Summary
- A Mega Millions player from New Jersey wins $4 million.
- The rule changes in the game boosted the prize from the usual $1 million to a transformative $4 million.
- Lottery players can enjoy improved odds, larger payouts, and a higher initial jackpot amount.
This spring, Mega Millions updated its rules to offer improved odds and larger prizes. During the most recent drawing on Friday, a fortunate player from Bergen County, New Jersey, won an impressive $4 million prize. With the old rules, the player would have received just $1 million, but the recent changes increased the payout to $4 million.
The new rules of the popular game increased the lucky player's payout to $4m
The Mega Millions winning numbers on Friday were 26, 49, 58, 61, and 63, with the Mega Ball number being 09. A fortunate player who bought their ticket at the 7-Eleven on 1 Kinderkamack Road in Montvale successfully matched all the white balls and secured a tier-two prize. The base prize for matching five numbers is $1 million, but with the new rules, the player was automatically entered into a multiplier game. Consequently, the player hit a 4X multiplier on Friday, increasing their prize to $4 million. Previously, Mega Millions players had to pay extra to use the multiplier option, which allowed for a random multiplier in each drawing. If the player had also correctly matched the Mega Ball on Friday, they would have won the game's top prize, exceeding $300 million. Nevertheless, the $4 million win is certainly life-changing and is notably the largest Mega Millions prize won in New Jersey since the game's rules changed this April.
Mega Millions' overhaul brings more prizes and better odds
Since the Mega Millions format changed in April, the amount of non-jackpot prizes won by players has increased more than fourfold. Between April and June, players won over $112 million in non-jackpot prizes under the new rules. By comparison, under the game's previous rules, non-jackpot prizes amounted to only $25 million. In addition to the increase in non-jackpot prizes, Mega Millions also improved the overall odds of winning any prize and the odds of winning the jackpot by removing one gold Mega Ball. Previously, the odds of winning any prize were 1 in 24, but since April, they have improved to 1 in 23. Under the previous rules, the odds of winning the jackpot were 1 in 302.5 million. These odds have improved to 1 in 290.4 million since April. Furthermore, Mega Millions has increased the starting amount for its jackpot prize. Under the old rules, the jackpot began at $20 million, whereas now it resets to $50 million.
