View Single Post
Old 05-31-2009, 11:17 PM   #1
alydar_ David
Grade 1
 
Join Date: Jun 2005
Posts: 2,654
Pick 6 king Lerner honored at Churchill

Color me cynical, but I have a hard time swallowing this. The normal bet to hit a Pick6 is $4?

http://www.courier-journal.com/artic...d+at+Churchill

Sunday was Howard Lerner Day at Churchill Downs.

The track honored the Louisville attorney, Turf Club and Gold Room member and self-proclaimed curmudgeon who is famous for hitting Pick Sixes while investing only a few dollars.

Looking dapper in his pink-and-white striped Oxfords and celery-green jacket, the 71-year-old Lerner was surrounded by friends and family in a crowded winner's circle presentation for the sixth race, named the "Mr. Pick 6 presented by Howard Lerner," with many of his Gold Room colleagues cheering him on from the outside.

Lerner beamed as he presented the trophy to trainer Mike Tomlinson and jockey Calvin Borel, even though he hadn't bet on their $19.20 winner, Lady Witha Secret.

"You know, it's kind of hard to bet on a day like this," Lerner said. "This is a great honor, and I appreciate it. And I think they ought to find other people they can honor as well, because it makes the track really look good."

Lerner said he has hit 56 Pick Sixes, never investing more than $16. "And that was only on one of them," he said. "The normal bet is $4. That's five singles and two (selections) in the last race."

Said Churchill Downs Inc. vice president Tom Aronson: "People like Howard are special to the horse-racing business, and special to racetracks like Churchill Downs. I love the idea of every now and then singling them out and letting people know who they are."
alydar_ David is offline   Reply With Quote