More than $1 billion in lottery grand prizes are on the line this week, as both the Mega Millions and Powerball jackpots each soared above the half-billion dollar mark.
On Monday, the Mega Millions jackpot hit $615 million, making it the fourth largest in the game’s history — though still well below its record of $1.537 billion in 2018.
The Powerball jackpot, meanwhile, is at $550 million. That’s the ninth largest in the game’s history, and the highest amount in nearly two years.
This is also the first time since October 2018 that the jackpots in both games have reached at least $500 million, according to the California State Lottery.
The reason the prizes have climbed so high is because neither jackpot has been won since mid-September 2020.
“It’s been a couple of years since the games have simultaneously offered jackpots this large, and our players are here for it,” May Scheve Reardon, the chair of the Powerball Product Group and executive director of the Missouri Lottery, said in a statement.
The next Mega Millions drawing is Tuesday, while the Powerball draw is Wednesday.
Powerball officials noted that its next drawing just happens to coincide with the fifth anniversary of its world record $1.586 billion jackpot that was split three ways, including by a Chino Hills couple.
