Mega Millions jackpot rises to $640 million as the last drawing of 2022 approaches 

The Mega Millions jackpot increased to $640 million as it approaches its last drawing of the year on Friday, December 30.  

The latest jackpot of $328.3 million, if taken in one lump sum, increased after no players matched the six winning numbers of Tuesday nights. The significant sum is “by far the largest” that has ever been played for in the final week of any year. 

“It’s by far the largest Mega Millions prize ever offered in the final week of any year, and could provide someone with a very happy New Year’s celebration,” Mega Millions said in a statement. 

This week’s prize is the sixth time that the lottery has surpassed $600 million in its 20-year history. The first time was on March 30, 2012, with $656 million, when the record was set for the biggest lottery jackpot ever won. Next was a $648 million jackpot on December 17, 2014. 

Five years later, the lottery hit its $1 billion mark for the first time on October 23, 2018, with a record-setting prize of $1.537 billion. Two other jackpots also make the list with $1.05 billion on January 22, 2021, and $1.337 billion on July 29, 2022, claimed by an anonymous ticket owner from Illinois. 

During Tuesday’s drawing, five tickets out of the 1,945,697 winning tickets at all prize levels won the second-tier prize of $1 million. The winning numbers on Tuesday were 9, 13, 36, 59, and 61. The megaball was 11 and the megaplier was 2. 

However, no one has obtained the grand prize in the 21 drawings since the last jackpot was claimed in mid-October. 

Mega Millions is played in 45 states, the District of Columbia, and the U.S. Virgin Islands. The odds of winning the jackpot are 1 in 302,575,350.