Mega Millions ventured into uncharted territory, growing a jackpot that started at $40 million in July into a $1.537 billion prize for the Oct. 23 drawing.After a player in South Carolina matched all six numbers drawn, the 26-draw streak is over, with Missouri Lottery players winning a total of $18,645,163 throughout the run, Missouri Lottery officials said.In the Oct. 23 drawing alone, Missouri players won a combined $1.9 million, including a $1 million prize and five tickets worth $10,000 each. The $1 million winning ticket was sold at Fast 4 U, 96 and D Highway, in Oronogo.The five tickets that won $10,000 for matching four white-ball numbers and the Mega Ball were sold at: Brad’s Kwik Store, 603 N. Sturgeon, in Montgomery City; Fast Service, 1001 W. Truman Road, in Independence; FastLane, 7430 Highway N, in O’Fallon; M&J’s, 4901 SE Highway PP, in Holt; and Abel’s Quik Shop, 645 W. North Service Road, in Wright City.Linda Kieser is an assistant manager at Abel’s Quik Shop in Wright City. She said on the night of the drawing employees learned one of the tickets they sold was a $10,000 winner. It was messaged to the store by the Lottery.Kieser said the ticket holder has claimed the winnings but the person asked to remain anonymous.Kieser was not surprised that the store had a winning ticket.“We’ve had others that were like that here. This is the third one that I know of,” she said. “We sold one before, on a $50,000 Powerball ticket last year.”She said if people want to try their luck, “come on in.”Stores that sell winning tickets are rewarded with a portion of the winnings. Missouri businesses earned more than $2.1 million from selling Mega Millions tickets during this big jackpot run.“Even though (the) jackpot wasn’t won in Missouri, there are eight other prize tiers, so check your tickets carefully to see if you won one of the other prizes,” said May Scheve Reardon, executive director of the Missouri Lottery.Players have exactly 180 days from the drawing to claim their prizes.Reardon noted that Missouri education earned a lot of money thanks to this jackpot.“We sold an amazing $35.9 million in Mega Millions tickets during this run, which means that $13.5 million from sales of this game alone will go to public education programs in Missouri,” she said.In 1984, more than 70 percent of Missouri voters approved a lottery. Since sales started in 1986, the Missouri Lottery has generated more than $6 billion for the state and public education, and annual Lottery proceeds make up approximately 4 percent of the state’s funding for public education. Lottery players have won more than $14 billion in prizes, and retailers have earned more than $1.35 billion in commissions. Last fiscal year, the Lottery generated more than $300 million for vital education programs, including A+ scholarships. Missouri Lottery