Nacho Figueras at Casa de Campo in the Dominican Republic.
Johnnie Walker Blue Label has turned to Argentine 6-goaler Nacho Figueras to carry their premium label into the polo community starting with an exhibition match at the plush resort of Casa de Campo in the Dominican Republic.
On Saturday, October 26th, Nacho and his Johnnie Walker Blue Label teammates- Leo Matos, Enrique Bonetti and Alex Schad scored an exciting 11-9 win over a Casa de Campo squad of Luis Paniagua, Julio Lopez and Anton Tejeda, led by Cali Garcia-Velez.
“It was a great match,” said Garcia-Velez following the match. “There was an enthusiastic crowd on hand to welcome Nacho and Johnnie Walker Blue Label Welcome both of them to the Dominican Republic.”
A crowd of Casa de Campo villa owners, visitors and residents were treated to international class polo as Figueras, “the face of Ralph Lauren’s Polo brand” showed great prowess as he raced up and down the field, scoring six goals in the Blue Label win.
The sport’s unofficial ambassador, Figueras has made appearances on television shows from Oprah Winfrey and Conan O’Brien to 60-Minutes to promote the sport of polo, and has volunteered tirelessly on behalf of charitable causes ranging from his friend Prince Harry’s Sentebale to Veuve Clicquot’s Polo Classics to benefit the Will Rogers State Historic Park and New Jersey’s Liberty State Park as well as Philadelphia’s Work to Ride program.
“We feel fortunate to have Nacho visit us and take the field with the Johnnie Walker Blue Label team,” added Garcia-Velez. “It would be nice to think that he’ll make an annual event of it.”
Garcia-Velez sees the pairing of Johnnie Walker Blue Label and the Casa de Campo resort lifestyle as a natural blend.
“The House of Walker® promotes itself as the epitome of blending, and Johnnie Walker Blue Label as setting the standard,” said Garcia-Velez. “We at Casa de Campo feel that we offer a comparative blend with everything from The Beach Club and our “Teeth of the Dog” Pete Dye Golf Course, sport shooting, world class polo, a spa, restaurants, boutiques and a 16th century replica of a Mediterranean village and amphitheater.”
An accomplished polo player in his own right, Garcia-Velez scored six goals for his Casa de Campo team in the match, smiling when he says that “you never want to beat a distinguished guest on their first visit.