'Mega' tickets win big, jackpot tops $500 million

July 6, 2016 Posted by NC Lottery at 10:01 AM

Two tickets sold in North Carolina were one number away from hitting the jackpot Tuesday night. That jackpot vaulted more than $50 million to a $508 million annuity, worth $357.7 million cash.

The winning numbers in the drawing were 29-46-53-64-73 for the white balls and 10 for the gold Mega Ball.

The pair of lucky tickets in our state matched four white balls and the Mega Ball to win $5,000 each. One was sold in Caldwell County at the Marathon on Blowing Rock Road in Lenoir. The other was sold in Orange County at the Kangaroo Express on N.C. 54 West in Carrboro.

Big Winners

The next chance to win a multimillion dollar jackpot is Wednesday night. The Powerball jackpot has grown to a $257 million annutiy worth $179.7 million cash.

Are you playing Powerball, Mega Millions, or both?

45 COMMENTS

7/10/2016 11:59 - David L.

I have said it once, I have said 10 times. NC EL needs to dump MM,L4L and PB Games, start there own Big game. It could start in Jan/ Feb of 2018, that way ALL the tax money will stay here in this state.A perfect name would be THE CAROLINA MILLIONS. Played once a week drawn on a Wednesday.

7/08/2016 11:46 - Alvin W.

When I scan the view drawings and winners to see my entries for the second chance wheel of fortune it says no entries. It says entry deadline 7-31-16 and drawing date 8-10-16. I have entered 52 wheel tickets since 6-08-16 but yet I have no entries what is up with this.NC Lottery
Anytime you have a technical question, please click on the HELP link at the top of the screen and fill out an ONLINE SUPPORT form. That is the fastest way to get assistance.

7/08/2016 01:28 - Jesse F.

I've spent over 15,000 this year in lottery and won nothing over $500 I've won thousands in sc so I'm not giving up on nc just yet but it would be nice to win more often

7/08/2016 12:11 - Lisa L.

I BLOW 5.OO ON JUNK FOOD THAT NOT GOOD FOR YOU, SO IF I BUY THE LOTO TICKETS I AM HELP MYSELF AND I MIGHT WIN, AND HOPEFULLY HELP THE SCHOOLS.

7/08/2016 10:16 - Randy K.

How do find data on how many times Mega Millions has had North Carolina winners for the big Jackpot and 1 million winners and the location the ticket was sold. Can this be created so that everyone can see. It would be nice to group all counties by winner status and the location of the ticket sold and bought. Since so many people say some towns never have a big winner.NC Lottery
Since Mega Millions came to North Carolina in 2010, we've had two jackpot winners - one of $12 million, the other for $57 million. We don't have a map of what you've described but here are some search results of our website: http://bit.ly/29s3vOz

7/08/2016 10:15 - kathy p.

I would love too WIN GOOD luck everyone

7/08/2016 10:05 - Christopher S.

I would be nice if one could stay anonymous if they won the jackpot.

7/08/2016 09:14 - shannon r.

Why is it impossible to enter the $5 back scratch?even if you manually put in the numbers it won't take.this has been going on a while now.please fix.irratated alotNC Lottery
Anytime you experience an issue like this, please click on the HELP link at the top of the screen and fill out an ONLINE SUPPORT form - that is the fastest way to notify technical customer service that something could be going on. You can also call 855-767-1863 for technical customer service.

7/08/2016 09:10 - Franklin H.

They depend on fools like me to keep playing.

7/08/2016 04:43 - Connie C.

R most of your winners from employes who work in the stores where the scratch offs r sold and they get 75 tickets a day out of the trash and put the numbers in for second chance drawings

7/08/2016 02:20 - Mary H.

I just wanted to say Thank You for allowing to purchase 1 ticket in the subscription site. I think it will be used a lot more now. Has anyone won through the subscription service? Also one more favor, the blue sleeves with the clear front are hard to get. About 1 in 10 of the retailers don't know what I'm talking about or don't have any of them. Next time you have them made please extend them a couple of inches in length to be able to put the $20.00 tickets in them. Thanks again for everything you do. I keep hoping I will be among the LUCKY ones.NC Lottery
We've had a $20,000 Powerball winner and a $15,000 Mega Millions winner. If you have a winning ticket, it pays to Power Play and Megaply! :)

7/07/2016 10:10 - Linda M.

Good luck everyone on whatever you choose to play, because I'm just going to keep on trying, because I feel my turn is coming to be a winner, but you have to play to win!!!!!!!!GOOD LUCK.

7/07/2016 08:58 - nadine m.

I spend way to much money on nc lottery. It seems as tho its always the people that dont need the money that wins. The ones that really needs it wins nothing.

7/07/2016 08:25 - Craig T.

I love the NC lottery!

7/07/2016 08:12 - mary c.

I just need a small win to put myself and children ina new home, definitely do not have to be rich to do that, lol

7/07/2016 07:57 - Penny S.

We play every draw but have a question that maybe can be cleared up. My husband says that the mega plier only counts for the 5 white balls now and for nothing less. I disagree because of reading the back of a play slip. Please help solve this disagreement. Thanks.NC Lottery
The Megaplier counts for all non-jackpot winnings. Here's more info about how to play: http://www.nc-educationlottery.org/megamillions_how-to-play.aspx

7/07/2016 05:09 - shirley m.

I sent a letter asking the lottery instead of giving one person all the money.Make millionaire,instead of one person winning it all.FOR INSTANCE 350 million dollars going to one person make 350 million dollar winners.we all play we all get tired of spending money and getting 1 out of 100 million to win.Ive seen people in califorina buy a 1 dollar scratch off win million dollar,why don't nc lottery work that way.NC Lottery
We aren't in charge of making changes to the multi-state games. But they are popular because of the big jackpots. Our goal is to have a variety of games in the hopes that some of them have prizes and features that you like.

7/07/2016 02:52 - Tyler R.

Odds are I'll never win much. Still fun to play here and there. Thing is not to get hopes up too much, you're better off not playing if you get that frustrated by a chance of winning that is less likely then getting struck by lightening.

7/07/2016 02:39 - Tatiana D.

Many people say that they play Powerball and Mega Millions for years and don't win. It would be naive to expect success every time you play these games. But some people do win. My cousin and his wife in Burlington won 50,000 in Powerball just a few months ago. They also have been playing for many years and finally got lucky. I was pretty amazed to hear this news.

7/07/2016 02:38 - Gary C.

How often in your life time do you get a chance to win over a half BILLION DOLLARS in a fair game for only a $1.00 entry fee? Get in it to win it!!!!

7/07/2016 01:21 - Tammy O.

Have there been any winners from the subscription services? If so, where can we see them?NC Lottery
We've had a $20,000 Powerball winner and a $15,000 Mega Millions winner. If you have a winning ticket, it pays to Power Play and Megaply! :)

7/07/2016 11:44 - travis c.

Yes I have a question if playing the cash five and the scratch off's in North Carolinais supposed to B random how come you see more winners near or in Raleigh. I know you are going to tell me you sell more tickets in those areas but if the lottery is random some of those Numbers and scratch off's should be hitting in the furthest away counties because A a blind squirrel will find a nut every once in a while. Thanks TravisNC Lottery
We have Cash 5 and instant winners all over the state. It's not easier to win if you play in a big city or a small town, there are just more people taking a chance to win in higher-populated areas. Just a few weeks ago we had a big Cash 5 jackpot winner from Madison County, which is almost in Tennessee: http://bit.ly/28QfrIb

7/07/2016 08:35 - Betty R.

if a scratch off ticket hasn't been activated by mistake and the retailor is still selling them, is it possible for the self scanner to display "ticket not active".NC Lottery
We are told that it will say “invalid Status" - if you have more questions, please feel free to call customer service between 8 a.m. and 5:30 p.m., Monday through Friday, at 877-962-7529

7/07/2016 07:39 - Patrice G.

my luck is so bad that I could owe the lottery money on a winning ticket...lol

7/07/2016 06:27 - Kevin H.

Is playing the online subscriptions tickets the same as buying the tickets out of the store.NC Lottery
Same chance of winning either way. Please see our reply just above.

7/07/2016 04:15 - Franklin H.

I have been in both ever since the subscription service started for convenience purposes. Rarely win over a few dollars. I don't see where anyone ever wins anything big using the subscription service. Seems that the winners are people that buy from the local stores. Maybe the subscription service is the wrong way to go.NC Lottery
You have exactly the same chance of winning a prize via subscription as you do buying a ticket in a store. It's just that the vast majority of tickets are bought in stores, and only a fraction through subscription. That doesn't make it easier or harder to win one way or the other. There are just many, many more people taking a chance to win the old fashioned way :)

7/07/2016 03:37 - Kerry B.

I play normally, but I know it's a game of chance/luck, but it's not worth the headache when your odds aren't great. Might only play the CASH 5 where at least I have a better chance at a game JUST for NC.

7/07/2016 12:15 - charles m.

when we,as lottery players see millions of people buying tickets all over the country,and only one person or ticket wins 90 percent of the time its rigged.NC Lottery
There are 292,201,338 possible winning number combinations on a Powerball ticket and 258,890,850 potential winning combinations on a Mega Millions ticket. Given that, it's no surprise when only one ticket matches all six numbers to win the jackpot. You have probably noticed, however, that the bigger the jackpot gets, the more likely it will be that the jackpot is split. That's simply because more people have more tickets, which increases the chances of a split jackpot. Good luck! We're hoping to have our state's seventh jackpot winner soon :-)

7/06/2016 11:26 - Danny L.

We need a game that instud of one ticket getting 20 to 100 million we have 10 to a 100 million dollar winners.

7/06/2016 10:32 - mark g.

Well the way I see it is id rather spend some of my cash on this hoping to win big then rather spending it on other junk that I don't need you never know "YOU HAVE TO PLAY TO WIN!"

7/06/2016 10:03 - judy w.

No one wins here in stonypoint or hiddiente or never oNC Lottery
We've absolutely had winners in your neck of the woods. Here's some more info: http://bit.ly/29pqVkQ

7/06/2016 09:33 - Charles H.

can not win, might have better luck if I quit playing it all. I be able to keep my money anyway

7/06/2016 09:18 - Bryan B.

I agree with 'rock2king' above ; Best of Luck to All and it's just a now and then thing when the amounts get ridiculous. If the Lottery organization desires consistent play from this individual, then the payout matrix is going to have to be revised to create many more individuals, albeit "lesser" winnings, when the obsurd jackpots arise ! Just keep it in perspective for simple fun & a spirit of "What if" ~

7/06/2016 08:54 - TERESA G.

Both, regularly. No jackpot yet.Still waiting patiently.

7/06/2016 05:40 - Michael A.

I wished the States would meet with the MM and PB lotteries to lobby for a greater payout for the situation above and other pay levels. You miss the numbers by 1 white ball but yet you get the Mega Ball and the payout is $5k? However, if you miss only the Mega Ball or Power Ball and you get millions. Either way it is a miss of one but treated significantly different. It is hard either way to get 6 numbers but the payouts just don't match the odds of getting all numbers except 1. Players have consistently asked for higher payouts to keep them in the game at other levels too. Otherwise, it stresses many to play regardless of how much Lottery officials message it should be viewed as a game of pleasure and not for financial reward. People want to win, and as such, they often time forgo other things to play.

7/06/2016 05:27 - Tanja D.

both on a regular basis thru purchases here occasionally, in store occasionally and regularly with my office pool.

7/06/2016 05:07 - justin f.

Is there any plans to make a game with more favorable odds, And a higher ticket price with less numbers. So more people can win and split the prize. Like a pick five with 20 balls and a cost of 20 bucks to play!!

7/06/2016 03:24 - Roger K.

Well when the MM and the PB gets up there like these two are, i must buy a little something, for the just in case it happens! Two dollar PB for tonight won't hurt nothing. Just might be my Lucky night! Good Luck everyone!

7/06/2016 03:05 - mamie h.

I would be Blessed with winning something from the 2nd chance drawings.

7/06/2016 02:42 - Shawntia B.

I play both. Neither are a regular for me, just from time to time when I think I feel lucky... Not lucky enough yet. Lol

7/06/2016 02:34 - Norma G.

I normally don't buy mega millions and PowerBall, however once in a blue moon I'll buy one of each.I don't like wasting money on something you very well know has no return. I do it for my husband who loves the lottery.NC Lottery
That's the fun of it - sure, it takes luck to beat the odds to win a prize... but you might win a little something, or maybe a lot! It is nice of you to get the tickets for your husband. We wish you both the best!

7/06/2016 01:28 - Santina R.

Both from a small town southern pines nc let's get it

7/06/2016 11:38 - Judy J.

Playing mega millions Think it is time to quit just wasting money. All I have is scrap paper. I couldn't win if I had winning numbers and nobody else was playing

7/06/2016 11:07 - Landis S.

I'm playing both but haven't been playing Power play since Powerball price increased.

7/06/2016 11:07 - stephane d.

I play both. I have not won more than 20.00. Soon to quit. When will the commission create a state lottery beside the cash five. Million dollars just in the state?NC Lottery
There aren't plans to add another draw game right now. Sooner or later we'll see another Cash 5 jackpot top $1 million :-)

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'Mega' tickets win big, jackpot tops $500 million

July 6, 2016 Posted by NC Lottery at 10:01 AM

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