ST. LOUIS – Two of the winning tickets of a record $656 million Mega Millions jackpot have been anonymously claimed in Maryland and Kansas, yet the mystery festers about who bought that third lucky ticket in Illinois. And unlike the other states, whoever holds the ticket in Illinois may not get to keep their identity hidden.

Firmly believing that lottery players with losing tickets deserve to know that prizes are awarded as promised, the Illinois Lottery's chief reiterated Tuesday that publicly identifying the holder of the March 30 drawing's winning ticket – purchased from a southern Illinois convenience store – is "a very key part of the lottery equation."

There is some wiggle room to publicly conceal a winner's name "if there are good and rational reasons for it," Illinois Lottery Superintendent Michael Jones said, though he noted the lottery could offer up enough details where "ultimately an enterprising reporter can figure out who it was."