ESPN Horse Racing

With wildfires devouring Southern California and the dreaded Santa Ana winds rising, the news came as bizarre comic relief. Somehow, despite three horses paying more than $30, the Breeders' Cup Pick 6 was hit, and for $2,687,611.60. When the announcement came that the one winning ticket was purchased at a simulcast outlet, a thought crossed my mind: Did last year's Pick 6 fixers use a phone account from prison?

No, this was a good, clean, All-American "feel good" story, not a revolting scam. It turns out that two wholesale jewelers from the middle of nowhere (Rapid City, South Dakota) had taken down the whole pool with an $8 play. Graham Stone, 40, the one who made the picks, has never seen a live horse race. His silent partner, Will Dixon, 39, put up $4 and got half of the score of the millennium.

While longshots Cajun Beat ($47.60), Action This Day ($55.60) and Pleasantly Perfect ($30.40) tortured Pick 6 players who had laid out thousands, Stone sat in his living room, smiling. While people at Santa Anita stood in endless lines amid 99-degree temperatures after shredding reams of tickets, the Goddess of Wagering singled out Stone and Dixon for her blessing.

The naïve may think it was "good for racing." Not me, and it's not because Stone and Dixon scooped up any of my money. I've played the Pick 6 about five times in my life, and not at the 20th Breeders' Cup. This is philosophical, not personal. Why? Because it's people like these guys who guarantee that longtime horseplayers never will get out for life. You think much of this cosmic windfall will go back through the windows anytime soon? Not a chance.

"Oh, actually most of it's going to be put away," Stone said Tuesday on a conference call with envious racing writers. "So, hopefully it won't change me too much.

" . . . The one thing that I proved to most of the people I know around here is that it couldn't happen to two more deserving guys that have worked hard for 20 years in a business with little reward."

He was talking about the jewelry business, not handicapping. "I just do wholesale repairs," Stone said, "so everybody else makes all the money."

Well, not always.

Stone plans to splurge by going to Saratoga next summer for a weekend. Even at the Spa's obscenely inflated prices, two or three days in horse heaven won't cost him more than $500 or $600, tops.

When asked if he's going to be frugal with his megabucks, Stone replied, "Yes, definitely. Yes, I certainly will."

He's a small player, concentrating mainly on $1 exotics, and never plays the Pick 6 except on Breeders' Cup day. Stone has been a racing fan for only seven years, so it's safe to say he's ahead for life. "In the last year or so, I mean I hate to say it because it doesn't seem right," he said, "but I've only played the Breeders' Cup and the Kentucky Derby."

Sounds to me like someone who hasn't paid his dues, and who knows it. Stone also admits he never would have hit the Pick 6 if he hadn't seen an Andrew Beyer column touting Cajun Beat in the Sprint. This lucky winner appears to be feeling a little guilty, and I have a way to ease his pain and get some of that money back in circulation.

"My dream has always been to go to Saratoga," Stone said. "That I'm going to do."

Why not do it up right? Next summer, let's have the Breeders' Cup organization feed and house Stone and Dixon for the six-week Saratoga meeting. Give them the best table in the clubhouse. Let them hang out with all the rich phonies in the paddock. Get them invitations to all the most exclusive parties.

Here's the catch: Over the 36 days, Stone and Dixon will be required to wager $1 million of their Pick 6 hit. They can keep the rest.

They can bet to show on 3-5 favorites or play $500 straight superfectas, anything they want. These solid citizens of the hard-working American Heartland deserve a summer pari-mutuel fling. The Breeders' Cup will track each bet, and if the boys finish ahead for the meet, the Breeders' Cup must double the $2.687-million bonanza they won at Santa Anita. If not, whatever is left of the million automatically goes into the Pick 6 pool next year at Lone Star Park.

On the conference call, Beyer asked Stone, "Graham, are you going to buy me a drink at Saratoga?"

Stone replied, "If I see you there, I certainly will."

I guarantee that Beyer will like my idea a lot better.