Gonzalo Pieres is a former 10-goal handicap polo player and one of the most successful players in the sport.
Gonzalo was born and grew up in Argentina.
Pieres began traveling to America to play polo in 1980, when he held an eight-goal handicap. His handicap had been raised to 10 within a few years. [1]
Gonzalo Pieres is recognized for turning professional polo players, into real sport professionals.
He won the Argentine Open nine times, and the United States Polo Association Gold Cup seven times. He has been on the winning team in the Queen's Cup, British Open, and US Open. In 1994 Gonzalo won the Argentine triple crown with Adolfo Cambiaso, Mariano Aguerre, and Carlos Gracida.
For many years Gonzalo played with Kerry Packer, [2] and in 1992 they founded Ellerstina, a polo team that has claimed multiple titles at the Argentine Open and other high-handicap tournaments. In addition, the Pieres still have strong ties with Packer's son James.
Gonzalo's sons, Gonzalo (Jr), Facundo and Nicolás, are also professional polo players with 10-goal handicaps. Gonzalo has played for Ellerstina since 1992, whereas Facundo joined the team in 2003 and Nicolás in 2011.
Gonzalo has a daughter, Tatiana who is married to Mariano Aguerre also a 10 goler at Ellerstina on the 2012 season.
Polo is a ball game played on horseback, a traditional field sport and one of the world's oldest known team sports. The game is played by two opposing teams with the objective of scoring using a long-handled wooden mallet to hit a small hard ball through the opposing team's goal. Each team has four mounted riders, and the game usually lasts one to two hours, divided into periods called chukkas or "chukkers".
Adolfo Cambiaso is an Argentine professional polo player with a 10-goal handicap rating. He is currently ranked number one in the world.
The practice of sports in Argentina is varied due to the population's diverse European origins and the mostly mild climate. Association football is the most popular discipline and other sports played both professionally and recreatively athletics, auto racing, basketball, boxing, cycling, field hockey, fishing, golf, handball, mountaineering, mountain biking, padel tennis, polo, roller hockey, rowing, rugby union, sailing, skiing, swimming, tennis, and volleyball. Argentine achievements can be found in team sports such as association football, basketball, field hockey and rugby union, and individual sports such as boxing, golf, tennis and rowing. Pato, the national sport, is not very popular.
A polo handicap is a system created by Henry Lloyd Herbert, the first president of the United States Polo Association, at the founding of the USPA in 1890 so teams could be more evenly matched when using players with varying abilities.
Lucas Monteverde is an Argentine professional polo player with a handicap of 9. He grew up near the town of 25 de Mayo, Buenos Aires Province, at the estancia El Rincón. The ranch is run by his father Lucas, and uncle Marcelo Monteverde, one of the world's most successful coaches. He is married to the Argentine model Loli Lopez and has two children.
Carlos Gracida was a Mexican-American polo player. He reached a 10-goal handicap at the age of 25.
Bartolomé Castagnola is an Argentine polo player with a 10-goal polo handicap and ranked among the top twenty players. He is often referred to as Lolo.
Mariano Aguerre, is a professional polo player in Argentina and the United States. He achieved a 10-goal handicap in the United States in 1994 and in Argentina in 1998. He is currently rated at 9 goals in both countries. He is a nine-time winner of the Argentine Open at Palermo, winning with three different teams: Ellerstina, Chapa I and La Dolfina. The Museum of Polo and Hall of Fame announced that Mariano was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2017.
La Dolfina is an Argentine polo team, founded by Adolfo Cambiaso and Bartolomé Castagnola in 2000, based in the city of Cañuelas, Buenos Aires Province.
Gonzalo Pieres Jr. Buenos Aires, Buenos Aires Province is a professional Argentine polo player with a 10-goal handicap. Currently, he is ranked number 3.
Facundo Pieres Buenos Aires, Buenos Aires Province is a professional Argentine polo player with a 10 goal handicap.
Mike Azzaro is an American professional polo player from San Antonio, Texas. Azzaro's current handicap is 6 goals, but he held the sport's highest handicap of 10 goals for over ten years. Azzaro was awarded Polo Magazine's Polo Excellence Award for Young Player of the Year in 1987 and 1990, and the award for Player of the Year in 1994. Known for his aggressive forward style of play, he has always been a crowd favorite. Playing with five-time Player of the Year winner Memo Gracida, they formed one of the most powerful duos in polo. Azzaro and Gracida both reside in Wellington, Florida.
The United States Polo Association (USPA) is the national governing body for the sport of polo in the United States.
Martín Valent is a 5 Goal professional polo player as well as a competitive pato player. He played for Argentina in the 2009 Coronation Cup against England at Guards Polo Club alongside Adolfo Cambiaso, Facundo Pieres and Gustavo Usandizaga. Valent also Manages Ali Albwardy's Desert Palm Polo Club in Dubai and Dubai Polo Team in the UK.
Alejandro Díaz-Alberdi (Piki) is an Argentine 7-goal professional polo player. He was at one stage in his career rated at 10 goals, the highest handicap a player can receive. Diaz-Alberdi, a player on the Dutta Corp polo team and La Mancha Polo team has won many important tournaments during his career all around the world including The Argentine open once, the British open, the queens cup, the soto grande gold and silver cups, the copa Republica Argentina, Camara de Disputados and many others.
Pablo Mac Donough is a professional polo player from Argentina with a 10-goal polo handicap.
The US Open Polo Championship is an annual polo championship in the United States. It is organized by the United States Polo Association (USPA). It was first played on September 20, 1904 at Van Cortlandt Park in The Bronx in New York City. At the first game the Wanderers defeated the Meadowbrook Freebooters.
Marc Ganzi is an American businessman. He is the President and CEO of DigitalBridge, and is the founder and former CEO of Digital Bridge Holdings and Global Tower Partners. He is also a polo player.
Greenwich Polo Club is a polo club and event venue in Greenwich, Connecticut that was established in 1981. It is one of only three polo venues in the United States offering high-goal polo. The club hosts high goal polo matches throughout the summer, tournaments typically beginning in June and concluding in September.