Mega Millions lottery tops $900m, what are the most common numbers drawn?

America’s Mega Million’s jackpot has reached an estimated $900 million - the second-largest prize ever offered.

With the next draw taking place this Friday, the grand prize lifted from the previous total of $667 on Tuesday when nobody managed to win.

Anyone seeking to win the prize at the end of the week may hope there is a good strategy to overcome the incredibly long odds — one in 302,575,350, to be exact — and end up with more money than most people would ever know what to do with.

Should you take the nostalgic route, maybe choosing your child’s birthday, or the day you first recall falling in love? Maybe your anniversary?

While nothing is certain, there are a few numbers that have shown up more often than others in the lottery pull — and, of course, there is one that has been pulled the fewest number of times, too.

According to USA Mega, the most common numbers drawn since 31 October 2017 are one, two, and 28. Those are followed by 14, 17, 42, and 70 — all of which are tied. The number one has been pulled 18 times, two and 28 have been pulled 12 times, and the others were all pulled 11 times.

As for the Mega Ball, the most common ball pulled was 22, which came up seven times.

The least common numbers are 50, 65, 63, 57, 36, and nine. Of those, 50 was chosen just once, and the others were chosen three times.

The least common Mega ball was five.

But be warned: Relying on these past numbers will do nothing to increase your odds of winning the jackpot on Friday — the past frequency of a draw has no sway on what can come next.

So, maybe your first born’s birthday is not such a bad choice after all.