Thomas Groleau is having a great week.
Groleau, a Beverly resident, is the winner of a $1.97 million jackpot prize in the Massachusetts State Lottery’s Megabucks drawing that took place on Monday.
The next day, on Tuesday, Groleau claimed his prize at the State Lottery headquarters in Dorchester, state lottery officials said. He opted to receive his prize in the form of a one-time payment of $1,333,705, before taxes.
He said he plans on purchasing a new home with his winnings.
His winning ticket was purchased at Players Cafe, 950 Hyde Park Ave. in Hyde Park.
The store receives a $19,700 bonus for its sale of this ticket.
This is the seventh Megabucks jackpot won since the game was redesigned on Nov. 12, 2023 to bring more value to players, with better odds of winning, a higher average jackpot, and double the winnings for all non-jackpot prize tiers, lottery officials said.
Monday drawings were added to the traditional lineup of Wednesday and Saturday drawings.
By reducing the numbers to choose from in the game from 49 to 44, the odds of winning the jackpot and all other prize tiers “improved significantly,” lottery officials said.
The odds of winning the jackpot went from 1 in 13,983,826 to 1 in 7,059,052.
This is a developing story. Check back for updates as more information becomes available.
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