Square Eddie earns CTBA award as champion sire

Square Eddie, who stands at Ocean Breeze Ranch, was the 2016 California Thoroughbred Breeders Association champion sire of two-year-old offspring.

The official designation is Champion Sire of California Conceived

Two-Year-Olds by Earnings. The CTBA awards for the 2016 racing year were presented at the organization's annual banquet in February.

"I'm proud of him," said Ocean Breeze Ranch farm manager Kevin Dickson.

The award was the second consecutive Champion Sire of California Conceived Two-Year-Olds by Earnings honor for Square Eddie.

"That's just two-year-olds – California-bred two-year-olds," said Dickson. "Pretty good for a horse."

Four 2016 two-year-olds foaled by Square Eddie won more than $100,000. How About Zero earned $153,245 in 2016, Rinse and Repeat banked $119,720 last year, Green with Eddie had two-year-old earnings of $153,245, and Ann Arbor Eddie accounted for $101,200 of Square Eddie's

offspring earnings.

How About Zero, Green with Eddie, and Ann Arbor Eddie all won stakes races in 2016.

Square Eddie's total offspring earnings for 2016 were $2,576,652.

Square Eddie was foaled in Canada on April 4, 2006. He was sired by Smart Strike out of Forty Gran. Square Eddie raced from 2008 to 2011 and had 18 starts. His three wins include a Grade 1 stakes race, and one of his three second-place finishes was in a Grade 1 event. Square Eddie is owned by J. Paul Reddam and was trained by Doug O'Neill after being stabled in California.

Square Eddie began his stud career when he was still racing, and his first foals started racing in 2013. In 2014 the CTBA recognized Square Eddie as the freshman sire of the year; the 13 Square Eddie offspring who raced as two-year-olds in 2013 earned $473,075.

Square Eddie's paternal grandsire was Mr. Prospector, who won seven of his 14 career races before he began leading the nation in offspring earnings. The descendants of Mr. Prospector also include 2012 Kentucky Derby and Preakness winner I'll Have Another and 2016 Kentucky Derby winner Nyquist, both of whom are owned by Reddam and were trained by O'Neill. Reddam uses O'Neill, Ben Cecil, and San Luis Rey Training Center trainer Edward Freeman to train Square Eddie's foals.