Polo Pro: Mason Wroe

Mason Wroe grew up in a horse family in Midland, TX. Born to a polo-playing father and a mother who rode dressage and jumping, Mason was riding before he learned to walk. He started testing the waters as a pro in his teens at the Midland Polo Club and played intercollegiate polo at Texas A&M, where he won the 2007 National Championship and was named Player of the Year. After graduation, Mason decided to commit to the polo lifestyle and started his now 17-year career as a pro in earnest.

Mason is based in Cat Spring, TX, where he, his wife, Kaylee, and their young daughter, Evelyn, base their polo operation. They carry about 35 horses, but Mason’s primary string is 20 ponies. He has spent the last two summers in Aspen, playing with Tonkawa, and in the winter, the Wroes take their brood to Florida. Mason’s young daughter, Evelyn, has made him re-evaluate the balance between work and family life: “I said to my wife about Evelyn the other day: ‘Did you ever think you could love someone so much?’ If I have a horrible game or lose, she doesn’t know that. She runs and jumps in my arms, and it puts the game in perspective; that is so much bigger than the game. It changes you as a person.”

While he has spent many winters in Wellington, FL, Mason was ready to take on a new role this year at the Sarasota Polo Club as Director of Polo and Head Polo Pro. “To grow as a person and a player, you have to constantly put yourself in uncomfortable situations. I am not going to play polo forever, so being able to have different tools in my chest is what made me look into this opportunity.”

When asked how long he has been playing at the Houston Polo Club, Mason pauses to think and surprises himself at the answer: “Wow, almost 15 years! I have played with Tonkawa for several years now, and they are really a first-class organization. The manager, Jimmy Seward, puts the utmost pride and care into whatever he does, and they do it right from the ground up.”

If the 2019 season is any indication, Tonkawa probably won’t want to mess with its current winning combination. The team’s momentum started in the summer season at the Aspen Valley Polo Club, where they won the USPA Silver Cup—the oldest polo tournament in the United States (this was its 119th year). The Tonkawa team (Jeff Hildebrand, Sapo Caset, Juan Martin Obregon, and Mason) went undefeated in the tournament and secured a 15–10 victory in the final. Mason calls the tournament a career highlight, and it set the tone for Tonkawa’s fall season at the Houston Polo Club.

“We came back to Houston, and Jeff Hildebrand and Jimmy Seward put a really fun, strong team together: me, Nacho Badiola, Vaughn Miller Jr. and Jeff Hildebrand.” The team had incredible chemistry on the field, and took the title in all three 10-goal tournaments: Keleen & Carlton Beal Cup, H. Ben Taub Memorial, and the Texas Open. Mason was awarded MVP in two of those tournaments, but he is quick to defer to the team effort.

“The team has a great relationship, and there was great competition,” said Mason. “We capped off the season by winning the Texas Open, which is a tournament I have been trying to win since I started playing in Houston. It was the happiest I have ever felt on the polo field. I don’t think I’ll ever forget the feeling after we won that one, and we had swept the season.”

2019 Season Highlights

• USPA 119th Silver Cup Champs (with Tonkawa)

• 10-Goal Champs (Tonkawa): H. Ben Taub Cup, Carlton & Keleen Beal Cup, Texas Cup

• MVP Honors: Carlton & Keleen Beal Cup, Texas Cup, Penny Memorial Cup