Stymie (April 4, 1941 − 1962) was an American

Thoroughbred The Thoroughbred is a horse breed best known for its use in horse racing. Although the word ''thoroughbred'' is sometimes used to refer to any breed of purebred horse, it technically refers only to the Thoroughbred breed. Thoroughbreds are c ...

racehorse Horse racing is an equestrian performance sport, typically involving two or more horses ridden by jockeys (or sometimes driven without riders) over a set distance for competition. It is one of the most ancient of all sports, as its basic pr ...

Background

Stymie, a chestnut horse with a narrow white blaze was bred by Max Hirsch and was born on King Ranch in Texas. As a young horse, Stymie possessed so terrible a disposition that his ability to race was hampered; his trainer did not see much in him. Therefore, two of Stymie's first three starts were

claiming race In Thoroughbred racing, a claiming race is a type of horse race in which the horses are all for sale at a specified claiming price until shortly before the race. In the hierarchy of horse races, based on the quality of the horses that compete, claim ...

s. On June 2, 1943, Stymie was bought by Hirsch Jacobs, one of the time's leading trainers. Jacobs claimed the horse for $1,500 for his wife Ethel Jacobs. Stymie raced ten more times before winning again. At that point, his record consisted of seven wins out of fifty starts.

Racing career and wins

At age two, Stymie lost every race he ran in except one. He also placed in the Ardsley Handicap and showed in the Thomas K. Lynch Memorial Handicap. At age three, he lost most of his races. However, he came in second in the

Wood Memorial Stakes The Wood Memorial Stakes is an American flat Thoroughbred horse race for three-year-olds held annually in April at Aqueduct Racetrack in Ozone Park, Queens, New York. It is run over a distance of 1 1/8 miles (9 furlongs) on dirt. The Wood Memori ...

and third in the Gallant Fox Handicap, Westchester Handicap, Riggs Handicap, Pimlico Cup Handicap,

Flamingo Stakes The Flamingo Stakes was an American Thoroughbred horse race for three-year-old horses run over a distance of a mile and one-eighth. Run as the Florida Derby until 1937, the inaugural event took place at Tampa Downs on February 27, 1926. There was ...

, and

Shevlin Stakes The Shevlin Stakes was an American Thoroughbred horse race for three-year-olds run at Aqueduct Racetrack in Queens, New York and at Belmont Park in Elmont, New York. The race on dirt was inaugurated in 1925 to honor the long service of James Shevl ...

. In 1945, the US government shut down racing for four months. Stymie was given a seven-month rest. He then won the

Brooklyn Handicap The Brooklyn Invitational Stakes (formerly known as the Brooklyn Handicap) is an American Thoroughbred horse race run annually in early June at Belmont Park in Elmont, New York, on Long Island. It currently is a Grade II event open to four-year-ol ...

Butler Handicap The Butler Handicap was an American Thoroughbred horse race first run at Empire City Race Track in Yonkers, New York in 1935 as the Butler Memorial Handicap. The race was named in honor of Empire City Race Track owner James Butler who had died ...

Westchester Handicap The Westchester Stakes is a Grade III American Thoroughbred horse race for three-years-old and older run over a distance of miles annually in early May at Belmont Park, in Elmont New York. The event currently offers a purse of $100,000 added. ...

Pimlico Cup The Pimlico Cup Handicap was an American horse race for Thoroughbreds run between 1919 and 1961 at Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore, Maryland. A long-distance race on dirt for Stayer (horse), stayers age three an older, twenty-three of its twenty- ...

, Riggs Handicap,

Saratoga Cup The Saratoga Cup was an American Thoroughbred horse race open to horses of either sex age three and older although geldings were not eligible from 1865 through 1918. Between 1865 and 1955 it was hosted by Saratoga Race Course, in Saratoga Springs, ...

, Continental Handicap, and Grey Lag Handicap. In addition, he came in second in the

Suburban Handicap The Suburban Stakes is an American Grade II Thoroughbred horse race run annually at Belmont Park in Elmont, New York. Open to horses age three and older, it is now run at the mile distance on dirt for a $700,000 purse. Named after the City and Su ...

Queens County Handicap The Queens County Handicap is an American Ungraded Thoroughbred horse race run annually during the second week of December at Aqueduct Racetrack in Queens, New York. Open to horses age three years and older, it is contested on dirt at a distance o ...

, and Yonkers Handicap, and finished third in the

Pimlico Special The Pimlico Special is a Grade 3 American thoroughbred horse race for horses age three and older over a distance of miles ( furlongs) held at Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore, Maryland in mid May. The race currently offers a purse of $300,000. ...

Jockey Club Gold Cup The Jockey Club Gold Cup, established in 1919, is a thoroughbred flat race open to horses of either gender three-years-old and up. It has traditionally been the main event of the fall meeting at Belmont Park, just as the Belmont Stakes is of the sp ...

Whitney Stakes The Whitney Stakes (run as the Whitney Handicap through 2013 and still sometimes referred to as such) is an American Grade 1 stakes race for Thoroughbred racehorses three years of age and older run at a distance of miles. The current purse is $1, ...

, and Merchants' and Citizens' Handicap. At age five, he won the Gallant Fox Handicap (beating the winner of the

Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing The Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing, often shortened to Triple Crown, is a series of horse races for Thoroughbreds, often restricted to three-year-olds. Winning all three of these Thoroughbred horse races is considered the greatest accomplis ...

Assault An assault is the act of committing physical harm or unwanted physical contact upon a person or, in some specific legal definitions, a threat or attempt to commit such an action. It is both a crime and a tort and, therefore, may result in crim ...

), New York Handicap, Grey Lag Handicap,

Manhattan Handicap The Manhattan Handicap is an American Thoroughbred horse race raced annually at Belmont Park in Elmont, New York. It is named for Manhattan, the principal borough of the City of New York. Currently offering a purse of $1,000,000, the Grade I Manh ...

, Edgemere Handicap,

, and Saratoga Cup. He also placed in the

, Dixie Handicap,

Monmouth Handicap The Philip H. Iselin Stakes is an American Thoroughbred horse race held annually at Monmouth Park Racetrack in Oceanport, New Jersey. Open to horses three years of age and older, the race was first run in 1884. In 1891, New Jersey state legislator ...

, and

, and showed in the

, Butler Handicap,

Saratoga Handicap The Saratoga Handicap was an American Thoroughbred horse race run annually at the Saratoga Race Course in Saratoga Springs, New York. It was open to horses three years old and upward and raced at a distance of 1¼ miles on dirt. First run in 190 ...

and Sussex Handicap. At age six, Stymie won the Gold Cup, Gallant Fox Handicap,

Massachusetts Handicap The Massachusetts Handicap, frequently referred to as the "MassCap", was a flat thoroughbred horse race for three-year-olds and up held annually at Suffolk Downs in East Boston, Massachusetts, United States. It was an ungraded stakes race run o ...

, Aqueduct Handicap,

Metropolitan Handicap The Metropolitan Handicap, frequently called the "Met Mile", is an American Grade I Thoroughbred horse race held at Belmont Park in Elmont, New York. Open to horses age three and older, it is contested on dirt over a distance of one mile (8 furl ...

, Sussex Handicap, and Questionnaire Handicap, placed in the Brooklyn Handicap, Butler Handicap, Edgemere Handicap, Manhattan Handicap, and

, and finished third in the Jockey Club Gold Cup and Whitney Stakes. When he was seven, he won the Aqueduct Handicap, Metropolitan Handicap, and Sussex Handicap, took second in the Suburban Handicap, Dixie Handicap, and Queens County Handicap, and was third in the Brooklyn Handicap and Excelsior Handicap. In his last year at eight, he was second in the New York Handicap. In the 1948 Monmouth Handicap suffered a fractured sesamoid bone in his right foreleg. He returned in 1949 to continue his career as an eight year old but did not win in five starts.

Career starts and wins

Out of 131 lifetime starts, Stymie won 35, placed in 33, and showed in 28. His career winnings were $918,485. That made him, at the time, the richest race horse in America. At

Suffolk Downs Suffolk Downs is a former Thoroughbred race track in East Boston, Massachusetts, United States. The track opened in 1935 after being built by Joseph A. Tomasello for a cost of $2 million. It was sold in May 2017 to a developer who plans to crea ...

on July 7, 1947, Stymie became the first horse ever to eclipse the $700,000 earnings mark. He was so heavily bet that a minus show pool of $25,887 was created that day, and the tote board briefly jammed due to the flood of money wagered on him.

Legacy

A grandson of Equipoise and inbred to Man O' War, Stymie died in 1962. He was elected to the

National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame The National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame was founded in 1950 in Saratoga Springs, New York, to honor the achievements of American Thoroughbred race horses, jockeys, and trainers. In 1955, the museum moved to its current location on Union Av ...

in 1975. In ''

The Blood-Horse ''BloodHorse'' is a multimedia news organization covering Thoroughbred racing and breeding that started with a newsletter first published in 1916 as a monthly bulletin put out by the Thoroughbred Horse Association.

'' magazine ranking of the top 100 U.S. thoroughbred champions of the 20th Century, he is ranked #41. Jacobs, who died in 1970, was elected as a trainer to the

in 1958. He and his wife named their

Sparks, Maryland Sparks is an unincorporated community that is located in Baltimore County, Maryland, United States. It is situated approximately north of Baltimore and is considered to be a suburb of the City of Baltimore. The Gunpowder River runs through Spark ...

, breeding operation Stymie Manor.

References

{{reflist
Featuring Hirsch Jacobs

* Champions The Lives, Times, and Past Performances of America's Greatest Thoroughbreds,

Daily Racing Form The ''Daily Racing Form'' (DRF) (referred to as the ''Racing Form'' or "Form" and sometimes "telegraph" or "telly") is a tabloid newspaper founded in 1894 in Chicago, Illinois, by Frank Brunell. The paper publishes the past performances of race ...

1941 racehorse births 1962 racehorse deaths Racehorses trained in the United States Racehorses bred in Texas United States Thoroughbred Racing Hall of Fame inductees Thoroughbred family 1-h