ARCADIA, Calif. – The idea was discussed in earnest among four Southern Californians during a regular Saturday golf game on May 19, the morning of the Preakness Stakes. By the end of the round, the four men, all devoted sports fans, decided to buy a pick six ticket at Santa Anita. By the end of the afternoon, the quartet had invested $960 and collected $714,919. “I’ve hit the pick sixes through the years,” said Doug, one member of the group. “None as big as this one.” The bet began with a carryover of $515,662 in the single-ticket pool. The single-ticket jackpot payoff was the second-highest of the year at Santa Anita. The bet paid $730,315 on April 8. Doug, who requested his last name not be publicized for privacy reasons, works in sales for a Southern California company. He bets the races on weekends, sometimes with his golf buddies Raul, Scott, and John. They often play courses in Long Beach. Doug scouted the Santa Anita races on the evening before the Preakness and broached the idea of collaborating on a pick six ticket to the other members of his foursome. His gang was ready. After the round, Doug reviewed scratches and finalized the hefty ticket. “They wanted a little bit of action,” he said of his friends. “I’d read the Form and was having a burger and beer, and I kind of liked the card that day. I knew there were about four of us that would be willing to put in a ticket. “It was way more expensive than I ever put one in.” After golf, Doug retreated home to watch the Preakness program and the final six races at Santa Anita. What followed was a remarkable three hours for the four men. So Long Sailor ($31.60) and Kochees ($10.20) won the first two races of the pick six. So Long Sailor was the sixth choice, while Kochees was the second pick. Cordiality ($11.20) won the third leg as the third choice. With three consecutive losing favorites and a 14-1 longshot winner, many tickets were already out of contention. Nova ($6.60) won the fourth leg, for maiden claimers, against 11 rivals. He was the only single on Doug’s winning pick six ticket – and the only winning favorite in the sequence. “If you don’t single that one, you would have to go four or five deep,” Doug said. In the fifth leg of the pick six, Doug and his friends had gone two deep with Swayze, the 8-5 favorite, and Two Thirty Five, who went off at 6-1. Two Thirty Five won as the fourth choice and paid $14.80. “I thought the key to the pick six was the second to last race,” Doug said. Doug’s ticket had four runners in a field of 11 in the last race – but not 3-1 favorite Secreto Primero. The shortest price on the ticket was Broken Up, at 7-1. “The other three were double-digits,” Doug said. “As the betting was going on, I questioned myself a little bit.” In the stretch, his confidence rose when Broken Up loomed three wide to take the lead, only to be caught by Ky. Colonel ($22.80), who was also part of the ticket. “We ended up running 1-2-3,” Doug said. “I’ll claim that as my coup de grâce.” The group earned approximately $140,000 each when consolation payoffs were included and taxed were deducted. The ticket was too valuable to avoid paying taxes, even with the new federal laws enacted last year. Preakness Day 2018 was one to remember for Doug and his golf buddies but not a complete life changer. Doug was back at work a few days later.