Silver Goblin dies suddenly at age 20

Silver Goblin, the millionaire Oklahoma-bred who finished a valiant second to Cigar in the Grade 1 Oaklawn Handicap in 1995, died on Monday, according to his former trainer, Kenny Smith. He was 20.

Smith trained Silver Goblin throughout a career in which he won 11 stakes races and $1,083,895. He said the gelding died at the Batch, Okla., farm of his owner and breeder, Al Horton.

“I had seen him a week ago,” Smith said. “He was doing great, real well. It was a possible heart attack.”

Smith said one of Silver Goblin’s greatest efforts came in the Oaklawn Handicap when he faced six millionaires. He also said the horse’s Grade 2 Razorback win at Oaklawn the same year was another significant effort. Other wins for the horse included the $270,000 Remington Park Futurity in 1993, and the $100,000 Great West at Remington Park in 1994.

Dale Cordova rode Silver Goblin in all of his starts but one, when Tim Doocy rode him in his career finale, a second-place finish in an allowance at Oaklawn in 1999. He missed by three-quarters of a length in his first start of the year, and earned a Beyer Figure of 99.

Silver Goblin was a son of Silver Ghost and the Zonic mare Molly O’Horton. He ranks as one of the richest horses bred in Oklahoma.