The United States Polo Association (USPA) is celebrating an especially momentous and historical year. They hosted the U.S. Open Polo Championship draw party on March 23 at the International Polo Club Palm Beach (IPC) in Wellington, Florida.
Held at the IPC Pavilion ahead of the USPA Gold Cup Semifinals, the final draw of the season featured live music as well as food and drinks for the teams in attendance. USPA Chairman and GAUNTLET competitor, Stewart Armstrong, welcomed the teams and spoke on the astounding participation in this year’s U.S. Open Polo Championship.
The U.S. Open Polo Championship draw was conducted by IPC Polo Coordinator Haley Bryan, IPC Polo Coordinator. The draw determined the playing order for the final tournament of the GAUNTLET OF POLO starting on March 29.
Defending champions Scone will face an additional seven teams in their fight to reclaim the most prestigious title in American polo. This is made possible by the acceptance of individual team entries, with the seven new teams – Aspen Valley Polo Club, Audi, Casablanca, Grand Champions Polo Club, Santa Rita Polo Farm, Sol de Agosto, and Polo Training Foundation.
The newcomers joining the competition will bring the total to an all-time high of 20 teams for the first time in the tournament’s history. Significantly increasing the difficulty of the U.S. Open Polo Championship field with the addition of four 10-goalers, the final leg of competition will showcase the talents of nine 10-goalers.
Reigning GAUNTLET champion Gonzalito Pieres will compete directly against his brother and former Pilot teammate Facundo Pieres, for the first time since the series inception.
Each side will have three brackets with three to four participating teams. In Side A, Bracket 1 welcomes Grand Champions Polo Club, with Riley Ganzi (0), Gonzalito Pieres (10), Juan Bollini Sr. (4), and Juan Martin Zubia (8). It also has Santa Rita Polo Farm, with Melissa Ganzi (0), Camilo “Jeta” Castagnola (9), Polito Pieres (10), and Hector Guerrero (3).
Not to be missed is team La Elina, with Facundo Obregon (6), Sapo Caset (10), Jared Zenni (6), and one more team member to be announced. And finally, Scone proudly houses David Paradice (0), Keko Magrini (3), Poroto Cambiaso (9), and Adolfo Cambiaso (10).
Bracket II will have G-String Polo Ponies, with Gillian Johnston (1), Nico Escobar (5), Nico Pieres (9), and Julian de Lusarreta (7). CK Shack, on the other hand, is joined by Henry Porter (4), Martin “Facha” Valent (4), Santiago Toccalino (8), and Kris Kampsen (6). Lastly, Casablanca’s slate is composed of Juan Bollini Jr. (4), Sugar Erskine (6), Agustin Merlos (8), and Luis Escobar (4).
Bracket III will have Aspen Valley Polo Club, with Vinny Sangaline (0), Pablo Mac Donough (10), Alejandro Novillo Astrada (7), and one more member to be announced. The secone team is SD Farms, with Sayyu Dantata (2), Lucas Escobar (4), Pelon Stirling (10), and Peco Polledo (6). Last but not the least is Park Place, with Andrey Borodin (0), Josh Hyde (1), Juan Britos (9), Hilario Ulloa (10), and Cody Ellis (3).
On to Side B, Bracket IV’s first team is Audi, with Marc Ganzi (2), Jason Crowder (5), Barto Castagnola (9), Paco de Narvaez (6). La Fe follows with Louis Devaleix (0), Robi Bilbao (5), Francisco Elizalde (9), and Lucas Diaz Alberdi (6).
La Indiana introduces Stewart Armstrong (3), Jeff Hall (6), Lucas “Luckitas” Criado Jr. (5), and Mariano Aguerre (7). The last team in the bracket is Tamera, with Alejandro Poma (1), Magoo Laprida/Alejo Taranco (8), Diego Cavanagh (9), and Segundo Saravi (4).
Bracket V’s first team is Dutta Corp/Show+, with Timmy Dutta (4), Tomas Garcia del Rio (8), Iñaki Laprida (7), and Joaquin Avendaño (3). Polo Training Foundation comes next, with Nic Roldan (8), Carlitos Gracida (4), Jesse Bray (6), and Matias Gonzalez (4). Completing the bracket is Cessna, with Will Johnston (2), Edward “Camp” Campbell (2), Miguel Novillo Astrada (9), and Raul “Gringo” Colombres (8).
Bracket VI will haveOld Hickory Bourbon/Airstream, with Matias Magrini (7), Santino Magrini (5), Stevie Orthwein (4), and Joaquin Panelo (6). Sol de Agosto will also be part of the fina bracket, with Paco de Narvaez Jr. (2), Grant Ganzi (3), Juan Martin Nero (10), and Victorino “Torito” Ruiz Jorba (7). The last team in the tournament Pilot, with Curtis Pilot (0), Mackenzie Weisz (5), Facundo Pieres (10), and Matias Torres Zavaleta (7).
The U.S. Open Polo Championship will be livestreamed on Global Polo TV’s (GPTV) OTT platform. The final will also be available as a post-produced show on the ESPN family of brands.
