The Polo Report
by Steve Crowder
Polo has been a sad world in most places during the past 5 years. 2011 is the first year of the decade, which may not mean anything, but maybe there is change in the air. The shortest day of the year just passed. Christmas just passed (MERRY CHRISTMAS TO ALL OF YOU). The New Year is 1 week away and there is hope … I think.
This last year I saw some very sorry sights. People quitting, polo clubs without teams and just a very discouraging year in all. No one says it, but we know it. Look at teams in Indio 2011, Santa Barbara, San Diego and Northern CA. They are no better, but guess what? They survived, but with survival comes many negative things including: cheaper grooms, cheaper horses, more horses playing past their career (a very common problem). In this economy these things all point toward danger and injury. This is not a factory where you can cut supplies, inventory and work force and make money. You get a cheaper groom, you get an uneducated horse person. If you get a cheaper horse, he still eats the same he just does not stop or turn. If you have older horses it would be like me running a 100 yard dash … if I make it I will fall down and I will not make it a dash. If a horse falls (they are 10 times your weight) and at 10 miles an hour it is ten times more likely to hurt you BAD. I recently witnessed a Polo Player who is famous in other Worlds. He quit Polo just because he could not continue financially. It was very sad as he did know his horses and he did care for them, but when he had to sell them he was so sad it hurt. I know he has had a few Wives and I’ve never seen him this upset. He truly looked like his life was over. It was touching to witness. You all know him and he has a name with SW initials. Give him a horse for a ride. He is a true Horseman in polo or was a true polo player.
HAPPY NEW YEAR!!
People with Horses are playing polo wherever and they are having fun. This must continue if we are to grow polo, but to grow it you need new people and that is the PROBLEM. Last week I read the problem with the country clubs (most are Golf oriented) and they are struggling and several are in major trouble. Why? Same problem … no new people. IT IS SIMPLE … NEW PEOPLE WANT NEW IDEAS AND AGENDAS. It is not often that we see major compulsion to buy old things like M. Jordan, 10-year-old ideas of sport shoes. Polo in the big leagues is growing. Palm Beach’s 20 goal is way up, the 26 up, but the 12- to 14-goal is not even close to improving. Why? In Florida I see that the middle class is going down and the rich are getting richer. That is our country’s political direction. In California it is different. We do not have people who want to spend a bit to improve. They want to enjoy polo for as little as possible. Look at Eldorado … the rich are done, they are to old to play polo, but they still support the sport but you do you not see anyone stepping up. Absolutely Not! There is no John Goodman like Palm Beach when Bill Yulisaker and John Oxley quit, but JG came along and redid it.
Here in the desert when Carlton Beal, Fred Mannix and Glen Holden quit the club and local polo started going south at a high rate of speed. I think Empire at least has the future in sight. Not just survival until the next real estate boom.
This is why I support Empire. I know it is a business, but they also have a passion to be the best. and just like in the early 2000’s this is dream of Isla Carrol. Just a lot of BS. Well look how good the dream was. It’s a fact. Money talks and Bull S— hits the trail. Face the facts! Polo is not cheap and if you want to play Polo you must know if you can afford it. The way we are trying to do it now is a disaster … crippled horses, crippled players and a very ugly sad sport that becomes something no one likes. Polo this way is not a Sport. Take up chicken fighting @ least it’s straight up.
I am so SICK of your constant bashing of low goal polo. My club has NOT made the paper due to negative publicity as follows:
http://www.aspentimes.com/article/20111228/NEWS/111229885/1077&ParentProfile=1058
16 goal polo, triple chukkaring horses, and no back shoes in the snow — real classy!
Oh my god, it is the kettle calling the pot black. You were promoting the selling of all those type of horses you are now bashing and say it is just business.
Well, when polo goes back to only horsemen who play and not just a game that is sold to only the richest who can afford to walk away from the horses and not have a care in the world about them, then maybe we will see some young players raised who care more for the animal than the trophy, but I live in a fantasy world.
I unfortunately will continue to see horse abuse and lack of care as long as the business and club owners look the other way, as long as they have membership money coming in, we will have abusive, arrogant and threatening people playing a game which use to be a game of gentlemen and horsemen.
One can only hope for better times. The problem is all the true horsemen have moved on and left a void in the polo management department and no one corrects anyone’s wrongs, so they just become the norm. We all need to voice our opinions on horse abuse, as we in America have that right. Stand tall, scream about the abuse and make things change.
The problem was when times were good, we sold out to the foreign less expensive help, which you were part of employing and ran off all the aspiring young grooms/ players at the time and now we have a 20 year void of qualified professional grooms to fill in the void, outsourcing to foreign workers has come full circle to bite us in the pants, because that is who is on the field playing now and as I watch them why in the world would I pay dues to play with these foreign non horsepeople just because they are on a polo field calling themselves polo players and horsemen, when not one of them has a high school education,college degree or any formal education on horsemanship. These people are now your referees and you want me to convince someone to come and pay lots of money to play. The ones with the money will travel to play polo where it is fun and full of better players.
As a sponsor once told me, who wants to be the best player on the field, I want everyone out on the field to be better than me or I won’t learn, only stagnate.
thank-you for putting my loss of desire,lack of enjoyment and unclear guilt into words
I see Crowders points. However, I also see the other commentators responses and they make huge sense. I sickens me to see management turning blind eyes to horse abuse..and I see it every single day. A week or so ago..when the morning was FREEZING, I saw a groom hosing down clipped ponies and they stood shivering on the wash rack. I went over to him and confronted him. “These are my horses! You leave me alone!” But..they are not. They belong to his sponsor, who will hear NOTHING about it because his help is cheap and the sponsor does not want to deal with any “barn issues.”
What madness is this? Those animals carry your lives up and down the fields. Respect and care for them as if your life is on their hooves..it is. Good management DOES involve overseeing pony care on the premises. Part of the job.