It looks like the next Mega Millions winner will come close, as whoever the lucky person is will take home the second largest prize in history. After Tuesday’s drawing of the famed lottery game saw no winner match all six winning numbers of 7, 13, 14, 15, 18 and the Mega Ball 9, the jackpot continued to soar to unimaginable heights. Up for grabs now is a whopping $1.35 billion. Though nobody hit for the grand prize earnings of $1.1 billion from the Jan. 10 drawing, multiple people did become a few million dollars richer, after 16 tickets won the game’s second-tier prize, taking home up to $3 million. The next drawing—estimated to be roughly $707.9 million in cash—is scheduled for Friday (Jan. 13) night. If won, it would be second only to a $1.537 billion Mega Millions jackpot won in South Carolina in 2018, according to an official press statement. “While many consider Friday the 13th an unlucky day, it has been rewarding for Mega Millions players over the years, with six previous jackpots won on such a day. There’s a chance for another this Friday, and it’s a big one!” the lottery said in the news release. The massive jackpot crossed the billion-dollar line after nearly three months with no winning ticket drawn. The last jackpot was won at $502 million on Oct. 14, when two winning tickets from California and Florida claimed the prize. Since then, more than 33 million winning tickets have been sold, including 68 players who took home $1 million or more, per the announcement.
