The big money was in sight. But despite donning a black yarmulka on the advice of his rabbi, a Cuban-born Orthodox Jew failed to win $1 million when he missed a 3-point shot Saturday at the National Basketball Association’s All-Star Weekend in New York City’s Madison Square Garden.
Saul Holcman of Queens, N.Y., a 5-foot-8-inch, 200-pound guidance counselor who is currently a stay-at-home dad, had qualified to take the shot by winning the Sony Minidisc Million Dollar Shooter contest, which involved scratching off a card at an electronic store.
Holcman’s shot from 23 feet, 9 inches away, bounced off the rim.
Holcman and his wife, Robin, attend an Orthodox synagogue in the Forest Hills section of Queens, and their twin 6-year-old daughters, attend a local Jewish academy.
Holcman said that despite missing the shot, "It was a wonderful expellence.
"I’ll never forget this for the rest of my life, and the memories are worth a million dollars," he said.
As a consolation prize, he did receive a car, some stereo equipment and $10,000.
The money, he says, will go for his daughters’ education.
The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
