$940M Mega Millions jackpot is the 6th largest in US history

The golden age of lottery jackpots is upon us after regulators changed the number of lottery balls and have stretched out the odds of winning.

The latest haul up for grabs is $940 million in the Mega Millions Jackpot being drawn on Friday - the sixth largest ranked prize in U.S. history.

It comes less than two months after a player in California won a record $2.04 billion Powerball jackpot and others won lottery prizes worth $1billion in early 2022 and 2021.

While it appears that players have been gifted repeated chances to win the big prize draws are a result of math and more difficult odds.

The golden age of lottery jackpots is upon us after regulators changed the number of lottery balls and have stretched out the odds of winning

'It's thrilling to see the Mega Millions jackpot grow throughout the holidays, and now, into the New Year,' said Pat McDonald, the director of the Ohio Lottery who also leads the state lotteries overseeing the Mega Millions game, to ABC News.

In the fall of 2017, lottery officials approved changes to Mega Millions that significantly lengthened the odds from one in 258.9 million to one in 302.6 million.

They made similar changes to Powerball in October 2015, worsening the odds from one in 175.2 million to one in 292.2 million.

The idea was that by making jackpots less common, ticket revenue could build up week after week, creating giant prizes that would attract the attention of players and pull more in.

In August 2021, Powerball also added a third weekly drawing, which enabled the jackpot to roll over and grow even more quickly as people had more chances to play and lose.

Mega Millions, however, has stuck with the two weekly drawings. The move saw nine of the top 10 largest lottery prizes won since 2017.

The latest haul up for grabs is $940 million in the Mega Millions Jackpot being drawn on Friday the sixth largest ranked prize in U.S. history

In the fall of 2017, lottery officials approved changes to Mega Millions that significantly lengthened the odds from one in 258.9 million to one in 302.6 million

The riches aren't as steep as they may seem, with advertised jackpot winners often agreeing to take their money over 29 years in an annuity.

Winners almost always choose the cash option, which for Friday's draw would be $483.5 million, a third or more of those winnings goes toward federal and, in some places, state, taxes.

Speaking to lottery players at the Riverside Red X, a large grocery and liquor store in Missouri, told ABC News that the winnings could potentially change their lives.

Karol Palmer, of Parkville, said she would 'pay off everything' and take care of her three children and seven grandchildren if she won the Mega Millions prize. The 80-year-old said she would also buy a house at a lake.

'I might not be able to use [the lake house] for very long, given my age,' she said.

'But who knows, I might live to be 100. You have to dream a little.'

Alvin Brockington, of Kansas City, said his priorities would be paying bills, helping his family, buying a house for his mother and traveling.

He said he has a sister in California who he hasn't seen for 30 years so he would take the entire family to see her.

'Then I would get down on my knees and ask God to lead me to the people who really need help,' he said.

'They say money is the root of all evil, but it is really the person who has the money, what kind of person they are and what they do with it.'

Pat McDonald, the director of the Ohio Lottery who also leads the state lotteries overseeing the Mega Millions game said it's 'thrilling' to see the Mega Millions jackpot grow

Brockington, a retired railroad worker, said he also plays other lottery games. Noting that the Powerball jackpot was also up to hundreds of millions, he laughed and said, 'I'd take that. I'd take $1 million dollars from any game. I'm not greedy. Even that would help a lot.'

Meanwhile, Robert Bowring, 70, of Kansas City, said after sharing the prize with his family, he would find a good organization that would assist people who need help.

'Everything is about sharing. If you have that much money, you have to spread it around,' he said.

According to Associated Press the 10 largest U.S. jackpots that have been won span from 2016 to now with players in California seeing a lot of the winnings.

On Nov 8, 2022, one ticket from California won $2.04 billion in a Powerball draw.

Three winning tickets from California, Florida and Tennessee saw a whopping $1.586 billion in the Powerball on Jan 13, 2016.

A lucky South Carolina player won the $1.537 billion in Mega Millions drawn on Oct 23, 2018.

Meanwhile, $1.337 billion from a Mega Millions draw on July 29, 2022, saw one ticket, from Illinois take home the winnings.

In January 22 2021 one ticket from Michigan won the $1.05 billion Mega Millions jackpot, that same year a ticket from Maryland and one from California saw $731.1 million and $699.8 million in Powerball winnings, respectively.

A person from Wisconsin drew a winning ticket for the $768.4 million, Powerball, March 27, 2019, and one ticket from Massachusetts saw a lucky winner draw from the $758.7 million, Powerball, on Aug 23, 2017.

On Oct 27 2018, two tickets from Iowa and New York were drawn for the $687.8 million, Powerball.