HERITAGE CUP™
TOURNAMENT HISTORY
Founded in 1986, the Heritage Cup has been held at venues across the country including Chicago International Polo Club (Oswego, Illinois), New Bridge Polo & Country Club (Aiken, South Carolina) and Santa Barbara Polo & Racquet Club (Carpinteria, California). In 2017, the tournament moved to the fields of Port Mayaca Polo Club (PMPC) in Okeechobee, Florida, where it remains today. Since establishing its home at PMPC, recent Heritage Cup titleholders include Hillcroft (2017), Skaneateles (2019) and BTA (2021, 2022).
In 2023, BTA/San Saba (Dawn Jones, KC Krueger, Steve Krueger, Santiago Zubiaurre) faced-off against Newport (Gene Goldstein, Matt Coppola, Michel Dorignac, Leo Mandelbaum). Requiring overtime to settle the score in the nail-biting finale, 5-goaler Zubiaurre ultimately knocked-in the golden goal, sealing BTA/San Saba's 12-11 triumph.
This year's edition features five teams vying for the title. Hillcroft will attempt to reach the podium for the first time since 2017, as Las Brisas, Parrotheads Polo, Port Mayaca Polo and SD Farms aim to earn their first Heritage Cup.
Representing Team USPA is Active Member Finn Secunda (SD Farms) and alumni Steve Krueger and Felipe Viana (Parrotheads Polo).
Port Mayaca Polo Club will be taking advantage of the USPA's Bridge to High Goal Initiative (B2HG) for the Heritage Cup, which provides eligible USPA Member Clubs with three USPA Professional Umpires (two mounted officials and one third man) at 50% of the regular cost to the club. The Bridge to High Goal Initiative (B2HG) has been created to support outdoor mixed polo between 12 and 16 goals, a historically under-supported level of polo in the United States. The goal of the program is to build a bridge from low-goal polo to high-goal polo that provides a safe environment for competition, which will allow for the cultivation of sponsors and the advancement of aspiring professionals.
2023 Heritage Cup Champions: BTA/San Saba - Dawn Jones, KC Krueger, Steve Krueger, Santiago Zubiaurre. Pictured with Tommy Biddle Jr. ©Port Mayaca Polo Club
