MYTH BUSTER

Just prior to my attending the Fall USPA meeting at Santa Barbara an old polo pundit that we all know and love referred to the “Good Ol’ Boys at the USPA”.  I’m here to tell you that is ancient history.

Myth Number 1:  The volunteers that “run” the USPA are old.

First of all, the USPA is run by a board of governors of 25 dedicated men andwomen representing a plethora of geographic areas and specialties. No longer is it run by a small group of men in a back room some place on the East Coast.  Currently there are 5 West Coast individuals on the Board of Governors and one West Coaster is an officer of the USPA.  When I first attended USPA committee meetings  I was impressed with the professional excellence of the individuals who freely give of their time and resources solely to improve the sport we love.  Thanks to our Pat Nesbitt the USPA has adopted new rules which provide for development of new programs at the committee level which lead to adoption by the Board of Governors.

Secondly, at the Fall Meeting I witnessed a changing of the guard.  The old guys are reluctantly retiring and the young bucks are taking over.  The chairman is Chuck Weaver who has instituted a system of member surveys to find out what the members really want.   He has also instituted a 5 year strategic plan to set goals to meet the members’ needs.  Joe Myers was elected president.  Joe is chairman of the marketing committee and very adept at website marketing, twitter, face book and other new methods of capturing new “customers”.  Britt Baker is in charge of the new Umpire LLC which is sending thousands of dollars to the various clubs to help them pay for more and better umpiring.  The list of young chargers at the USPA is long.

Myth Number 2:   The USPA has an East Coast bias.

When I first got active I would agree  that there seemed to be an East Coast bias because there were few members from the West Coast that were active in USPA committees.

PDI:  I took over the chairmanship of the PDI committee and now over $100,000 a year of grant money is sent to our Pacific Circuit clubs to help them pay for marketing, advertising, website development and other methods to help our clubs grow and gain membership.  The Pacific Circuit is one of the largest beneficiaries of this program.

Team USPA:  This was developed to provide assistance to our up and coming polo players to educate them whether they are destined for high goal polo or polo club management.  There are more young players from the Pacific Circuit than any other circuit.

Umpire Money:  Our Lieutenant Governor, Scott Walker, is administering the Umpire LLC program for the Pacific Circuit.  This year we received $30,000 which is the highest of any USPA circuit.  This money is going to our clubs to help them pay for more and better umpires as requested by you in the member survey.  We intend to spend it all so we can qualify for more money in 2013.

I/I Money:  Our Russ Sheldon is co-chairman of the I/I committee and they have a program that provides assistance and money to the various I/I programs to help them grow.  Before Russ got involved I/I was dominated by the East Coast.  Now the West Coast has developed at least 8 I/I national championship teams and at least 8 Players of the Year awards.  The West Coast Regional play offs used to be a one team affair but now it is a hotly contested tournament with many teams and taking two days to execute with innumerable volunteers.

USPA Visits:  Previously a representative of the USPA on the West Coast was a scarce event.  Now we have three different USPA employees making numerous visits to our clubs each year to help them grow and prosper.  Now people on the East Coast want to know what we are doing because  the West Coast are now the innovators.  The Fall Meeting of the USPA has been on the West Coast very often and now more West Coast clubs are volunteering to host the event.

Dan Walker:    Not only is Dan doing a tremendous job as national handicap chairman he was just elected USPA secretary which puts him in line to be elected chairman.

Myth Number 3:  The USPA only cares about the high goal professional.

When I first got active in the USPA I would sit in meetings and think, “what they are talking about has nothing to do with me and the majority of the USPA members.”  That is changing now and programs are being developed for the benefit of the regular USPA member.

Handicaps: Our Dan Walker, the handicap emperor, along with Chrys Beale developed the half goal handicap system to help remedy the low goal handicap compression issue.  They are still working to perfect the system.  The fall meeting approved limiting the system to 6 goal tournaments and below.  Presently the system doesn’t apply to arena handicaps and yet there is more compression in the arena category than there is in the outdoor.

Polo Skilz:  Jim Burton and I championed the development of Polo Skilz as a “for free” member benefit.  It has proved to be a great success.  The users are primarily beginner and low goal players and instructors.  Thanks to your input the board approved a 6 month extension of Polo Skilz so we can develop a long term relationship.

PDI Grants:  A vast majority of the PDI grants go to low goal clubs.

Junior Polo:  A new program has been developed to have a national junior tournament with qualifying tournaments all around the US.  In addition, the Board just approved the granting of handicaps to junior and collegiate members at no additional cost upon their request.  The handicaps will be used in the development of the national tournament.

In conclusion, it’s a great time to be involved in polo.  Clubs are growing in membership.  The economy is improving.  The USPA has a newer and younger face that is ready to provide whatever benefits you request that will grow polo and improve your polo experience.

See you on the field,

Denny Geiler