The world welcomed at least one new instant multimillionaire on Tuesday night,... as a single ticket sold in South Carolina won the eye-watering Mega Millions jackpot of more than one-and-a-half billion dollars.
Lee Seung-jae has more.
5 - 28 - 62 - 65 - 70 - and the mega ball -5.
Beating odds of one in 302-point-6 million,... the winning ticket was sold in South Carolina.
While the latest Mega Millions prize was expected to be the largest jackpot in history,... the final total fell slightly below the estimated one-point-six billion dollars in the end,... making it the second-biggest ever jackpot.
The lump sum option on Tuesday's jackpot is 877-point-8 million dollars.
If the lucky winner or winners chose that option,... the total haul will be about 491-point-7 million dollars,... after federal and state taxes.
The state of South Carolina has an income tax rate of 7-percent,... while the federal tax rate is at 37-percent.
At least 36 ticket holders came up just short,... hitting all 5 numbers but not the mega ball number.
That prize isn't too shabby at one million dollars,... with eight of the tickets being sold in California.
With the first jackpot winner since July 24th,... the Mega Millions will reset to its baseline 40-million dollar jackpot for its next draw on Friday.
But,... many have their fingers crossed for the Powerball draw on Wednesday night,... for a chance at an estimated 620-million dollars.
While we may never who know the winner or winners of the Mega Millions jackpot is or are,.. one thing is for sure: he, she or they are now among the richest people in the world.
Lee Seung-jae, Arirang News.