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'I Was In Shock': Canton Woman Wins $3 Million Mega Millions Prize

Reagan Blanton won $1 million orginally but her prize was increased by the 'megaplier'.
PUBLISHED JAN 27, 2024
An image of the Mega Millions lottery ticket | Getty Images | Photo Illustration by Scott Olson
An image of the Mega Millions lottery ticket | Getty Images | Photo Illustration by Scott Olson

A woman from Canton, Michigan, got the shock of her life when she won the mega $3 million prize. Reagan Blanton, 52, bought her winning ticket online and matched the five white balls in the October 6 Mega Millions draw. She matched the five white balls: 12-24-46-57-66 to win $1 million. However, the lucky drawer’s prize was up for a ‘Megaplier’ which is eligible for non-jackpot prizes. Thus, her final prize was multiplied three times for a total of $3 million, according to the Michigan Lottery Connect. .

"I was on vacation and saw the Mega Millions jackpot was getting up there, so I made a mental note to purchase a ticket online when I got home," said Blanton as per the report.

However, Blanton missed the October 6 drawing, when it happened live, and decided to log onto the lottery's website later, to see what the winning numbers were.

"A few days after the drawing, I remembered I hadn't checked my ticket, so I logged in to my Lottery account to see if I won anything."

This is when she learnt that she was one of the winners of the lottery. Further, she found out that she had won a million dollars which were ‘megaplied’ to $3 million. She was in utter disbelief and rushed to show the result to her loved ones.

An advertisement for the Mega Millions lottery | Getty Images | Photo by Justin Sullivan
An advertisement for the Mega Millions lottery | Getty Images | Photo by Justin Sullivan

"When I saw a $3 million prize pending, I couldn't believe what I was seeing! I showed my husband, and he didn't believe it was real either, so I called the Lottery to double check," said Blanton.

"When the Lottery employee confirmed I did win, I was in shock!" she added.

The Michigan Lottery reported that she had recently picked up her prize. Blanton plans to invest the money indicating that she wants to be wise with it.

As per a USA Today report, participants have the option to select six numbers when purchasing a Mega Millions ticket. Then on the drawing day, the first five numbers are chosen from a range of 1 to 70. Further, the last number will be chosen from 1 to 25 for the coveted golden Mega Ball.

Participants also have the option to use the Easy Pick or Quick Pick tool to pick random numbers for them. After settling on the numbers, the ticket is generated.

Representative image of lottery balls | Gety Images | Photo by Justin Sullivan
Representative image of lottery balls | Gety Images | Photo by Justin Sullivan

People playing from certain states can choose to add a Megaplier for an additional dollar. As in the case of Blanton, this decision could potentially increase the non-jackpot winnings by a factor of two, three, four, or even five times.

Participants can buy the tickets in person at gas stations, convenience stores, grocery stores, or even at some airport terminals. Participants can also buy tickets online.

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