By Sharon Robb
Photos by Candace Ferreira
For the past three years, the 8-goal season has been the most competitive in the club’s 18-year history and this year promises to be just as competitive.
Four teams will compete. Opening Day games are set for Tuesday with Newport (Gene Goldstein, 0, Leo Mandelbaum, 2, TBA, Michel Dorignac, 5) playing defending champion Quite on Z (Alecia Seidler, -1, Artemio Figueras, 2, Joao Pedro Souza, 2, Lucio Ocampo, 5) at 2 p.m. followed by Amaro (Scott Sorbaro, 0, Nick Manifold, 2, Kris Kampsen, 6, Michael Armour, 0) against Pony Express (Lilli Hagemeier, -1, Finn Secunda, 1, Justin Daniels, 2, Sugar Erskine, 6) at 4 p.m. Games are on GCPC’s Fields 4 and 5. Action continues on Saturday. The final is scheduled for Sunday, Jan. 26 at 2 p.m.
In last year’s six-team tournament, Quite on Z upset previously undefeated 90210 to win the season-opener. Quite on Z (Alecia Seidler, -1, Artemio Figueras, 1, Joao Souza, 2, Hilario Figueras, 5) rallied in the final chukker to defeat 90210 (Sarah Siegel-Magness, 0, Finn Secunda, 1, Juan Cruz Marcos, 3, Roberto Zedda, 4), 9-8, in overtime.
Hilario Figueras scored five goals including the game-winner and was Most Valuable Player. It was Figueras who converted 40-and 60-goal penalty shots in a three-team shootout to advance Quite on Z into the championship final. His horse, Helmut Newton, played in the fifth chukker and responsible for two goals, was Best Playing Pony.
During the winter polo season, the nation’s largest and most innovative USPA-sanctioned polo club nestled in the heart of the world’s winter equestrian capital, will host a wide range of tournaments: 6, 8, 12, 20, and 26-goal leagues, The Polo School Women’s Weekly Polo League, WCT Finals, several PTF junior tournaments, World Polo League, World Polo League Pride and Sunset Chukkers & Cocktails at both Grand Champions and Santa Rita.
The season’s biggest highlight is the seventh season of the World Polo League, the only 26-goal polo played outside of Argentina. This year’s star-studded lineup features some of the world’s top players.
Other club highlights are the Jan. 30-Feb. 9 Sterling Cup (18-22 goals), Feb. 1-16 USPA Bronze Trophy (12 goals), Feb. 5-22 $100,000 World Cup (0-40 goals) and Feb. 24-March 8 Santa Rita Abierto (18-22 goals).
Other January tournaments are the Metropolitan 6 Goal Cup and Limited Edition 12-Goal Series. The Polo School Women’s Polo League also gets under way Jan. 22 and runs every Wednesday through April. It is the longest running women’s league in the world.
Grand Champions’ tournaments attract a large international field of players from all corners of the world including Argentina, Brazil, Canada, Chile, Ecuador, Uruguay, San Salvador, England, France, India, Mexico, Azerbaijan, New Zealand, Nigeria, Uzbekistan, South Africa, Spain, Switzerland and United States.
Grand Champions and Santa Rita Polo Farm is the largest and most unique private 102-acre polo facility in Wellington with 212 stalls in nine self-contained barns, two tracks, five climate-controlled tack rooms, vet room, staff quarters, guest house and four polo fields with state-of-the-art underground irrigation and short work arena. The club has 10 well-manicured world-class fields at GCPC and Santa Rita.