September 25, 2007 – The Detroit Polo Club hosted players from Toronto and London, Ontario, CANADA and Grand Rapids, MI for its annual CORPORATE DAY. Two games were played Saturday and on Sunday under beautiful and sunny skies. CHRISTIAN and CINDY TENNANT of the DPC put on a steak and salmon cookout. The food was outstanding with glorious bonfires and all enjoyed copious amounts of margaritas. Club Pro PAUL WHEATON did a great job with the cooking duties. KELLI SMITH, MSU Polo Team President and PATRICK SMITH, patron of the Commando Lock team, shared bartending duties.
Sunday finals had the DETROIT DIPLOMATE team of SEAMUS DILLON, CANDY HIGGINS, SARAH KNAPP, JIM FAIRE and captain Dr. MARK FRENCHI facing off against the MEADOWVIEW FARM team of NORINE FOLEY, CAITLYN PHILLIPS, PATRICK SMITH, KATIE JOHNSON and captain DAN MC GUIRE at Noon. Meadowview Farm won 5 – 4 and leading scorer was Meadowview’s Mc Guire.
At 2:00 the COMMANDO LOCK team of PAUL WHEATON, PHIL VAN DER BURGT, ART STRAHL and DANIELLE KUPER took on the LINK ENGINEERING team of CHRISTIAN TENNANT, JEREMY JENKINS, MIGUEL URIZAR and PAUL KNAPP.
The match ended in a tie and a “shoot out” was held. Link Engineering prevailed and the leading scorer was MIGUEL URIZAR. The match was played in memory of DAWN LINK a longtime friend and supporter of the DPC until her recent untimely death. Her husband, ROY LINK, Chairman of the Link Engineering Company (accompanied by sons Matthew and Adam) presented trophies in her honor. Beautiful silver picture frames were presented to the runner-ups and halter and lead rope sets went to the winners. MVP award went to PAUL KNAPP of the LINK team. His beautiful wife of exactly one year (it was their anniversary), Sarah, presented his award.
A large and enthusiastic crowd had a fun and exciting time learning about polo and hitting on “WOODY” in the new DPC hitting cage (compliments of the USPA PTF reimbursement program and Merle and Vera Jenkins). DPC members were busy signing up recruits for its upcoming 2007/2008 Winter Polo Riding and Training program. The program offers basic polo riding skills, safety, strategy, teamwork, etc. for new and potential polo players. It will help greatly with (and feed into) the DPC player development and lesson program now underway at DPC.
The Hartland High School Equestrian Team and parents manned the event concession booth to benefit their award winning riding program. A group of students from Detroit’s Finney High School was also on hand and held a great picnic along with impromptu dance lessons!
Jerry Hutcheson and Merle Jenkins shared announcing duties; Sande Weiler was scorer and timekeeper. Seamus Dillon and Emmalyn Partlow were field umpires.
The DPC also awarded PATRICK SMITH with its Most Improved Player award for the 2007 summer season.
Awards were also presented for the recent LADIE’S TOURNAMENT won by the DETROIT LADY BLUES over the SOUTHFIELD GALS 6-5. Elizabeth Dixon of the University of Michigan Polo Team and playing for the Detroit Lady Blues took a spill and fractured her elbow but is mending quickly.
