $2 million second-tier prize in June.
Players win the second-tier prize when the first five numbers are a match, but not the Mega Ball number.
Mega Millions is played by choosing five numbers from a field of 70 and one Mega Ball number from the second field of 25 numbers. To win the Mega Millions jackpot, players must match all six numbers drawn including the Mega Ball, the release said.
Ticket sales for the next drawing close at 9:45 p.m. CT on Tuesday.