$1.537 billion Mega Millions jackpot for South Carolina winner

G-Jun
Yam/AP

• Mega Millions has confirmed that the final jackpot for
  the winning lottery ticket sold in South Carolina is
  $1.537 billion.
• The winning ticket for the lottery
  was sold in South Carolina, the state lottery said on early
  Wednesday.
• It is close to the all-time record of the $1.586
  billion jackpot for a Powerball drawing in 2016, according to
  Reuters.
• The winner has two options: a one-off payment of around
  $900 million, or gradual payments which would pay out the full
  prize over 29 years (roughly $53 million a year).

Mega Millions has confirmed that the final jackpot for the
winning lottery ticket sold in South Carolina is $1.537
billion — close to the all-time record jackpot for any lottery.

A winning ticket for the lottery
was sold in South Carolina, the state lottery said on early
Wednesday.

A lottery official said early on Wednesday that only one ticket
was sold that matched all six numbers in the lottery draw,
Reuters reported.

The winner has two options: an immediate cash payment of around
$900 million or the full prize paid out over 29 years.

The record is a $1.586 billion jackpot for a Powerball
drawing in 2016, according to Reuters.

Earlier estimates had placed the jackpot at $1.6 billion, which
would have been an all-time record. 

Maryland Lottery spokeswoman Carol Gentry told the
Associated Press that the estimate was off because “there are few
precedents for a jackpot of this size” and, as 70% of sales
typically take place on the day of the draw, “forecasting precise
numbers in advance can be difficult.”

The buyer beat the odds of 1 in 303 million to win the Mega
Millions lottery.