London, Jun 6 : A 23-year-old American rancher, whose family was in financial difficulties after falling behind on their taxes, struck gold when he won a 232.1-million dollar lottery jackpot on June 5.

Neal Wanless, who lives on his family's 320-acre ranch near Mission, South Dakota, had bought the ticket from the nearby town of Winner late last month during a trip to buy livestock feed.

The family's mobile home had also been repossessed, and it was a stroke of luck that he won one of the largest undivided jackpots in US history.

"I want to thank the Lord for giving me this opportunity and blessing me with this great fortune. I will not squander it," the Telegraph quoted Wanless as saying about his good fortune.

Wanless spent last week baling hay and doing other jobs around his family's ranch, and he said he intended to continue ranching, albeit on a slightly larger scale.

"It'd be nice if we go for a longer ride than usual on a bigger ranch of our own," he said he told his horse, Eleanor.

Wanless also added that he intends to use the money to help those in need.

"My family has been helped by the community and I intend to repay that help many times over," he added.

The total amount he will be taking home in a lump sum payment after taxes are deducted is 88.5 million dollars. (ANI)