Prominent southwest sire Hadif died Sept. 9 at Valor Farm near Pilot Point, Texas. The 24-year-old pensioned stallion had just begun his afternoon feeding when he suddenly collapsed and died of an apparent heart attack or aneurysm.
Hadif was bred by and foaled at Alice Chandler’s Mill Ridge Farm near Lexington. Sheikh Hamdan’s Shadwell Estate Co. purchased the bay son of Clever Trick--Ciao, by Silent Screen for $200,000 at the 1987 Keeneland September yearling sale. He began his racing career in England, where he won three races at 2, including the group III Cornwallis Stakes. Back in the United States and running for Tommy Skiffington at 4 and 5, he won the Nearctic Handicap (Can-I) and the Phoenix Breeders’ Cup Handicap at Keeneland. He retired with a record of eight wins from 34 lifetime starts and earning $400,670.
In 1991 Hadif was purchased by Dorothy Scharbauer. In early 1992 he was sent to Dorothy and husband Clarence’s Oklahoma Stud, near Purcell, to begin his stud career. After one season he was moved to the Scharbauers’ newly established Valor Farm.
From his first crop of only 18 foals, he sired three stakes winners - Texas champion 2-year-old Hadif One among them - and was Texas’ leading first crop sire for 1995. During his career he sired 22 stakes winners and 30 other black-type horses and had earners of more than $12,500,000. In addition to Hadif One, Hadif sired three other Texas champions: Louetta and Final Trick (champion 2-year-old fillies) and champion older mare Fleeta Dif. His leading money earner was Sataniste ($404,494; 22 wins from 77 outs).
Hadif was known for siring extremely fast and precocious runners. He was perennially among the leading sires in Texas. He is No. 10 on the list of the top 50 Texas sires by lifetime progeny earnings and the only one of the 10 that did not start his career in Kentucky or Florida. He was the leading sire of 2-year-old stakes horses in the nation in 1998 with seven.
Hadif was pensioned from stud in late 2006. He was buried in the Valor Farm cemetery.