New Hampshire ticket sole winner in US$559M Powerball jackpot

Sam Safa, of Merrimack, N.H., owner of Reeds Ferry Market, stands for a photograph outside the convenience store, Sunday, Jan. 7, 2018, in Merrimack. (AP Photo/Steven Senne)

MERRIMACK, N.H. -- It's been a billion-dollar lottery weekend after a lone Powerball ticket sold in New Hampshire matched all six numbers and will claim a US$559.7 million jackpot, one day after another single ticket sold in Florida nabbed a $450 million Mega Millions grand prize.

Since Reeds Ferry Market opened at 5:30 a.m. Sunday, dozens of excited regulars have stopped by the small, independent convenience store in New Hampshire that sold the winning Powerball ticket to congratulate the owner and chat about the win, store owner Sam Safa said. He said he doesn't know the identity of the winner, but hopes one of the regulars from the over 100-year-old store in Merrimack, about 25 miles (40 kilometres) south of Concord, won the nation's eighth-largest lottery jackpot.

"I'm very excited and overwhelmed," said Safa.

He said that by selling the ticket, it felt like he himself had won. The store will receive a $75,000 bonus for selling the winning ticket.

The winning Powerball numbers drawn Saturday night were 12-29-30-33-61 and Powerball 26.

The initial jackpot was estimated at $570 million, but the actual jackpot at the time of the drawing was the lesser amount, $559.7 million, New Hampshire Lottery Spokeswoman Maura McCann said Sunday.

The winner had not yet come forward as of Sunday evening.

"We are looking forward to meeting New Hampshire's latest big winner -- someone woke up a multimillionaire this morning!" said New Hampshire Lottery Executive Director Charlie McIntyre.

The Florida Lottery says the winning Mega Millions ticket from Friday night's drawing was bought at a 7-Eleven convenience store in Port Richey. The retailer will receive a $100,000 bonus for selling the ticket. The identity of that winner also had not yet been revealed.

The winning numbers to claim the Mega Millions jackpot were 28-30-39-59-70-10.

The jackpots refer to the annuity options for both games, in which payments are made over 29 years. Most winners opt for cash options, which would be $281 million for Mega Millions and $358.5 million for Powerball.

The odds of winning the Mega Millions jackpot are one in 302.5 million. Powerball odds are one in 292.2 million.

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Here is a look at the 10 largest U.S. jackpots drawn so far and the states where the winning tickets were sold:

1. US$1.6 billion, Powerball, Jan. 13, 2016 (three tickets, from California, Florida, Tennessee)

2. US$758.7 million, Powerball, Aug. 23, 2017 (one ticket, from Massachusetts)

3. US$656 million, Mega Millions, March 30, 2012 (three tickets, from Kansas, Illinois and Maryland)

4. US$648 million, Mega Millions, Dec. 17, 2013 (two tickets, from California and Georgia)

5. US$590.5 million, Powerball, May 18, 2013 (one ticket, from Florida)

6. US$587.5 million, Powerball, Nov. 28, 2012 (two tickets, from Arizona and Missouri)

7. US$564.1 million, Powerball, Feb. 11, 2015 (three tickets, from North Carolina, Puerto Rico and Texas)

8. US$559.7 million jackpot, Powerball, Jan. 6, 2018 (one ticket, New Hampshire)

9. US$536 million, Mega Millions, July 8, 2016 (one ticket, from Indiana)

10. US$487 million, Powerball, July 30, 2016 (one ticket, from New Hampshire)

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This story has been corrected to show Saturday's Powerball jackpot was the nation's eighth-largest lottery jackpot, not the seventh largest.