California Mega Millions
Last Updated: Thursday 15th January 2015, 14:53
A California Mega Millions player has claimed a lottery jackpot prize worth $47 million. Todd Moitz, who works as an insurance agent, is 24 years old, and that makes him the youngest Californian winner of Mega Millions since the game began in the state in 2005.
Mega Millions is a multi-state lottery game that is played in twelve states. California was the latest state to join the game, and the others include Georgia, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Texas, Virginia and Washington.
To play Mega Millions, participants must select five main numbers from the range 1 to 56 and one Mega number from the range 1 to 46. It is necessary to match all six selections for the player to win the jackpot or a share thereof, and the odds of doing this are 1 in 175,711,536.
Having beaten those lottery odds, Todd Moitz won the jackpot of $47 million, and has elected to take the prize as a cash lump sum worth around $32 instead of the annuity option which would have paid him more over the long term.
The 7-Eleven store in San Diego that sold Moitz his winning ticket received a bounty prize of $230,000. The owner of the store plans to use the money to fund college education for his children and also give each of his employees a well-deserved bonus.
The $47 million jackpot won by Moitz is the seventh Mega Millions jackpot won in California. The largest jackpot so far in the state was won on 15 November, 2005, and was worth a staggering $315 million.