Tuesday night's $1.58 billion Mega Millions drawing could bring largest jackpot in the lottery's history

CNN
 — 

The Mega Millions drawing Tuesday night offers a top prize of an estimated $1.58 billion – which would be the largest jackpot the lottery has ever awarded, according to lottery officials.

The whopping prize is up for grabs at 11 p.m. ET Tuesday after no ticket matched all six numbers drawn Friday night, Mega Millions said.

Were one ticket to win, the holder could choose to spread the full amount in annual payments over 29 years, or receive a lump sum payment estimated at about $783 million, both before taxes, according to Mega Millions.

A $1.58 billion jackpot would exceed the current Mega Millions record of $1.537 billion won in South Carolina in 2018, it said.

Though Mega Millions’ jackpot has gone unclaimed since the last one was won in New York on April 18, more than 36 million winning tickets have qualified for lower prizes in that time, ranging from a couple bucks to $5 million, the lottery said. That includes 62 prizes of $1 million or more.

“This year started out with six jackpot winners in less than four months – a number far more typical of a full year and indicative of the truly random nature of lottery drawings,” the lottery said.

That includes $1.348 billion won in Maine on January 13; $20 million in New York on January 17; $33 million and $31 million in Massachusetts on January 24 and 31, respectively; and $483 million and $20 million in New York on April 14 and 18, respectively, according to the lottery.

Mega Millions said it is the only lottery game that has awarded four jackpots over $1 billion.

The all-time record for largest lottery jackpot was a $2.04 billion Powerball prize won last year in California.