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July 27 (UPI) -- The Mega Millions lottery jackpot surged to more than $1 billion Wednesday after no ticket matched the winning numbers in Tuesday night's drawing. The previous jackpot of $830 million was reached after 28 straight draws without a winner, making April 15 the last day that anyone hit the Mega Millions jackpot.
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Tuesday's winning numbers were 07-29-60-63-66; the Mega Ball was 15.
Eight tickets in six states, including California, Florida, Illinois, New Jersey, New York and Ohio, won $1 million for matching all five white balls. Another ticket sold in Ohio won $3 million for hitting all five numbers on a 3X multiplier.
The Mega Millions game is played in 45 states, plus Washington, D.C., and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
A lottery prize has eclipsed the $1 billion mark only three other times in U.S. history, with the latest colossal jackpot standing to become only the fourth-largest ever.
In 2016, the holders of three tickets shared in a $1.586 billion in a Powerball drawing. One person in South Carolina picked the winning Mega Millions numbers in October 2018 and won $1.537 billion; and in 2021 a Mega Millions ticket sold in Michigan hit for $1.05 billion.
The odds of winning Friday's drawing are 1 in 302.5 million.
Cash winnings can either be distributed in annual payments over 30 years or given to the winner in a lump sum, which would lower the amount to $602.5 million.
