While the Mega Millions Christmas Eve jackpot remained elusive with no grand prize winner, two North Carolina players found a little holiday fortune under their virtual trees. According to CBS 17, one online player from Chapel Hill struck it lucky with a windfall of $30,000 by matching four numbers plus the Mega Ball, with a Megaplier option tripling their original $10,000 win. A second ticket, sold in Wake County at a Publix on Emissary Dr., brought its buyer a neat $10,000 prize.
Following a drawing that proved to be a lump of coal for those dreaming of billion-dollar bounty, the Mega Millions jackpot has surged to an estimated $1.5 billion, primed to become one of the largest in the game's history. As millions of players hold their breath, hoping to finally snag that colossal prize, the next chance for their dreams to possibly come true will occur tomorrow night, WAVY reported.
Despite frenzied ticket sales, the Christmas jackpot, oh so briefly estimated at $1 billion, slipped through fingers nationwide. A closer look at the prize progression shows a leap from $970 million to the billion-dollar mark in mere days, a leap that culminated in a no-win drawing, CBS News detailed. With visions of grandeur, the climb to $1.15 billion has only intensified the fever pitch surrounding this lottery craze.
