A beautifully related Playing God filly sold for A$625,000 on a record-breaking day of selling on Day One of the 2024 Magic Millions Perth Yearling Sale on Thursday.
The all-time record price at the sale, set by an Elusive Quality filly in 2007 at A$365,000, was broken earlier in the day when a Brazen Beau colt from Yarradale Stud sold for A$375,000.
Lot 41 – Playing God filly sells for record price of A$625,000 (Pic – Magic Millions)
But that record only stood for about half an hour when Mungrup’s full sister to Bustler, presented as Lot 41, sold for record price of A$625,000.
As well as being a full sister to Bustler, the filly is a half-sister to the WA Guineas runner-up A Lot of Good Men, who ran third in yesterday’s Listed Challenge Stakes at Ascot.
Melbourne based bloodstock agent Sheamus Mills was able to out muscle a number of parties, both from local and interstate, to secure the prized filly.
Mills, who attends all of the leading yearling sales across Australasia, rated the Playing God filly in rare air.
“I say this with all due respect,” Mills noted. “I don’t want to go to a sale and just buy the most expensive horse.”
“I want to go to a sale and buy a horse that I really, really rate as a racehorse. I haven’t seen a better physical specimen this year.”
“She physically, just to me, looked like everything you’d want in a racehorse.”
“I think they’ve done a really good job with the set-up here, in the Swan Valley, and the vendors have really risen to the occasion,” Mills added.
The result was a triumph for long-term Western Australian breeder Gray Williamson, who bred the filly and offered her through his Mungrup Pty Ltd draft.
“It actually is unbelievable,” an emotional Williamson said. “We thought she would sell well and make over A$400,000 maybe – there was a lot of interest in her.”
“I’ve been doing this for a long time and to have a filly like that go through and to be appreciated for what she is and to make that sort of money we are absolutely stoked.”
“I must say I have stood up at the back of that box a lot over the years and with the price going up and up, I’ve never felt my knees tremble like that!”
Williamson said right through her sale preparation the filly had done everything right and that carried onto the sale grounds.
“Every time she came out for parades, she was very professional. She showed herself off very well.”
The early sale setter, the Brazen Beau colt from Yarradale Stud, catalogued as Lot 26, sold to local trainers Grant and Alana Williams in conjunction with bloodstock agent Suman Hedge and China Horse Club for A$375,000.
“We thought he was the best colt in the sale,” Grant Williams said. “We went to Sydney last week and I don’t think we saw one as good as that.”
“He’s got a beautiful body – nice and strong – good attitude. He ticked all of our boxes. The price was right on our limit and we were hoping it wouldn’t go any further.”
“The sale has been very good to us,” Williams added.
Across the day 143 lots were sold at a record average price of over A$99,000 with a gross of over A$14.18 million – another record for the Book One sale. The clearance rate currently sits at over 79 per cent.
“It was a great day. We’ve grossed A$600,000 more than last year, we’ve sold a record horse – A$625,000,” Magic Millions WA Manager David Houston said. “Our average is up – so you’ve got to be very happy with that.
“The interstate buyers were very strong today. Already they’ve bought 23 horses just on the first day as opposed to 13 across the whole sale last year, so that’s a tremendous investment, particularly by some of the leading players in the industry from the east.”
Houston said today’s Book One sale showed that bloodstock investors from across the country had given the WA thoroughbred industry a great endorsement.
“For people to come over from the eastern states and bid a record price for a filly by Playing God and take her back to the east, is fantastic. Other syndicators and purchasers have also come here, for the Playing Gods and the like, and to keep their horses here to race in WA is great for our industry.”
“Today we averaged nearly A$100,000 and not everyone has A$100,000 to spend. There’ll be plenty of people around with A$50,000 who will be well in the market tomorrow, for sure.
“I am just thrilled for the industry in WA that they are getting such recognition and such support and we can only go ahead from here,” Houston summed up.
To view the results of Day One or to make an offer on a passed in lot click here.
Day Two of the 2024 Magic Millions Perth Yearling Sale will commence at 10h00 (WA time) tomorrow.
Sale Statistics: (2023 Book 1 in brackets)
- Lots Catalogued: 192 (177)
- Lots Sold: 143 (143)
- Lots Passed In: 37 (18)
- Lots Withdrawn: 12 (16)
- Sale Gross: A$14,182,500 (A$13,380,000)
- Top Price: A$625,000 (A$350,000)
- Average Price: A$99,178 (A$93,566)
- Median Price: A$80,000 (A$72,500)
- Sold %: 79.4 (89)
Day One Top Sellers
A$625,000 – Playing God-Cosmah Domination filly (Lot 41)
- Vendor: Mungrup Pty Ltd / Buyer: Sheamus Mills B’stock (Vic)
A$375,000 – Brazen Beau-Burgoyne colt (Lot 26)
- Yarradale Stud / Williams Racing WA/Suman Hedge B’stock (WA)
A$350,000 – Playing God-Boutique colt (Lot 24)
- Western Breeders Alliance / Premium B’stock Services (WA)
A$250,000 – Playing God-Precious Cargo filly (Lot 137)
- J Farms (As Agent) / China Horse Club (Singapore)
A$250,000 – Zoustar-Run All Night filly (Lot 152)
- Ridgeport Holdings / Kennewell Racing/Group 1 B’stock (Vic)
Leading Buyers: (ranked by total spend)
- A$830,000 – Peter & Luke Fernie – 7 lots
- A$810,000 – Pearce Racing – 11 lots
- A$740,000 – Parnham Racing Stables – 7 lots
- A$625,000 – Sheamus Mills B’stock – 1 lot
- A$625,000 – Simon Miller Racing – 6 lots
Leading Vendors: (ranked by gross)
- A$2,510,000 – Western Breeders Alliance – 24 sold
- A$1,492,500 – Yarradale Stud – 12 sold
- A$985,000 – Willow Dale Farm – 8 sold
- A$955,000 – Amelia Park Racing & Breeding – 13 sold
- A$925,000 – Mungrup Pty Ltd – 6 sold
Leading Vendors: (ranked by average – 3 or more sold)
- A$154,167 – Mungrup Pty Ltd – 6 sold
- A$135,000 – J Farms – 5 sold
- A$124,375 – Yarradale Stud – 12 sold
- A$123,125 – Willow Dale Farm – 8 sold
- A$110,000 – Gervase Park Stud – 7 sold
- A$110,000 – Ridgeport Holdings – 4 sold
Leading Sires: (ranked by average – 3 or more sold)
- A$149,762 – Playing Gold – 21 sold
- A$143,333 – Deep Field – 3 sold
- A$128,333 – Earthlight – 3 sold
- A$111,667 – Russian Revolution – 3 sold
- A$106,250 – Hellbent – 4 sold
