The Mega Millions jackpot has reached $1.337 billion and is the third largest lottery prize in U.S. history. A woman in California won $426 million in January. Last year, the Mega Millions jackpot cracked the $1 billion mark for the second time. The lottery club in suburban Detroit chose to take the winnings in a lump sum, which equates to $557 million after taxes.

The jackpot winner has 60 days to decide if he wants to receive a lump sum, annuity, or both. In Florida, a winner has 60 days to claim his prize or annuity. However, in Texas and New Jersey, winning tickets must be converted to cash or annuity. The cash option was introduced in 1997 but was phased out by 1999.

Powerball (r) costs $2 per play. Players choose five numbers from 1 to 69 and one number from 1 to 26. They can choose to have a computer choose the numbers or have them randomly selected by the lottery terminal. When a ticket matches all five numbers, the jackpot prize grows until someone wins it.

The estimated jackpot is the amount that would be paid out to the jackpot winner based on prior drawings’ sales, expected sales for the next drawing, and market interest rates. When the jackpot is no longer available for purchase, it will show as sold out. However, some tickets may be available at retailers.