Clinton man discovered win on Christmas Eve

Last night, the $1.22 billion Mega Millions® estimated jackpot was won on a single ticket sold in California. Meanwhile, an Indiana man is celebrating a $1 million Mega Millions prize.

After hearing the recent buzz surrounding the billion-dollar Mega Millions jackpot, Micah Thacker of Clinton purchased a Mega Millions ticket the weekend before Christmas. While he only plays the lottery occasionally, he decided to buy a ticket when he stopped at Buck's Clinton (Sunoco) located at 1458 E. State Road 163 in Clinton.

A few days later on Christmas Eve, Thacker was picking up dinner for his family when his wife called to tell him about a post on the area Facebook group regarding a $1 million winning Mega Millions ticket sold in their small town of Clinton. When he got home, Thacker scanned his ticket on the Hoosier Lottery app and received a message that his prize was too large to pay at a retailer. He then checked the winning numbers and realized his ticket matched all five white balls in the drawing. At that moment he knew the ticket was worth $1 million!

Thacker and his family were in disbelief, and acknowledged this Christmas holiday is one they will always remember. Thacker and his wife plan to pay off their house and their daughter's student loans with the prize money.

The $1.22 billion Mega Millions estimated jackpot ranked as the fifth-largest in the game's history. According to the Mega Millions website, there were more than 31.4 million winning tickets across all prize tiers during the 31-drawing run, which began after the last jackpot was won in Texas on September 10. These include 65 second-tier prizes of $1 million or more, won in 26 different jurisdictions from coast to coast, including Indiana.

The Mega Millions jackpot for Tuesday, Dec. 31, is an estimated $20 million.

Mega Millions® Overall Odds are 1 in 24.