The Polo Report
By Steve Crowder

There are few and far between in the last 35 years as I know the history of this era, but I do not know for sure the past beyond that.  There are a lot of people who I will forget or never knew about even though in North America Polo. I doubt we have ever had 5 thousand members all in Canada, U.S., Mexico, Puerto Rico,Cuba, Guatemala and a few other places. All of these places, no matter where,  had Polo because someone made it the “place to play.”  One of the best things I heard someone say, a person who owned a Polo Club, was “mistakes are who we are, but thank God for them as we cannot exist without them.”

I began my polo career  in FL, but our headquarters were in Tulsa, OK so I do not know about many places I am sure. I did, however,  know the shakers and movers then. These men were different than the normal Patrons.  They owned the ground and they had the water to do it and that is still the main thing needed. And then there is the MONEY to support it as they know it will never pay for itself. The polo club owners know this going into the deal and they still do it.  This is what makes them different.  A lot of people have a field,  but few really reach out and make more and invite people to be there as a family, but it does happen. That is the only reason we still have Polo today.

Back in the late 70’s going from East to West …  In NY a man named Al furnished Bethpage, the Corey’s and Mannings + Bostwick in South Carolina, John T Oxley in FL, Lake Worth was a community affair, but I am sure there were a couple of Sugar Daddy’s. One would have been Ski Johnston in Milwaukee, It Was Robert Uihlien and in Oakbrook, Paul Butler in Memphis  and it was the Taylors in OK. Repeated with Oxley, Moore and Heaterington. Texas had Norm Brinker and Will Farish, Colorado had Bill Sinclair and and I”m not sure who did Phoneix but CA had Beal, Allen/Collins, Holden, Mannix, Ringer, Trione,Walker and Max Jason scattered throughout the State. Washington had Mr Dix and Canada repeated with Mannix a decade later many had gone and as is the case today, not many stepped up to take their place. This is why these are the Angels of our sport as a lot of people want to play and talk, but few do step up to the plate. Here is proof of it. Let’s say 15 years later or close to 1990. Peter Brant stepped up in NY as did Peter Orthwein in South Carolina fizzled. FL was saved by Oxley who kept moving and Bill Ylvisacker stepped up, in Lake Worth and kept moving on a good note. A group in Milwaukee vanished as did Oakbrook from there past Memphis became a postmark OK was held together by Moore and Oxley, but fading. Dallas without Brinker did not last long in the 90’s and Houston became a club, but Steve Gose woke up Texas and San Antonio became the Center of Polo. CO vanished as did Phoenix and Willis Allen and Harry Collins brought Rancho Santa Fe up. Indio thrived on Beal, Mannix and Holden, Ringer, Walker, Trione.  Dardi kept CA moving forward, but the next decade, well it really changed. Patrons wanted great fields, big stars and big money. The Polo World had changed. NY still had Brant and Hursh who joined up to make The Hamptons. FL faded in the early years, but came out smoking in ’02.  Palm Beach Polo was dead, Boca was history and Lake Worth was sold, but John Goodman and the Johnstons turned it around and built it. They built it like Polo is today …. amazing. San Antonio went away, Dallas became a mailbox, Houston was held together by Goodman and Hall, but by 2006 it was going South fast as so was CA. New people were rising in the West.  Al Haagen took a run at the Desert. A man named Rodney Fragdot grabbed the bit in LA and pushed for the return of LA Equestrian Center and may still bring more new people into Polo than all others together; The Sheldons trying to make Polo in Southern CA work in Poway, but they are not going that direction for complete dominance of the Sport in the manor that Al Haagan is @ EMPIRE POLO. Al Haagen can be compared to a John Goodman of the West.  He has the money and the land and the water, but most of all he wants to do it like Oxley, Ylvisaker and Paul Butler  did.  He knows his glory days are past, but he loves the game and for whatever reason he is willing to build it. Only we can reap from it and he can make it happen!!!  I recently saw a sentence that made sense to so much in our lives “MISTAKES ARE WHO WE ARE. ” You can disagree, but you are wrong.  You are a mistake somehow and in someway. Big Al is willing to let it happen and best of all he can MAKE IT HAPPEN because he can bring it together just like John Goodman did in Florida.  This is the key word in all of Polo  … “bring it together.”  El Dorado has made a huge move in hiring Graham Bray.  He has common sense and he loves the game.  Graham knows where we need to go … remove the barriers and let it go!!  Egos are great and we all have one, but when it stands as a barrier it will always be a detour to success as it is now in Indio and Santa Barbara. It is simply STUPID. Nobody has fun and there is no other reason to play Polo. For the wealthy it is not like if you can afford Polo you cannot play Polo. That’s why we need Polo Gods.  Someone needs to commit and they are doing it for whatever reason, but Polo people thrive when it happens because most love the game, but few pay the piper to make it happen. This is the way I see it and this is going to be my next article because I believe we can do it!

San Diego is getting crowds similar if not better than the Pacific Coast Open finals : WHY?  They have media coverage.  I do not understand it, but I do understand results and they have them. Empire and El Dorado both had good crowds this winter so why can’t we build Polo?

It is simple we have no plan and we have no togetherness.  Santa Barbara, Indio, Empire and Eldorado shut up,  sit back and hire someone to MAKE IT WORK.  We could be the biggest show in North America and not the worst with just a little common sense.

Just an opinion.

see ya