NEW YORK, Feb. 10 (JTA) — 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 experience. “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.
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