The Mega Millions jackpot increased to $685 million ahead of Friday night's drawing, giving lottery players a chance to ring in the New Year with an even larger bonus in their bank account.
There have been 21 straight drawings without a jackpot winner thanks to stiff odds of one in 302.6 million. That has allowed the top prize to grow steadily larger, week after week.
The estimated $685 million prize is for a winner who chooses to be paid through an annuity, with annual checks over 29 years. Nearly all winners opt for cash, which for Friday night's drawing would be an estimated $347.8 million.
The huge jackpot comes less than two months after the largest lottery prize ever, a $2.04 billion Powerball prize that was won Nov. 8 in California. So far, that big winner hasn't stepped forward to claim the prize.
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The reason for all the big prizes is simple — long odds ensure there are few winners and the long streaks of lottery futility allow jackpots to grow ever larger week after week.
The odds of winning a Mega Millions jackpot is one in 302.6 million.
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Mega Millions is played in 45 states as well as Washington, D.C., and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
