Bettor Is Awarded $500,000

A jury in Superior Court in Torrance has awarded $500,000 to Rodolfo Sahagun for picking all nine winners on a racing card in a handicapping contest at Hollywood Park in 1985.

Sahagun, an unemployed tomato farmer at the time, was announced as the winner of a $1-million contest by Hollywood Park, but the track withheld payment, claiming that Sahagun violated contest rules by submitting multiple entries.

“The number of entries wasn’t an issue,” said Bob Forgnone, a Hollywood Park attorney, in discussing the weeklong trial that ended last Friday. “The jury ruled that Sahagun had suffered emotional distress and had been used for publicity and promotional purposes by the track.”

Forgnone indicated that Hollywood Park would appeal the verdict.

Had Sahagun been allowed to collect the $1 million, he would have been paid $50,000 a year for 20 years. The insurance company that covered the contest payoff has gone bankrupt.