Friday the 13th turned out to be the lucky day of an unknown person from the state of Maine in the United States. The British Guardian reported today (Saturday) that the man won $1.35 billion, the grand prize, in the American lottery. The prize reached this amount after three months and 25 draws, in which no one won. The lucky winner beat odds of 1 in 302.6 million, and this is the first winning ticket purchased within the borders of Maine.
The lottery in question, Mega Millions, is held in 45 states of the United States. This prize is the second largest in the history of this lottery, and the fourth in which the grand prize exceeded one billion dollars. The biggest win was in October 2018, when a single ticket from South Carolina raked in $1.53 billion.
Yesterday’s win is the seventh time someone has won the jackpot on Friday the 13th – a superstitious date considered unlucky.
To claim the full prize, the winner will be required to withdraw the prize in annual installments over 29 years. Most grand prize winners prefer to receive a reduced amount, but immediately.