Lotto fever heats up as Jackpot tops $1 billion

ESCANABA -- After no one matched all six numbers Tuesday night for the Mega Millions' $830 million jackpot, the grand prize has soared to new heights -- a potential $1.025 billion to be awarded after tonight's draw.

"Player excitement for the jackpot is strong in Michigan and across the country," Jake Harris, player relations manager for the Michigan Lottery, said. "If the jackpot is won, it will be the third largest Mega Millions prize in history and the fourth largest lottery jackpot won in U.S. history."

Michigan has seen luck in the recent past with selling winning Mega Millions tickets, the last jackpot being won by a group of individuals within the state on January 22, 2021. Coming in at $1.05 billion, the 2021 jackpot was the second largest Mega Millions prize every won. The largest ever won reached a whopping 1.537 billion in October 2018, with the lucky ticket being purchased in South Carolina.

Michigan residents have felt the desire to purchase tickets, casting aside $2 per bet to test their luck in the lottery game. Area businesses equipped to sell lottery tickets have experienced an increase in demand as well.

As one of the top lottery retailers in the Upper Peninsula, Elmer's County Market and its employees get to experience the lottery buzz firsthand. The business was recognized by the Michigan Lottery in 2020 as a Million Dollar Retailer, meaning they were one of 670 retailers within Michigan to hit at least one million dollars in lottery sales for the year. While Elmer's consistently sells lottery tickets, from scratch-offs to Powerball, there has been a dramatic rise in sales with the Mega Millions jackpot skyrocketing.

"Part of the reason our lottery sales are good is that we have a pretty good reputation of selling winners. Obviously, it correlates with how many we sell," Kurt Strasler, Elmer's County Market store director, said. "We actually redeem a lot of winners at Elmer's. People usually return to where they bought their ticket from."

Shari Rondeau, who works the customer service desk at Elmer's, interacts with avid lottery players on a daily basis. Considering that the Mega Millions jackpot has not been claimed since April 28, the monetary prize rolls over and subsequently grows with the daily sale of tickets. When the jackpot reaches record highs, which it currently has, the game becomes more attractive to potential buyers, causing the pot to grow even larger.

While Rondeau has her regular players, who purchase several Mega Millions tickets with every trip to the store, many new faces have been asking for betting slips in the past couple of weeks.

"We have had a lot of first-time players, so we will help them fill out the bet slips," Rondeau said. "But there are some that haven't played in years. They see that it is now up to a billion dollars and they are like 'Sure, I will play it.'"

Demand for Mega Millions tickets has been so high, in fact, that Elmer's recently encountered a minor issue.

"I just had to call the lottery because we ran out of Mega Millions slips. I was just like 'Wow,'" Rondeau said. "I called the [lottery] hotline … and she told me to just go to a gas station and grab some. But they are sending some out."

Available for purchase in 45 states, Mega Millions is a fairly simple lottery game. With each betting slip, players select six numbers. While the first five numbers range from 1 to 70, the last number must be between 1 and 25. The first five numbers are considered "white ball numbers" and the last the "gold Mega Ball." Whether you choose to manually input your favorite numbers or utilize the "Easy Pick" tool, which randomly generates numbers upon purchase, all six numbers must match what is drawn in order to win the jackpot.

While most people play individually, others choose to team up with friends or coworkers -- hedging their bets by sharing all purchased tickets, and the prize money, if selected. Once the jackpot crossed a specific threshold, employees at Elmer's pooled their money together to buy tickets.

"When it builds like this, clearly the dream becomes real for people," Strasler said. "But, you have to play to win."

Matt Meerstein has been playing the lottery for roughly six years. While he's not a consistent player, buying scratch-off tickets from time-to-time, Meerstein has recently set his sights on the $1.025 billion prize.

"Lately, I have just been playing the Mega Millions because that is the big one," Meerstein said. "I started last week when I noticed that the jackpot was getting up there and growing. Now every time it rolls over I have been buying one."

Straying from his typical Cashword scratch-off, which he admittedly has limited luck with, Meerstein relies on the "Easy Pick" when purchasing his Mega Millions ticket. While the odds of winning are stacked against all those playing, 1 in 302.5 million, Meerstein has a faint idea of what he would do with the prize money.

"I would definitely give some to close family and friends. I would probably buy a house and a truck," Meerstein said. "I would donate quite a bit to some good causes, then probably save the rest. There won't be too much left after I donate though."

There are two types of payouts if the jackpot is won -- cash payout or annual payout. If the cash payout is chosen, a lump sum of the winnings will be awarded immediately. With a $1.025 billion pot, the immediate payout would be $602.5 million in cash. With an annual payout, an immediate payment will come after the win, followed by 29 years of annual payments. These payments would increase by 5% with each passing year.

Tickets for Mega Millions can be purchased until 10:45 p.m. tonight at retailers and online at www.MichiganLottery.com. The drawing for the $1.025 billion prize will take place at 11 p.m. tonight.

"As the old saying goes, 'It only takes one to win,'" Meerstein said. "I know that the odds are not on my side, but you got to at least try. If you don't try, you definitely can't win."