Dec 17, 2023 11:26 PM
The third edition of the President’s Cup, organized by The Polo Agency and the Argentine Polo Association (AAP), was held from Sunday, November 26 through Monday, December 4. This year’s tournament was held by several clubs throughout Buenos Aires, Argentina, including the Hurlingham Club, Tortugas Country Club, Jockey Club, and at the AAP fields in Pilar and Palermo. The 2023 competition welcomed eight teams, each with a handicap of up to 14 goals, and witnessed the addition of two American groups: Wind Swept and Forbes Plunkett.
Wind Swept boasted a line-up of Harrison Reicher and Mackenzie Weisz*, who played alongside Agustin and Rufino Merlos. Reicher and Rufino had teamed up before under the same moniker: in March of 2023, the duo took home the win from the U.S. Junior Open Final at the National Polo Center - Wellington (Wellington, Florida).
Brandon Plunkett, Miguel Novillo Astrada Jr., Nicolas "Nico" and Lucas Escobar* made up Forbes Plunkett. Similar to Reicher and Rufino, Plunkett and Nicolas are no strangers to competition and have played under the Forbes Plunkett name.
Both American teams were part of Zone B in addition to Pampa Norte Dead End and Power Infrastructure. Zone A comprised of La Bien Mirada, Yellow Rose, BP and La Patrona.
In their initial matches, Wind Swept was edged out in a close contest against Pampa Norte, 8-9, while Forbes Plunkett experienced a 5-8 loss against Power Infrastructure. Forbes Plunkett went on to defeat La Patrona 11-8 to win the Polo Made Cup.
The final on Monday, December 4, was held at the AAP’s historic Field 1 in Palermo. La Bien Mirada (Fabio Meier, Marcos Solari, Adrian Laplacette, Raul Laplacette) emerged victorious after defeating Power Infrastructure (Miguel Mendoza, Tomi Casero, Bautista Bello, Alejandro Muzzio) 10-7 in the thrilling finale.
*Mackenzie Weisz and Lucas Escobar are Active Team USPA Members. Nicolas "Nico" Escobar is a Graduating Team USPA Member. Team USPA is a USPA program designed to enhance and grow the sport of polo in the United States by identifying young, talented American players and providing mentored training and playing opportunities leading to a pool of higher rated amateur and pro players and the resultant giveback to the sport of polo.
All photos courtesy of ©Guadalupe Aizaga.
Effective Date: Saturday, May 16, 2020
The suspension of USPA Tournaments and Events will be lifted for USPA Member Clubs in locales where hosting polo matches and tournaments is permitted under applicable state and local laws, executive orders and similar decrees. The USPA Member Clubs in these locales are encouraged to follow all such requirements of their state and local authorities with respect to polo operations. In addition, we also encourage all USPA Member Clubs to take the precautions recommended by the CDC. We are preparing a detailed list of best practices for USPA Member Clubs as they return to hosting USPA Tournaments and Events and plan to circulate these guidelines within the next week. We will continue to monitor the COVID-19 situation closely and will notify you if we determine a different course of action is necessary.
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