2 winning tickets sold in near-record US jackpot

Two lucky winning tickets have been sold in the near-record USD 636 million US Mega Millions drawing, one at a tiny newsstand in Atlanta, and the other in California.
The lucky Georgia ticket was sold at a Gateway Newsstand in Atlanta's affluent Buckhead area, Mega Millions Executive Director Paula Otto said.
Newsstand owner Young Soolee grinned as she arrived today, a day after the ticket was sold, at the shop off the lobby of the Alliance Center office building. The newsstand, a small, long shop with one register that can hold perhaps 10 people at a time, is frequented by workers at the office building, which sits across the street from an upscale mall.

"I'm so excited and so happy now," Soolee said. "I love my store and the customer now."
Buckhead is a financial center of Atlanta and one of its largest neighborhoods, a vast northern area known for upscale shopping centers. The Alliance Center is home to a variety of offices, lawyers and financial services professionals, even the Brazilian Consulate General.
The California ticket was sold yesterday at Jennifer's Gift Shop in San Jose, which sits along San Jose's tree-lined Tully Road, amid a cluster of Asian restaurants. The store's owner, Thuy Nguyen, told KNTV he doesn't know who the bought the winning ticket, but it's likely someone he knows, most of his customers are his friends. "I feel good! I don't even know, I can't sleep tonight," Nguyen told the station.

The winning numbers in the drawing were: 8, 14, 17, 20, 39; Mega Ball: 7.

The jackpot was the second-largest lottery prize in U.S. history. It started its ascent October 4. Twenty-two draws came and went without winners, Otto said.
Otto said USD 336 million in tickets were sold for yesterday's drawing, they had projected USD 319 million. "Sales were a little better than we'd anticipated," Otto said. "It was a fun run; it was our first holiday run for either of the big jackpot games."
The winners can choose to be paid over time or in a cash lump sum, Otto said. Based on the USD 636 million figure, the winners would receive USD 318 million each over time or USD 170 million each in cash.

Mega Millions changed its rules in October to help increase the jackpots by lowering the odds of winning the top prize. That means the chances of winning the jackpot are now about 1 in 259 million. It used to be about 1 in 176 million.