Ticket sold in South Carolina matches all six numbers to claim US’s second biggest lottery prize

This article is more than 1 year old

This article is more than 1 year old

A ticket sold in South Carolina matched all six numbers in the US’s almost $1.6bn (£1.24bn) Mega Millions lottery draw, the state’s lottery has said on its website.

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The ticket matched the five numbers 5, 28, 62, 65, 70 and the mega ball 5 that were drawn on Tuesday night. Anyone who matched all six can choose an immediate cash payment of $904m or receive the almost $1.6bn over 29 years.

Lottery officials said the final sales numbers showed the winning lottery jackpot was just shy of the all-time world record.

On Wednesday morning, lottery officials said the earlier estimate of $1.6bn would have been a world record for lotteries, but actual sales came in just short of the estimate for a total of $1.537bn if paid out over 30 years, or about $877.8m in a lump-sum cash payment.

It was unclear early on Wednesday whether other winning tickets were sold elsewhere.

The jackpot, the second highest amount ever given away in a US lottery, would be enough to buy an NFL team, the Washington Post and the most expensive home in New York and still have spare change to buy a few islands and private jets.

The jackpot offered to a winner of Mega Millions, one of two major lottery games played across the US, was $40m in July. Since then no one has won the top prize and it has continued to roll over.

It is possible that the world will never know the winner as South Carolina is one of eight states along with Delaware, Georgia, Kansas, Maryland, North Dakota, Ohio and Texas where winners can remain anonymous.

Maryland’s lottery spokeswoman, Carol Gentry, said estimated payouts are based on historical patterns, and “there are few precedents for a jackpot of this size”. She says typically about 70% of sales occur on the day of the drawing, “so forecasting precise numbers in advance can be difficult”.

In recent days lottery fever has gripped the nation, with local news reports of queues coming out of corner stores and dreams of what players would do with the cash.

Lottery officials and financial managers encourage people to take time to map out a strategy for investing their hundreds of millions of dollars, and winners must deal with security concerns befitting someone who suddenly is immensely wealthy. Depending on the state, winners have from 180 days to a year to claim their prize.

Although some lottery profits go to good causes, the game is often criticised for being a tax on the poor. Across the US, people who make less than $10,000 spend an average of $597 on lottery tickets, about 6% of their annual income. African Americans also spend a disproportionate amount of money on the lottery, spending five times as much on tickets than white people.

Associated Press and Reuters contributed to this report