Michigan Lotto Players Have Online Path To $336M Mega Millions Jackpot

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Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, the iLottery offerings of the Michigan Lottery have proven to be a significant boost to its overall performance.

Michigan residents, along with people across the nation, have an opportunity on Friday night to potentially achieve more than just financial security through Mega Millions.

Michigan residents can purchase online tickets for the 11 p.m. drawing of Mega Millions on Friday, with a whopping $336 million jackpot up for grabs.

To win the full jackpot or receive a cash option of $265.6 million, you need to match five numbers on the white balls, which range from one to 70, and one number on the gold ball, which ranges from one to 25.

According to the Michigan Lottery, the chances of winning the jackpot are 1 in 302,575,350.

During Tuesday’s lottery draw, a participant from Michigan came close to winning the massive $313 million jackpot, missing it only by a single number. However, they still managed to secure a consolation prize of $10,000.

Mega Millions jackpot is highest of 2020

The upcoming Friday’s jackpot is set to be the biggest one since The Great Hope Trust in Ohio won a staggering $375 million in December.

In October 2017, Kevin and Stephanie Blake from Waterford, Michigan, had the fortune of sharing a $42 million jackpot with a lucky winner from Rhode Island, marking the most recent jackpot won by a player from Michigan.

In 1996, Michigan became part of the original six states in the Mega Millions lottery, which was formerly called The Big Game. The other founding states were Georgia, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, and Virginia.

Mega Millions can now be played in a total of 45 states, including Washington D.C., Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands.

How to play Mega Millions in Michigan

In Michigan, players have the option to choose their numbers randomly, manually select each number, or play with all combinations of their favorite numbers. Tickets can be obtained from lottery retailers or through online platforms.

Tickets for the Mega Millions lottery cost $2 each. Apart from the jackpot, there are eight different prize categories with amounts ranging from $2 to $1 million. By paying an additional $1 per ticket, you have the option to include the Megaplier, which has the potential to multiply your non-jackpot prize by 2X, 3X, 4X, or 5X.

You can conveniently buy Mega Millions tickets online by using a Michigan online lottery account.

iLottery sales up, lottery sales down during pandemic

On Friday, Jake Harris, the spokesperson for the lottery, informed Playinmichigan that there has been a decline of approximately 26% in lottery sales amidst the ongoing pandemic.

During the period from mid-March to the end of April, he stated that there has been a decrease in sales of approximately $127.2 million when compared to the previous year.

During the same period, online lottery sales have experienced a significant surge of 72%, reaching a total of $12.9 million.

Nearly 1,000 lottery retailers have suspended sales

Only retailers offer games like Michigan Lottery Club Keno, Daily 3, Daily 4, Lucky for Life, and Poker Lotto.

Amidst the pandemic, certain lottery retailers have made the decision to halt sales due to worries about complying with the governor’s stay-at-home directive.

Last month, Harris reported that the number of retailers suspending sales exceeded 950.

According to Harris, approximately 2,500 out of the state’s 10,000 lottery retailers are bars and restaurants, and half of them have not made any sales for a minimum of one month. Within this particular category, lottery revenue experienced a significant decrease of 96% during this period.

In the month of April, the state experienced a decrease of approximately $1 billion in its total revenue.

Lottery provides needed boost for Michigan schools

The iLottery generated an unprecedented revenue of $116.3 million in the fiscal year ending September 2019.

Last year, the Michigan Lottery made an unprecedented contribution of over $1.07 billion to the state school aid fund, setting a new record. Additionally, the lottery achieved record-breaking figures in total sales ($3.9 billion), prizes awarded ($2.3 billion), and the amount received by retailers ($287.6 million).

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