The Professionals

Shane Rice and Steve Krueger on the polo field

STEVE KRUEGER

Growing up as an all-around athlete in Argyle, TX, Steve Krueger played many sports in high school, including taking three national championships on the Fort Worth Interscholastic team. When Steve graduated high school, he began playing professionally in the Houston area while completing his Industrial Engineering Degree at Texas A&M. While in college, he joined the Aggie Intercollegiate Polo Team and went on to win three national titles and the Polo Training Foundation Player of the Year award. Steve is a 4-goal pro who has played professionally in Wellington and Sarasota, FL; Santa Barbara, CA; Sheridan, WY; and Houston, TX.

When did you start playing polo?

When I was growing up, my dad played polo, so polo and riding were always hand in hand. I played Interscholastic arena polo, then I switched to playing football in high school. I went back to playing Intercollegiate polo in college at Texas A&M. I started playing pro in college. I worked for a patron who lived in College Station, and we would play polo at the Houston Polo Club, which is how I was introduced into the Houston Polo scene. I started playing professionally in college, and after I graduated, I began playing professionally full time.

Did you have any early polo mentors?

My dad was my first mentor in the earlier stages of learning to play polo. Before I went to college, I played in the Dallas-Fort Worth area. There are a bunch of little clubs around there: I played at the Las Colinas Polo Club and Oak Grove Polo Club in Decatur, which was owned by Barbara Branson. Another big part of my early career was a patron named Jesse Pruitt. He always had me on his teams and was a big help when I was younger. There are a million people that have helped me throughout my career. Barbara, Jesse, and my dad were really important in my early playing.

As I started my professional career, my mentor was Hector Galindo. Hector used to play in a charity game for MD Anderson every year when I was a kid. I got to see him play and meet him there. When I got out of college, I went to work for him in Florida during the highgoal season. Hector is the one who shaped my career as a pro the most.

What brought you to the Houston Polo Club?

Houston Polo Club is the biggest member club in the nation. There’s a lot of polo here and a lot of opportunities to make a living for

professional players at my level. In other clubs, everyone is centred in the same club, but Houston has a lot of affiliate clubs, so you are spread out, and you have the space to do your own thing, and then everyone meets in the middle at the Houston Polo Club. I like it because you have the whole spectrum: you have some really high-end places to play and some very down-to-earth places, so you get the best of all worlds.

What does a typical year look like for you?

I play with BTA in Houston in the spring and fall seasons, Florida in the winter, and Sheridan, Wyoming in the summer. The past few years, I was playing on the Coca-Cola team at the International Polo Club Palm Beach in high-goal polo, and this year I am playing with BTA in the 14-goal league.

What were your highlights of the 2020 season?

The big highlight in 2020 was winning the President’s Cup in Houston in the spring.

SHANE RICE

Shane Rice grew up in Poway, California, in an extended family of riders. Shane had an illustrious beginning in the cowboy polo circuit, before getting involved with arena polo and then outdoor. In high school, Shane played Interscholastic polo with his sister and cousin, winning four regional and two national titles. After school, he played in California for two years before heading out for his first season at the Houston Polo Club. Shane is rated 4 goals and splits his professional time between seasons in Houston, California, and Wyoming.

How did you get your start in polo?

I was practically born on a horse. I played with my grandfather, uncle, mother, sister, and cousin, and we all played arena for the most part. Before that, we played a different version: cowboy polo. Basically, you take a construction helmet and put a steel face mask on it. And then you take a 60” graphite mallet and put a rubber head with a lead in it on the end. It was: “see ball, hit ball, no rules—just hang on the horse and swing a mallet.”

Vicki Owens and Tom Bixby in Del Mar got our family into arena polo. It was a little more fun and a little more controlled—and we didn’t have to drive as far every weekend. Tom had to sit us down and explain some things pretty quickly. I’ve spent my life trying to unlearn some of the stuff I did in cowboy polo!

When did you start playing outdoor polo?

Carlos Galindo plucked me out at 14 years old. I worked for him during winter and summer breaks, and he would put me on teams and get me into tournaments. At that time, we were just starting our high school team. My sister and I played all four years in Interscholastic. Because there was no one to play with in Poway, we enlisted the help of my cousin—he was in the 6th grade, and I don’t even know if he was 4 feet tall! The first year, they were wondering, “Who are these kids from Poway?”—one goofy looking ogre (that was me), my sister, and then this little person (my cousin) running around the field. They didn’t take us seriously. They were like, “Well, it’s good you came out for the experience.” Then we won the tournament. They took us more seriously the next year.

How did you start your polo career after high school?

I spent two years playing in Indio and San Diego and working for Carlos Galindo. I spent a lot of time watching Carlos run his ranch, breed his horses, and get ready to head out to Wyoming. As his groom, whether he meant to or not, he set me up to see the whole operation. It really helped me be prepared for the life.

Right before I came to Houston, Carlos said: “Hey you can keep playing out of your suitcase if you want, but if you want to broaden your horizons, you need a string.” They gave me four horses that I had been playing and helped me buy four more so I could get to where I needed to go. If it wasn’t for Carlos, I would have been behind the eight ball. That summer in Houston, I went from having eight horses to 14. Then I had to play some polo to feed my horses!

What keeps you coming back to Houston?

The people, first and foremost—and I just love Texas. The first time I drove in, I got chills looking at the Farish Field and the main barn. It sank in that I was coming to a club that has 14- and 20goal matches. It was a whole different level from my California days—and especially my cowboy polo days! I had to really step it up! Houston has some of the best fields in the States. I was always taught to save my good horses for the winter and summer seasons—but you have to bring your good horses to Houston. It’s well structured and organized, and that promotes quality on the field. And then you get to go have a great BBQ at somebody’s ranch afterward!

What was the highlight of your 2020 season?

Bar none, the Texas Open. I have been in the finals 5 or 6 times but never won it. We beat Tonkawa, who is a great team and had beat us the year before. It was on my bucket list—I wanted to get those Texas Open spurs!

What are you looking forward to this season?

I am really looking forward to the Houston season. The Livingston Memorial is one I hold close to my heart, so I would love to win that one. I bought a few new horses and have two or three babies hitting the ground. I consider Texas home, so any time I am away for more than a month, I want to get back.