I have my doubts! What have we done? We have 10 fold bigger payroll less Polo players despite numbers we see
as many are like me they do not play and could not anyway many are High school students and College players . This does not show a true number of Polo players . Just yesterday I drove through the Sequoia Forrest in the sierras and it reminded me in some ways about our Polo org. You have the Grand old trees and they are awesome but beneath them are so many young ones getting little light and nutrients and they just are not growing 300 yards away you see trees same as ones below big guys just going up like crazy twice the size of ones in shadows this is our problem.
We need to burnout the old it is similar to what happened in Polo, when new men came they kept growing and elders supported them and then came the 50’s old did not want to step aside then the 60’s and it continued around the 70’s John T Oxley Mr Uihlien and the Orthweins said we are moving forward and they did and the 80’s brought a boom to US Polo Bill Ylvisacker and John T led it and we had good Polo everywhere and the Busch’s and Peter Brant ,Jack Oxley, The Goses all jumped in as well as many others Polo came flying American Polo . We had 10 goal Players competed well against the World into early 90’s. Then we started to fall back Big Money took over Patrons wanted only to Win and money was no object. Florida became the only place as Retama and Oakbrook disappeared and John T and Bill Y kept it going but all on there checkbooks and then they went away. So did US Polo players and Family Patrons as good as it seemed. Packer came to NY and Peter was there and the war was on it went to all Money and Outback jumped in and made it worse they did support some Americans but they were only ones and away went the growth of US Polo players. Cash and fast results became the Norm Patrons never improved the Busch Brothers fought on but as Players not signing huge checks they were a part of ever game they played in bringing on good US Players Galindo, Rhinehart ,Blake, Azzaro and Snow, Smicklas and many others and employed them Year around building up there strings and competitiveness. Then the Big Bucks jumped in play but not really to what it is today leave it take a man get out of the way there is one Patron these days 4 goals and he is good Jared Zenni 4 goals and very well worth it or more but he is a Lone Ranger best I can see. I think Javier Tanoria has the solution 1 player 6 horses per game it will return Polo to a team sport it will cut cost in 1/2 and make it a sport Patrons who want to Play get in the game and not be a product of my thing is bigger than yours and hit 3 balls in a game costing 200 grand a ball. I think those guys go play each other and have there own Party, because they have destroyed the sport. The Public does not know the sport they do not relate to it here as there is no following everyone on the field is from somewhere else and after one viewing away they go. It is simple places like San Diego Polo with 3 goal Polo average 3000 people at games and they mix with players and Patrons Empire Polo with the nicest Place in the World for Polo at least 3000 ever game and often more 8 goal Polo have return customers all Winter long and mix with Players and Patrons after games. This is what we need to grow the sport not what we have the Old trees overshadowing the young we need to move the underbrush and the old and let the light in and grow the new . Maybe we are headed that way Chip Campbell and Tony Coppola Mike Carney and Tom Gose are a brilliant light that maybe the saviors of our SPORT and make it a SPORT again, at least we have a chance to see US Players involved in our Country .
On the Polo front Houston was the center in the US last week as the biggest growth in Polo Women’s had there open and it was obviously a huge success as Hard hitting Dawn Jones and her San Saba team picked up the silver in I hear a great battle with Kristy Outhier and her Rocking R Lockton team well done Ladies
champs of US Ladies Open :
Hope Arelano
Dawn Jones
Lia Salvo
Sara Wiseman
Second Place went to:
Courtney Price
Kristy Outhier
Lottie Lambcraft
Hazel Jackson
down South it is the same old story as La Dolphina and Elestina ruling Polo but Canada’s Fred Mannix and Alegria get close ever now and then and beat La Dolphina to reach the finals of the Hurlingham so well done Fred.
see ya