Page 10 - Florida Sentinel 10-26-18

Lottery News
Single Ticket Wins Record $1.537 Billion Mega Millions Jackpot In South Carolina
One winning ticket was sold for the record Mega Mil- lions jackpot of what turned
out to be just under $1.6 bil- lion. The winning ticket was purchased in South Carolina
at the KC Mart #7 in Simp- sonville, in the northwest part of the state. The lucky winner has not yet been iden- tified.
The six winning numbers were drawn Tuesday night. On Wednesday morning, lot- tery officials said in a state- ment the jackpot was worth $1.537 billion, nearly $50 million less than the previ- ously estimated jackpot of $1.6 billion.
South Carolina Education Lottery spokesperson Holli Armstrong said it was the state's first Mega Millions jackpot win. Its previous lot- tery record haul was a $399 million Powerball jackpot.
South Carolina lottery of- ficials also said whoever holds the winning ticket has 180 days to claim the prize and they can stay anonymous if they choose. The retailer where the ticket was sold gets a $50,000 cut once the prize is claimed.
Tony Cooper, chief op- erating officer of the South Carolina Education Lottery, and C.J. Patel, owner of KC Mart #7, greet the media after a sole ticket won a record Mega Millions jackpot on Wed., Oct. 28.
Tickets had to match all five white balls from Tuesday night's drawing as well as the yellow Mega Ball to claim the jackpot.
In addition to the grand prize winner, the Mega Mil- lions website says 36 tickets matched the five white balls to claim $1 million apiece. They were bought in 17 states and the District of Columbia. A Texas winner and one in Florida included the optional Megaplier, so those two tick- ets are worth $3 million each.
Tuesday's Millions win- ning numbers 5, 28, 62, 65, 70 and Mega Ball 5 Megaplier 3x.
The jackpot's lump-sum cash value was $878 million, an option favored by most winners. Otherwise, the jack- pot is doled out over 29 years.
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