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New York State’s 16,000 Lottery Retail Locations Report Top Mega Millions Ticket Sales in America
Schenectady, NY - - With a Mega Millions jackpot for Friday, February 22nd booming to $270 million, Lottery retail locations across New York are currently selling more tickets than any other state in America.
“Up for grabs is one of the largest Mega Millions jackpot prizes in game history,” said New York Lottery Director Gordon Medenica. “New York has earned more than $30.3 million for education during this Mega Millions roll-up alone.”
The New York Lottery today reported since the current jackpot roll-up began on January 4th, New York sales of Mega Millions tickets have totaled nearly $87 million representing some twenty percent of the sales from the twelve participating Mega Millions states. During this jackpot roll-up, New York has already sold sixteen second-prize winning tickets totaling four million dollars in prizes. Second prize for matching five numbers pays a guaranteed $250,000.
Since 2002, New York has sold 13 jackpot-winning Mega Millions tickets and two during 2007. W. J. Albertson of Mahopac, the last New Yorker to hit a Mega Millions jackpot, purchased the nation’s only winning ticket for a $75 million drawing held on November 2, 2007.
The largest Mega Millions jackpot paid out to a New Yorker was $149 million to Juan Rodriguez from Richmond Hills, Queens. Rodriquez won the jackpot after he matched his five numbers plus the Mega Ball from a drawing held on November 19, 2004. As for the largest Mega Millions jackpot to date, it was awarded to two players who split a top prize of $390 million - - one from Georgia and one from New Jersey - - after a drawing on March 6, 2007.
Mega Millions tickets, which cost $1 each, can be purchased until 10:45 p.m. of the evening of drawings held every Tuesday and Friday at 11:00 p.m.. Odds of winning any Mega Millions prize are 1:40, while odds of winning the jackpot prize are approximately 1:175 million. The next drawing will be broadcast live from Atlanta on Friday, February 22nd, at 11:00 p.m.
New York is one of twelve Mega Millions states. The others include California, Georgia, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, New Jersey, Ohio, Texas, Virginia and Washington.
As America’s most successful Lottery, since 1967 the New York Lottery has contributed a total of $31 billion to education including $2.3 billion in fiscal year 2006-07 from some $7.1 billion in annual revenue - - a profit of 32 percent. |
