Tribute: Claire Tomlinson

FEBRUARY 1944 – JANUARY 2022

The highest handicapped lady player who also revolutionised polo coaching

Claire Tomlinson may not have been a playing member of Guards Polo Club but warrants a tribute in our Yearbook thanks to her unparalleled influence on the game of polo for more than half a century. She single-handedly secured the rights of women to compete in high-goal competitions from the Hurlingham Polo Association (HPA) and then went on to practice what she had preached, winning the Queen’s Cup here at Smith’s Lawn in 1979 with her Los Locos team. She also has her name engraved on the 22-goal Warwickshire Cup and the Cowdray Park Challenge Cup when it was played for at that level.

At the height of her playing career Claire was registered at five goals. This was long before ladies’ handicaps were introduced and makes her the highest handicapped woman player ever, a record that still stands to this day. It is not surprising that

such a remarkable player added her name to a raft of world-class tournaments. This includes our 15-goal Royal Windsor Cup in 1980, ’81, ’96 and 2010. Other Club victories include two wins in the Archie David Cup. Claire’s battles to get women players recognised started when a student at Oxford. Despite being the best player on the Oxford University polo team ladies were not allowed to compete in the Varsity match. So Claire set about getting the rule changed, although she was listed as “Mr Lucas” in the 1964 event! But two years

DESPITE BEING THE BEST PLAYER ON THE OXFORD UNIVERSITY POLO TEAM LADIES WERE NOT ALLOWED TO COMPETE IN THE VARSITY MATCH. SO CLAIRE SET ABOUT GETTING THE RULE CHANGED

later, as Claire Lucas, she captained the Oxford team to victory in the 1966 Varsity match, winning the game 7-0, the first time Cambridge registered a zero score. These successes were in addition to her representing the university at fencing, squash and, most surprisingly, ploughing! Claire’s parents, Arthur and Ethel Lucas were both keen players. Her father founded Woolmer’s Park Polo Club at the family home in Hertfordshire in 1949 and was a key figure in the resurrection of polo after the Second World War. Claire and her siblings, John and Pat, all inherited their parents’ passion for the game.

It was while at Oxford that Claire met her husband, Simon Tomlinson, who had first played polo when serving in the Army.

They went on to form the successful Los Locos team – meaning “The Mad Ones”. Initially Simon and Claire started playing polo across all levels except high-goal at Cirencester Park Polo Club. This included winning the County Cup some four times. Later they resurrected the Beaufort Polo Club, developing it into a leading UK polo club.

Following their divorce, Claire and Simon’s sons, the England internationals Luke and Mark Tomlinson, took over the running of Beaufort Polo Club, continuing their parents’ legacy. Their sister, the equine vet Emma Wood, runs her Tomlinson Equine practice, a successful equine and reproduction centre, at this location too.

In addition to fighting for recognition for women in polo, Claire was focused on improving coaching in polo. She worked as a senior HPA coach at Pony Club and International level and worked in partnership with David Morley and Major Hugh Dawnay to develop a world-class coaching system for the HPA. She also taught TRH The Duke of Cambridge and The Duke of Sussex to play when they were younger and coached England teams at every level, including at the World Championships in 2001 and 2004.

Claire was a one-off whose like we are unlikely to see again. We send our deepest condolences to Claire’s family and all the team at Beaufort Polo Club. ✸ Diana Butler

Clockwise from top left:

Claire in action for Oxford in an old Blues game on Varsity Day; with younger son Mark when winning the Royal Windsor Cup with Los Locos in 2010; celebrating her Hurlingham Polo Association Lifetime Achievement Award with her daughter Emma; in conversation with HM The Queen after her Los Locos team won The Queen's Cup in 1979