Perry resident wins big lottery prize, but Mega Millions is up for grabs. How much is it?

A Perry resident is now a little richer after winning big in Tuesday’s lottery drawing.

The lucky recipient received $40,000 after matching four of the first five winning numbers plus the Mega Ball, according to the Georgia Lottery.

The $40,000 ticket, which increased from $10,000 to $40,000 with the 4X Megaplier, was purchased at Publix Super Market #1233 at 275 Perry Parkway in Perry, the Georgia Lottery said in a news release.

There were two $10,000 prize winners in Brunswick and Woodstock too, the Georgia Lottery said. The two $10,000 tickets were purchased on the Georgia Lottery website by a Brunswick resident and at Chevron Food Mart at 514 Arnold Mill Road in Woodstock.

However, the Mega Millions jackpot is still up for grabs.

After no ticket matched all six numbers drawn Tuesday night – the white balls 5, 20, 26, 49 and 51, plus the gold Mega Ball 24 – the jackpot for the next drawing on Friday is an estimated $527 million. That’d be $261.9 million cash. If won at that level, it would be the 13th-largest prize in the history of the game, the Georgia Lottery said.

There have been 22 drawings in this jackpot run to date since the jackpot was last won at $552 million on June 4, according to Georgia Lottery Corp.

Mega Millions winners in Georgia have 180 days from the draw date to claim prizes.

Mega Millions tickets can be purchased at Georgia Lottery retailers statewide. Georgia residents with a Georgia mailing address, who are located in Georgia at the time of purchase, can also purchase Mega Millions tickets via the Georgia Lottery app or online.

Mega Millions tickets are $2 per play. Mega Millions players can multiply prizes with the Megaplier option for an additional $1 per play. Only the Jackpot is a $3 feature that offers two plays for the jackpot prize only.

Drawings are conducted at 11 p.m. on Tuesdays and Fridays in Atlanta. The overall odds of winning any Mega Millions prize are 1 in 24; the odds of winning the jackpot are 1 in 302,575,350.

All Georgia Lottery games proceeds from Mega Millions will benefit education in the state, according to the Georgia Lottery.

Since its first year, the Georgia Lottery Corp. has returned more than $28.3 billion to the state of Georgia for education, according to the company.

All Georgia Lottery profits go to pay for specific educational programs, including Georgia’s HOPE Scholarship Program and Georgia’s Pre-K Program. More than 2.1 million students have received HOPE, and more than 2 million 4-year-olds have attended the statewide, voluntary prekindergarten program.

This story was originally published August 22, 2024 at 11:23 AM.