Polo from Florida to Chile
By Victoria Elsbury-Legg
All eyes were on the pitches of Palm Beach yesterday where a strong Audi team led for most of the match, with the eldest of the Pieres brothers Gonzalito, alongside patron Marc Ganzi, Rodrigo Andrade and Freddie Mannix finally managing to find the all-important sixteenth goal in overtime and secure a 2015 USPA Piaget Gold Cup win over younger brother and Cousin (Facundo and Polito), Ezequiel Martinez Ferrario and patron of Orchard Hill – Steve Van Andel. In what truly seemed to be a great final for Gonzalito Pieres, his pony Open Raspadita was also awarded Best Playing Pony and he won MVP. If you missed any of the 2015 USPA Piaget Gold Cup matches, videos from Horseplay TV can be found on Polo TV at www.hurlinghampolo.com .
More high goal action from the International Polo Club Palm Beach continues next Saturday 28th March when the final tournament of the USA Triple Crown – the 111th US Open – begins. Earlier in the week the eight teams were divided into brackets:
Bracket 1: Orchard Hill, Valiente, Las Monjitas and Coca-Cola
Bracket 2: Audi, Flexjet, Lechuza Caracas and Alegria/Assist Card
The final will be played on Sunday 19th April.
For this week, all eyes will now be turned to Chile where the 10th FIP World Polo Championships begins tomorrow (Tuesday 24th March) on the fields of the Club de Polo y Equitacion San Cristobal in Santiago. Six international 14 goal teams have qualified for the tournament including home side Chile, Pakistan, Argentina, USA, Brazil, and representing England – Peter Webb, Will Emerson, eighteen year old George Pearson (and due to handicap changes) seventeen year old Jack Hyde is now included in the line-up, alongside sub Jack Mesquita. Team coach for the tournament is Antony Fanshawe who is just about to start his inaugural season as Polo Manager at Guards. Matches will be played under the watchful eye of another familiar face on the international polo circuit, newly appointed (in January 2015) FIP President Nicholas Colquhoun-Denvers.
The FIP World Championships last graced the Chilean pitches twenty three years ago in 1992, when South American sides Argentina and Chile took Gold and Silver and a very different England line-up taking Bronze. The tournament was last played in 2011, when team Argentina not only hosted the tournament but also rode away with Gold. England have yet to win the tournament, whose inaugural match was in 1987, but with a strong line-up headed up by Peter Webb and Will Emerson who having played a lot of 12 and 15 goal polo together in recent years it should be a great opening match for England who will meet Chile at 5pm (local time) tomorrow.
World Championship schedule
March 24
3PM: Argentina vs. Brazil
5PM: Chile vs. England
March 25
3PM: USA vs. Argentina
5PM: England vs Pakistan
March 26
3PM: USA vs Brazil
5PM: Chile vs. Pakistan
March 28: Semi-finals
March 29: Finals