1987 – 2009 168 cm Bay

Breeder: Loftus O’Neil

The Irish Thoroughbred Master Imp has been one of the greatest eventing and jumping sires of all time – and yet, he never competed in either sports!

Master Imp is the product of a truly traditional breeding program, that of the Slyguff Stud of the O’Neil family in Carlow. The O’Neils purchased his sire, Imperious from the racing stables of Con Collins. The seven year old had retired sound at the age of seven, after winning six races from seven to nine furlongs.

Imperious was a successful sport horse sire, producing Slyguff (out of a Highland Flight xx mare) who jumped off with the Swiss rider, Bruno Candrian for a bronze at the LA Olympics in 1984. Loro Piana Vivaldi (Water Serpent xx) was a three times Hamburg Derby winner, and a six time winner of the Hickstead Derby with Nelson Pessoa.

Master Imp’s dam Tranquilla produced Master Imp in 1987, and he went straight to stud as a three year old. His initial book was 40 mares but in later years he covered 100 and the stallion eventually produced almost 1500 foals.

Out of one of his early crops, he produced Master of Moments (Clover Hill) who jumped at Grand Prix level with Conor Swail.

Master Ballinteskin (Hail Titan xx) was Ireland’s first representative at the World Young Horse Showjumping Championships in Lanaken, where he placed second with Eddie Moloney in 2001.

Competing in the Irish Army team, Lismakin (King of Diamonds) was successful with three Captains: Ledingham, Carey and Flynn.

Enniskerry Imp and Phyllis Dawson 

Master Imp’s first eventer of note, came in the shape of Enniskerry Imp with the American rider, Phyllis Dawson, but it was another American import – Mandiba (High Dolly xx by Chair Lift xx – and a full brother to Zara Phillips’ High Kingdom) – who really put Master Imp on the Eventing Sires map. Karen O’Connor rode the gelding at the Beijing Games (when he was just nine) and at the 2010 WEG in Lexington.

Mandiba and Karen O’Connor 

Four years later, Mandiba’s brother competed at the London Games with Zara Phillips. The breeder of both horses, William Micklem, has a third full brother, the stallion, Jackaroo.

Zara Phillips and High Kingdom 

Master Imp had the most progeny at the 2012 Games: High Kingdom (eighth individually), Master Crusoe (Cruising) seventh with Ireland’s Aoife Clarke, Master Rose (Sky Boy xx) for Ecuador with Ronald Zabala, and Ringwood Magister (Carrabawn View) with the American, Tiana Coudray

Susan Finnerty in her splendid article on the stallion, Heraldik xx vs Master Imp rivalry in Breeding News, May 2014, points out that Master Imp “threw two different types: The upstanding Master Rose is typical of his stock from more traditional mares, while blood mares produced the likes of Master Crusoe and High Kingdom.”

Susan also points out that Master Imp has been in the top four Eventing Sires since the WBFSH eventing sire rankings began in 2009, and that with his final crop aged four, he should hold his spot for another decade – although since the stallion was available only to natural covering and the O’Neils shunned such modern innovations as frozen semen, his influence will not be as long lasting as some of the more famous European sires…