SOUTH BURLINGTON, Vt. (WCAX) – The Mega Millions jackpot grew to $1.22 billion ahead of Friday night’s drawing. Dozens of people in our region visited grocery stores and gas stations hoping to find the golden ticket.
After no one hit all six numbers on Christmas Eve, the Mega Millions jackpot swelled to more than $1 billion for the eighth time in the game’s 20-year history.
“Wow, that’s a substantial amount of money,” said Alex Smith of Milton.
If someone wins Friday’s jackpot, they could take home a more than $500 million lump-sum payment after taxes.
That number would make it the fifth-largest jackpot in Mega Millions history.
After hearing that number, Smith decided to buy his first ever Mega Millions ticket, hoping to use any winnings to secure his financial future.
“I have a daughter, so that would be something, and a fiance, so that would be something else. But other than that, family and the family-owned business I work for is another part I’d definitely invest in,” he said.
Other people said they would share any winnings, too, and that they wouldn’t completely change their lifestyle.
“I’d certainly set up my family, and with that amount of money, I could do a lot of good for a lot of people, hunger here in Vermont and animals,” said Doug Littlefield of South Burlington. “I would probably move out of the condo and buy a house so my dog has a yard to play in. I’m not a big condo person, but I wouldn’t get extravagant.”
But with a 1 in 300 million chance of winning, were people feeling lucky?
“No more lucky than any other day,” Littlefield said.
“Maybe for my first time I’ll win,” Smith said. “That would be the first time, only time– that’d be perfect.”
If you feel like today is your lucky day, there’s still time to buy a Mega Millions ticket. Sales end at 10 p.m. for the 11 p.m. drawing.
Meanwhile, check your tickets from the Dec. 13 drawing. Vermont Lottery officials say a ticket sold in the Green Mountain State matched five out of five numbers with a 3x megaplier. That winning $3 million ticket was sold in St. Johnsbury and has not yet been claimed.