Will Cowboy Lottery Winner Squander $232M?

PIERRE, S.D. – Wow! Better than a Hollywood movie. 23-year-old Neal Wanless, a rancher barely making ends meet takes home a whopping $232 million, one of the largest PowerBall sums to date – after buying winning ticket in a town called Winner.
Sporting a black cowboy hat Wanless held his giant-sized Powerball check- that will convert to $88.5M after taxes. He bought $15 worth of tickets and changed his life in that instant.
Single and TV’s “The Bachelor” eligible, Wanless still lives at home with his parents on their 320-acre ranch in Mission. He vowed not to follow in the footsteps of past lottery winners have. “I want to thank the Lord for giving me this opportunity and blessing me with this great fortune. I will not squander it,” he said.

On a trip to Winner to buy livestock feed Waneless purchased the PowerBall tickets in rural Todd County, the nation’s seventh-poorest county, according to the Census Bureau.

Arlen Wanless, the winner’s father buys and sells scrap metal, but his earnings dropped with the price of iron, said Dan Clark, an auctioneer from Winner and a friend for 20 years.
Dave Assman, a farmer and longtime friend stated, “They’ve been real short on finances for a long time. They’re from real meager means, I guess you’d say.”

“I hope they enjoy their money,” said county assessor Cathy Vrbka, a family friend. “They work hard, backbreaking hard work.”
Neal Wanless’ winnings are a strike it rich for life scenario – But the big question will he follow many other winners whose lives took a sad turn when they crashed and burned handling mega fortunes- often stating, “We were better off before we struck it rich.”

West Virginia’s Jack Whittaker won $315 million on Christmas day, 2002 in less than five years he was distraught, blaming the money for causing his granddaughter’s fatal drug overdose, his divorce, his inability to have friends he could trust. Whittaker stated, “I don’t have any friends.”Every friend that I’ve had, practically, has wanted to borrow money or something and of course, once they borrow money from you, you can’t be friends anymore.”

Wanless will most likely have “peer issues. Who will be left in his circle of friends that could possiblyl relate to his newfound wealth? Winners often feel isolated, have trouble trusting new folks, or fee guilt or not be entitled to the winnings or feeling responsible for others still struggling to survive. Most likely these and other issues including managing the fortune will be facing Wanless.

MerrieWay.com mused, “Money can’t buy inner peace, joy or happiness”. Taking it slow and staying modest in spending will help Wanless grow into his riches.
Experts on Lotto winners advise to take time off before jumping into risky business ventures an radical lifestyle change.
What’s he planning to do with money? Wanless said, “So far “I want a bigger spread of land.”