Mega Millions drawing offers another chance at giant prize

The numbers for an estimated $1.35 billion Mega Millions jackpot were drawn and now all hopeful players can do is wait until word of a possible winner

The numbers for an estimated $1.35 billion Mega Millions jackpot were drawn and now all hopeful players can do is wait until word of a possible winner.

The numbers drawn late Friday night were: 30, 43, 45, 46, 61 and gold Mega Ball 14.

It usually takes hours after the drawing for Mega Millions officials to determine whether there is a jackpot winner.

The $1.35 billion prize would be for a winner who takes an annuity with annual payments over 29 years. Winners almost always choose the cash option, which for Friday night’s drawing would be an estimated $724.6 million.

The jackpot is the fourth-largest in U.S. history and has grown so large because there have been 25 straight draws without a winner. That has allowed the prize to roll over for nearly three months. The last time a Mega Millions player hit the top prize was Oct. 14.

That long stretch without a big winner is because of the game’s steep odds of 1 in 302.6 million.

Mega Millions is played in 45 states as well as in Washington, D.C., and the U.S. Virgin Islands.