Mega Millions player wins $1.4 million in California. Where was the lucky ticket sold?
A Mega Millions player narrowly missed the jackpot — but still had a lot to celebrate on Valentine’s Day.
The California player bought a ticket that matched all but one number picked in the Feb. 14 drawing, making it worth nearly $1.5 million, results show.
The winning numbers: white balls 11-19-31-49-56, with gold Mega Ball 16.
So, where was the lucky ticket sold? The winner spent $2 on it at the Stater Bros. grocery store in La Quinta, a roughly 20-mile drive southeast from Palm Springs, the California Lottery wrote on its website and Instagram page.
“Love was in the air, or should we say LUCK,” lottery officials wrote.
The player matched all five white balls to score roughly $1.49 million. Their ticket was one number from hitting the jackpot, which stood at an estimated $129 million the night of the drawing, according to the Mega Millions website.
A lottery player in Pennsylvania also matched the five white balls to win $1 million. In California, lottery prizes are adjusted “based on the number of tickets sold and number of winners,” McClatchy News reported.
What to know about Mega Millions
To score the jackpot in the Mega Millions, a player must match all five white balls and the gold Mega Ball. The odds of scoring a jackpot prize are 1 in 302,575,350.
Tickets cost $2 and can be bought on the day of the drawing, but sales times vary by state. Officials have announced they will cost $5 starting in April.
Drawings are held Tuesdays and Fridays at 11 p.m. ET and can be streamed online.
Mega Millions is played in 45 states, Washington, D.C., and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
This story was originally published February 16, 2025 at 7:57 AM with the headline "Mega Millions player wins $1.4 million in California. Where was the lucky ticket sold?."
