CLEVELAND, Ohio — A single ticket sold in California matched the winning numbers from the Friday, Dec. 27, 2024, Mega Millions drawing, winning a $1.22 billion jackpot.

The Mega Millions jackpot had gone unclaimed since Sept. 10, when a Texas player hit the $810 million grand prize, lottery officials said. To score the jackpot in the Mega Millions, a player must match all five white balls and the gold Mega Ball. The odds of scoring a jackpot prize are 1 in 302,575,350.

The California Lottery announced in a post on X that the winning $1.269 billion Mega Millions ticket, which has a cash value of $571.9 million, was purchased at a Circle K (Sunshine Food and Gas) at 3505 Rhonda Road in Cottonwood.

As the Mega Millions jackpot continues to rise to higher and higher numbers, here is what you need to know ahead of the next drawing.

Powerball jumped to $163 million for Monday, Dec. 30, 2024, just before New Year’s Eve. Mega Millions was at $1.22 billion days earlier

Two Mega Millions tickets sold in California won $787,543 each, lottery officials say. The tickets matched five winning numbers, but not the Mega Ball, in the drawing Friday, Dec. 27, the California Lottery said. The state adjusts prizes based on the number of tickets sold and number of winners.

“We know that many people will likely receive tickets to Friday’s drawing as holiday gifts, and what a gift that would turn out to be if you ended up with a ticket worth a $1.15 billion jackpot,” Joshua Johnston, lead director for the Mega Millions Consortium, said in a news release before the jackpot rose again to $1.22 billion.

At least one Mega Millions player has plenty of dough to ring in the New Year after drawing the winning number. After three months without anyone winning the top prize in the lottery, a ticket worth an estimated $1.