Ogden Mills "Dinny" Phipps (September 18, 1940 – April 6, 2016) was an American
financier
An investor is a person who allocates financial capital with the expectation of a future return (profit) or to gain an advantage (interest). Through this allocated capital the investor usually purchases some species of property. Types of in ...
,
Thoroughbred
The Thoroughbred is a list of horse breeds, horse breed developed for Thoroughbred racing, horse racing. Although the word ''thoroughbred'' is sometimes used to refer to any breed of purebred horse, it technically refers only to the Thorough ...
racehorse
Horse racing is an equestrian performance activity, 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 bas ...
industry executive, and
horse breeder
Horse breeding is reproduction in horses, and particularly the human-directed process of selective breeding of animals, particularly purebred horses of a given breed. Planned matings can be used to produce specifically desired characteristics in ...
. Widely known by the nickname "Dinny," he was chairman of the family's
Bessemer Trust
Bessemer Trust is a private, independent multi-family office that oversees more than $200 billion for over 3,000 families, foundations and endowments. Founded in 1907, the firm has its headquarters in New York City, with 19 regional offices elsew ...
until retiring in 1994, and served as its vice chairman.
Early life
Ogden Mills Phipps was the son of major Thoroughbred breeder
Ogden Phipps
Ogden Phipps (November 26, 1908 – April 21, 2002) was an American stockbroker, court tennis champion and Hall of Fame member, thoroughbred horse racing executive and owner/breeder, and an art collector and philanthropist. In 2001, he was induct ...
and
Lillian Bostwick Phipps
Lillian Stokes Bostwick Phipps (July 9, 1906 – November 27, 1987) was an American socialite and owner of Thoroughbred steeplechase (horse racing), steeplechase horse racing, racehorses.
Early life
Lillian Stokes Bostwick was born in New Yor ...
. His grandmother
Gladys Mills Phipps
Gladys Mills Phipps (June 19, 1883 – October 19, 1970) was an American socialite, sportsperson, and a thoroughbred racehorse owner and breeder who began the Phipps family dynasty in American horse racing. She was known as the "first lady of th ...
owned the renowned
Wheatley Stable and his great-grandfather
Ogden Mills was involved with Thoroughbreds starting at the end of the 19th century. Ogden Mills owned racing stables in the United States and was a partner with
Lord Derby
Edward George Geoffrey Smith-Stanley, 14th Earl of Derby (29 March 1799 – 23 October 1869), known as Lord Stanley from 1834 to 1851, was a British statesman and Conservative politician who served three times as Prime Minister of the United K ...
in a racing stable in
France
France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...
.
Career
Horse racing industry executive
A member of the
board of directors
A board of directors is a governing body that supervises the activities of a business, a nonprofit organization, or a government agency.
The powers, duties, and responsibilities of a board of directors are determined by government regulatio ...
and a past chairman of
The Jockey Club
The Jockey Club is the largest commercial horse racing organisation in the United Kingdom. It owns 15 of Britain's famous racecourses, including Aintree, Cheltenham, Epsom Downs and both the Rowley Mile and July Course in Newmarket, among ...
and of the
New York Racing Association
The New York Racing Association, Inc. (NYRA) is the not-for-profit corporation that operates the three largest thoroughbred horse racing tracks in the state of New York (state), New York, United States: Aqueduct Racetrack in South Ozone Park, Q ...
, Phipps was a member of the
Jockey Club of Canada {{Short description, Former Canadian jockey club
The Jockey Club of Canada was formed in 1973 to oversee thoroughbred horse racing in Canada. Based in Toronto, Ontario, the club is responsible for the annual Sovereign Awards program and the Canadian ...
. He also served on the board of
Breeders' Cup Limited and the
National Thoroughbred Racing Association
The National Thoroughbred Racing Association (NTRA) is a broad-based coalition of American horse racing interests consisting of leading thoroughbred racetracks, owners, breeders, trainers and affiliated horse racing associations, charged with incr ...
and, with his cousin Stuart S. Janney III, co-owned
Orb, the 2013
Kentucky Derby
The Kentucky Derby () is an American Graded stakes race, Grade I stakes Thoroughbred racing, race run at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Kentucky. The race is run by three-year-old Thoroughbreds at a distance of . Colt (horse), Colts and geldin ...
winner.
Thoroughbred racing
Like their father and grandmother before them, Dinny Phipps and his sister Cynthia had a long working relationship with the Hancock family's
Claiborne breeding farm near
Paris, Kentucky
Paris is a home rule-class city in Bourbon County, Kentucky, and the county seat. It lies northeast of Lexington on the Stoner Fork of the Licking River. It is part of the Lexington–Fayette Metropolitan Statistical Area. As of 2020, it ha ...
. In 1995, Dinny Phipps's great filly
Inside Information
Insider trading is the trading of a public company's stock or other securities (such as bonds or stock options) based on material, nonpublic information about the company. In various countries, some kinds of trading based on insider informatio ...
won the
Molly Pitcher Handicap, following his sister Cynthia who won it in 1992 with
Versailles Treaty
The Treaty of Versailles was a peace treaty signed on 28 June 1919. As the most important treaty of World War I, it ended the state of war between Germany and most of the Allied Powers. It was signed in the Palace of Versailles, exactl ...
, and his father Ogden who had also won it in 1988 with
Personal Ensign
Personal Ensign (April 27, 1984 – April 8, 2010) was a champion Thoroughbred racehorse who retired undefeated with 13 wins. At the time, this was the longest win streak for a horse at the elite level of American racing in 80 years. Her come ...
.
Dinny Phipps and his father were two of the subjects in the 2003 book ''
Legacies of the Turf: A Century of Great Thoroughbred Breeders'' by race historian
Edward L. Bowen that chronicled the history of Thoroughbred racing's most influential
breeders
A breeder is a person who selectively breeds carefully selected mates, normally of the same breed, to sexually reproduce offspring with specific, consistently replicable qualities and characteristics. This might be as a farmer, agriculturalist, ...
. In 1978 Dinny Phipps received the
Eclipse Award of Merit, the horse racing industry's highest honor, plus he was voted the New York Turf Writers Award as "The Man Who Did the Most for Racing." In 2002, Phipps received the Industry Service Award from the
Thoroughbred Owners and Breeders Association
The Thoroughbred Owners and Breeders Association (TOBA) is an American trade organization for Thoroughbred racehorse owners and breeders, which is based in Lexington, Kentucky. Founded in 1961, TOBA's stated mission is to "improve the economics, i ...
.
Among the many successful horses raced by Dinny Phipps were:
*
Rhythm
Rhythm (from Greek , ''rhythmos'', "any regular recurring motion, symmetry") generally means a " movement marked by the regulated succession of strong and weak elements, or of opposite or different conditions". This general meaning of regular r ...
(b. 1987) - 1989
American Champion Two-Year-Old Colt The American Champion Two-Year-Old Male Horse is an American Thoroughbred horse racing honor awarded annually in Thoroughbred flat racing. It became part of the Eclipse Awards program in 1971.
The award originated in 1936 when the ''Daily Racing F ...
, won 1989
Breeders' Cup Juvenile
The Breeders' Cup Juvenile is a Thoroughbred horse race for 2-year-old colts and geldings raced on dirt. It is held annually in late October or early November at a different racetrack in the United States or Canada as part of the Breeders' Cup W ...
;
*
Dispute (b. 1990) - a winner of four
Grade 1
First grade (also 1st Grade or Grade 1) is the first year of formal or compulsory education. It is the first year of elementary school, and the first school year after kindergarten. Children in first grade are usually 6–7 years old.
Examples ...
races including the
Kentucky Oaks
The Kentucky Oaks is a Grade I stakes race for three-year-old Thoroughbred fillies staged annually in Louisville, Kentucky, United States. The race currently covers at Churchill Downs; the horses carry . The Kentucky Oaks is held on the Frida ...
;
*
Inside Information
Insider trading is the trading of a public company's stock or other securities (such as bonds or stock options) based on material, nonpublic information about the company. In various countries, some kinds of trading based on insider informatio ...
(b. 1991) - 1995
American Champion Older Female Horse The Eclipse Award for Champion Older Dirt Female Horse is an American Thoroughbred horse racing honor awarded annually to a filly or mare, four years old and up, for performances on dirt and main track racing surfaces. In 1971, it became part of the ...
, won 1995
Breeders' Cup Distaff
The Breeders' Cup Distaff is a Weight for Age Thoroughbred horse race for fillies and mares, three years old and up. Known as the Breeders' Cup Ladies' Classic between 2008 and 2012, it is held annually at a different racetrack in the United Stat ...
, 2008
U.S. Racing Hall of Fame inductee;
*
Storm Flag Flying (b. 2000) - voted the 2002
American Champion Two-Year-Old Filly
The American Champion Two-Year-Old Filly is an American Thoroughbred horse racing honor awarded annually to a female horse in Thoroughbred flat racing
Horse racing is an equestrianism, equestrian performance activity, typically involving ...
, won 2002
Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies
The Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies is a -mile thoroughbred horse race on dirt (although the distance has varied, depending on the configuration of the host track) for two-year-old fillies run annually since 1984 at a different racetrack in the Un ...
;
*
Pleasant Home
Pleasant Home, also known as the John Farson House, is a historic home located in the Chicago suburb of Oak Park, Illinois, United States. The large, Prairie School, Prairie style mansion was designed by architect George Washington Maher and co ...
(b. 2001) - won 2005
Breeders' Cup Distaff
The Breeders' Cup Distaff is a Weight for Age Thoroughbred horse race for fillies and mares, three years old and up. Known as the Breeders' Cup Ladies' Classic between 2008 and 2012, it is held annually at a different racetrack in the United Stat ...
;
*
Smuggler
Smuggling is the illegal transportation of objects, substances, information or people, such as out of a house or buildings, into a prison, or across an international border, in violation of applicable laws or other regulations. More broadly, soc ...
(b. 2002) - voted the 2005
American Champion Three-Year-Old Filly The American Champion Three-Year-Old Filly is an American Thoroughbred horse racing honor awarded annually to a female horse in Thoroughbred flat racing. It became part of the Eclipse Awards program in 1971.
The award originated in 1936 when both ...
.
*
Orb (b. 2010) - won 2013
Kentucky Derby
The Kentucky Derby () is an American Graded stakes race, Grade I stakes Thoroughbred racing, race run at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Kentucky. The race is run by three-year-old Thoroughbreds at a distance of . Colt (horse), Colts and geldin ...
.
"Phipps, Janney Families Bask in First Derby Win", ''New York Times'', May 4, 2013
In partnership with William S. Farish III, Dinny Phipps bred Storm Song, the 1996 Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies
The Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies is a -mile thoroughbred horse race on dirt (although the distance has varied, depending on the configuration of the host track) for two-year-old fillies run annually since 1984 at a different racetrack in the Un ...
winner and American Champion Two-Year-Old Filly
The American Champion Two-Year-Old Filly is an American Thoroughbred horse racing honor awarded annually to a female horse in Thoroughbred flat racing
Horse racing is an equestrianism, equestrian performance activity, typically involving ...
. In England
England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...
, Dinny Phipps' horse, Posse, won the 1980 G1 Sussex Stakes
The Sussex Stakes is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to horses aged three years or older. It is run at Goodwood over a distance of 1 mile (1,609 metres), a ...
and G2 St. James's Palace Stakes and went on to sire Group 1 winners.
In 2017, he was inducted into 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 horse racing, Thoroughbred race horses, jockeys, and Horse trainer, trainers. In 1955, the museum ...
as a Pillar of the Turf.
Personal life
Phipps had six children and 24 grandchildren, including five-year-old namesake Ogden Phipps. His wife, Ande, is the mother of four of the Phipps children.
References
External links
Ogden Mills Phipps at the NTRA
November 2, 2002 ''Thoroughbred Times'' article on the Phipps family in racing
Profile of Ogden Mills Phipps at Breeders' Cup Limited
{{DEFAULTSORT:Phipps, Odgen Mills
1940 births
2016 deaths
Yale University alumni
American financiers
American racehorse owners and breeders
New York Racing Association executives
Breeders' Cup
Businesspeople from New York City
Livingston family
Phipps family
New York (state) Republicans
Florida Republicans
Owners of Kentucky Derby winners