By Alex Webbe
Action will kick off at Grand Champions Polo Club on Friday morning in the Pedro Morrison Memorial Cup with a 10 am match between Audi and Newport. The second game of the tournament will take place on the Isla Carroll polo grounds with GTC taking on Isla Carroll.
On Sunday, October 26, all matches will return to the Grand Champions Polo Club with Isla Carroll facing Newport in a 10 am contest while Audi faces off with GTP at noon.
Following Sunday’s matches, the teams with the best two records will play in the finals at noon on Wednesday, October 29 at Grand Champions Polo Club. The consolation match will take place at the club at 10 am.
With players like Hector Galindo (7), Tommy Biddle (7) and John Gobin arriving from the Aiken tournament season and Juan Bollini (6) flying in from Argentina, Mauricio Devrient (5) coming back down from New York, and Grand Champions regulars Gene Goldstein (Rhode Island), Michael Liss (Virginia), Argentine-born Wellington resident Leo Mandelbaum, Marc and Melissa Ganzi and newcomer John Goodman of the International Polo Club, the tempo and level of professionalism on the field will make it an interesting 15-goal competition.
Friendly but competitive is what many characterize the play at Grand Champions, as teams are reshuffled after each tournament. Coaching tips from opposing players during the game are not unusual, and the weekly asados and get-togethers that are hosted by the club serve to mitigate any friction, which might have briefly occurred on the field.
AUDI ISLA CARROLL
Melissa Ganzi 0 John Goodman 1
Juan Bollini 6 Brandon Phillips 5
Steve Dalton 6 Hector Galindo 7
Steve Orthwein 4 Leo Mandelbaum 2
16 15
GTP NEWPORT
Marc Ganzi 1 Gene Goldstein 1
Tommy Biddle 7 Justo Saavedra 6
J. J. Celis 5 Mauricio Devrient 5
Juan Salinas/ 3 Cali Garcia 4
Tommy Collingwood 16 16