Aussies are expected to have shelled out hundreds of millions hoping to get lucky on the Melbourne Cup this week, and many of us have been left with very little to show for it.
But for those who haven’t come away a winner yet, there’s a chance at a prize even bigger than this week’s boldest racing punters can boast.
The USA Mega Lotto jackpot hits a staggering $1.3 billion this week, and Aussies are able to enter the draw. Tickets to the USA Mega Lotto are available to Australians through The Lottery Office website until midday AEDT Saturday 8 November.
The eye-watering prize has grown to $1.3 billion after failing to go off since June 27, and while there hasn’t been a winner yet, entrants have the best odds at the 10-figure sum thanks to changes introduced in April. Odds of winning increased when the US based Mega Millions — to which the USA Mega Lotto is matched — removed its “Mega” ball from the pool, and a built-in “multiplier” feature was included in all tickets sold.
Still, this week’s jackpot follows the longest run without a major winner since the lottery was reconfigured. And while the odds have improved, the US Mega Millions has not paid out a jackpot winner in November for almost a decade, since 2016.
The Lottery Office chief executive Jaclyn Wood explained the Australian-based company as offering “Australia’s ticket to the world’s largest official lotteries”.
“When our customers win, we pay them the exact amount of winnings we collect from the overseas lottery ticket,” Ms Wood said.
She described Saturday’s draw as “the ultimate second chance for Aussies who didn’t have any luck on the Melbourne Cup”.
There were some big winners on Tuesday’s race, with Tom Waterhouse, son of legendary trainer Gai, pocketing $150,000 after backing winner Half Yours when it was the favourite at $7.50. Poker player Tony Gee put $20,000 on Half Yours to win.
Swiftbet reported one unnamed punter put $19,500 on the winner at $8.50, while Unibet had bets of $3000 and $2000 on Half Yours at $6.50.
The biggest bet recorded was from technology company Easygo, co-founded by Stake founder and Melbourne billionaire Ed Craven, betting $500,000 at $8 on Al Riffa. The once-favourite ended up finishing seventh.
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