5 Biggest Lottery Jackpots in US History
Lottery jackpots range from a $20 win to pocketing millions of dollars. But bigger jackpots are more exciting, right? Let’s look at the top 5 lottery jackpots in US history.
Almost everyone has dreamt about winning the lottery at some point in their lives. What would you do if you won one of the biggest jackpots ever? Here, we look at the top 5 lottery jackpots in US history.
The most recent winner bagged the 11th spot on the list, with a jackpot of $456.7 million from Pennsylvania.
These jackpots are racked up by both the Powerball and Mega Millions games, which are the two most widely played lotteries in the United States.
5 Biggest US Lottery Winners
1) 1.6 billion (US Powerball) – 13/01/2013
The record-shattering jackpot was split three ways by Mae and Marvin Acosta from Chino Hills, California; John and Lisa Robinson of Munford, Tennessee; and Maureen Smith, a 70-year-old from Melbourne Beach, Florida.
2) $758.7 million (US Powerball) – 23/07/2017
The winning ticket was sold in Chicopee, Massachusetts, to Mavis Wanczyk, who won the largest jackpot with a single winner in American history. The 53-year old said she would retire early and that she immediately quit her job.
3) $656 million (Mega Millions) – 30/03/2012
This jackpot had three winners. A retired couple from Illinois, Merle and Patricia Butler, received one of the slices of the top prize. “We are just everyday people who have worked hard all our life…We just happened to hit it big,” Merle said. Another winning ticket was divided among a group of friends in Maryland who dubbed themselves the “Three Amigos.” The third winner is still unknown.
4) $648 million (Mega Millions) – 17/12/2013
Two winners split this jackpot, including Ira Curry, a Georgia woman, who said she bet on a combination of family birthdays. The other winner, Steve Tran, was working as a delivery driver when he bought a Mega Millions ticket in San Jose, California. Tran said he called his boss after he won to say, “I hit the jackpot. I don’t think I’m going to come in today, tomorrow, or ever.”
5) $590.5 million (US Powerball) – 18/05/2013
84-year-old Gloria Mackenzie of Florida had the one-and-only winning ticket, but it could’ve easily gone to someone else. “While in line at Publix, another lottery player was kind enough to let me go ahead of them in line to purchase the winning quick-pick ticket,” Mackenzie said.
