Mega Millions: Winning ticket for $980M jackpot sold in Georgia

The “City of Homes” is now home to the largest jackpot ever won in Georgia – and the eighth largest in Mega Millions history.

The winning ticket for the $980 million Mega Millions promotion on Friday was sold in Newnan, located approximately 40 miles southwest of downtown Atlanta. The jackpot has an estimated cash value of $452.2 million if the winner chooses the lump-sum option.

The numbers selected on Friday were 1, 8, 11, 12 and 57 and the gold Mega Ball was 7.

Lottery officials said the winning ticket was a Quik Pik and was sold at a Publix supermarket, at 4000 N. U.S. 29 in Newnan.

“I woke up with a text saying, ‘Please tell me you’re the person that won,’ and I never wanted something more to be true,” Newnan resident Erica Lawson told WSB-TV.

On its website, Newnan refers to itself as the City of Homes. Its six historic districts, listed on the National Register of Historic Places, feature antebellum and Victorian-style homes that were prevalent in the city during the 19th century.

“We are thrilled to congratulate the largest winner in our state’s history,” Georgia Lottery President and CEO Gretchen Corbin said in a statement. “With every Mega Millions ticket sold in Georgia supporting HOPE and Pre-K, Georgia’s students and families are also big winners. We appreciate our players and retailers for their support of our mission.”

Lottery officials said the previous highest payout in Georgia was a Powerball ticket sold in Buford, located nearly 40 miles northeast of Atlanta, on Oct. 23, 2024. Two people split the $478.2 million payout and opted for the cash option of $230.6 million apiece.

It is also the first Mega Millions jackpot won in Georgia since November 2016.

The jackpot had been growing since a winning ticket worth $348 million was sold in Virginia on June 27, lottery officials said. There have been a record 40 drawings since then.

One ticket sold in Michigan came close to winning Friday’s big cash, as it matched five white balls for $1 million. The 3X multiplier made that a $3 million ticket.

There were 48 tickets that matched four white balls plus the Mega Ball to win at least $10,000.

Two tickets – one each in New York and Pennsylvania — had 10X multipliers and were worth $100,000 apiece.

Seven tickets had 4X multipliers and were worth $40,000 each. They were sold in Arizona, Connecticut, Florida, Georgia, Michigan, New York and Texas.

There were 17 tickets worth $30,000 each since they had the 3X multiplier. Two each were sold in Georgia, Maryland and Texas, and one each was won in California, Illinois, Maine, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Tennessee and Virginia).

Twenty-two of those tickets had the 2X multiplier and were worth $20,000 apiece. Two each were sold in California, Florida, Missouri, New Jersey, Texas and Virginia, plus one each in Georgia, Illinois, Kentucky, Maryland, New Mexico, New York, Ohio, Oregon, Tennessee and Wyoming.

Find complete drawing results here.

The largest jackpot in Mega Ball history was $1.602 billion, which was won on Aug. 8, 2023, when a ticket in Neptune Beach, Florida, matched all of the numbers.

Tickets are sold in 45 states, Washington, D.C. and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Tickets are $5 each.

Mega Millions now resets to $50, with the next drawing on Tuesday.

Top 10 Mega Millions jackpots

• 1. $1.602 billion – Aug. 8, 2023, one ticket in Florida.
• 2. $1.537 billion – Oct. 23, 2018, one ticket in South Carolina.
• 3. $1.348 billion – Jan. 13, 2023, one ticket in Maine.
• 4. $1.337 billion – July 29, 2022, one ticket in Illinois.
• 5. $1.269 billion –Dec. 27, 2024, one ticket in California.
• 6. $1.128 billion – March 26, 2024, one ticket in New Jersey
• 7. $1.050 billion – Jan. 22, 2021, one ticket in Michigan.
• 8. $980 million -- Nov. 14, 2025, one ticket in Georgia.
• 9. $810 million –Sept. 10, 2024, one ticket in Texas.
• 10. $656 million – March 30, 2012, split between three tickets in Kansas, Illinois and Maryland.

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