Mega Millions Winner: Texas Lottery Confirms Friday’s Big Win

This is the weekend that people in Texas have been talking about since January. It doesn't matter where you have the conversation. It could be on the beach at South Padre, or sitting in a sewing circle with the gals in Bridgeport, or sitting quietly spinning fidgets in Wichita Falls, at some point college football will be discussed.

And while the rest of the world thinks of Labor Day and a day off, in Texas we're contemplating point spreads, screen passes, and what should we cook for tailgating. You might be wondering what does an increased passion for college football have to do with a multi-state lottery game?

College football and pro football tickets are at the top of the "bucket lists" for lottery winners in Texas. A media outlet did an informal survey  asking "What's something you've always wanted but would only buy if you won the lottery".  Season tickets for the Texas Longhorns and the Texas A&M Aggies were among the top answers. There were a few swimming pools, new trucks, and spousal replacements that were mentioned too.

In Friday's Mega Millions drawing there was a big winner, actually five of them in Texas. The game's top prize was an estimated $627 million for the annuitized jackpot and I'll be dog gone if Texas-sold tickets didn't come about as close as you can get without bringing all the bacon home.

Here's how the August 30, 2024, Mega Millions drawing played out:

Friday's Mega Millions drawing did make some bigger winners outside of Texas. There was a Match 5 Million ticket sold in Florida. There was also a Match 5 Million with the Megaplier that was sold in Wisconsin. The Wisconsin winner will get $4 million before taxes because of that Megaplier option.

You could say the Florida ticket and the Wisconsin ticket missed by one number. You could also say the same thing for the big money winners in Texas too. While the Match 5 Million winners missed matching the Mega Ball, all five of the Texas-sold tickets did match the Mega Ball but it missed one of the five white ball numbers.

The prize according to the Official Mega Millions Rules for matching four white balls and the Mega Ball is $10,000. In Texas there were four tickets sold that earned that prize. Another ticket with the same prize winning scenario was also sold in Texas but that ticket's purchaser opted for the Megaplier which means instead of a $10,000 prize, they'll be awarded a $40,000 prize.

If you'd like to quickly check your Mega Millions tickets, here are the numbers that we observed rolling out of the hopper last night.

10   17   20   24   54   Megaball 08   Megaplier x4

Before you attempt to claim a prize make sure you verify your tickets at the Official Mega Millions Website or the Official Texas Lottery Website. Those sites do have the "official listing" of the winning numbers. They can also help you scan through a large number of tickets. The sites also provide detailed information on how to claim any prizes you may have won.

In Texas, the Texas Lottery does not release prize winner information on wins of less than $1,000,000. So, we can't offer you point of purchase details. But we do suggest that if you purchased a Mega Millions ticket that you do check your numbers. My source at the Texas Lottery explained that there were over 123,000 winning tickets sold in Texas for Friday's Mega Millions game.

The Texas Lottery will host a drawing tonight for Lotto Texas with Extra!. That game has a top prize of $15.5 million for the annuitized jackpot. The lump sum payout for Lotto Texas with Extra! is estimated to be $9.09 million.  There will also be a Powerball drawing tonight. 

The Powerball jackpot is estimated to be $69 million for the annuity and if you won and opted for the lump sum you'd be looking at a payout of $34.3 million. Those are before taxes numbers I am sure once the taxman takes a bite your winnings would be considerably less.

With lottery games comes the risk of losing money. Do play responsibly. If you have gambling problem call 1-800-GAMBLER. You can set up counseling and get other important and helpful information free of charge when you call that number. Good Luck.