Toronto Polo Club

Polo in Toronto was played prior to the turn of the century, and then more actively in the 1920s and 30s at Woodbine Racetrack and the Armoury on Avenue Road. Activity ceased during the war years but was later revived in the 50s when a group of equestrians— including Colonel Michael Sifton, Jim Elder, Tom Gayford, Gary Smellie, and Major Kindersley—decided that polo would make a great arena game to fill the void of equestrian events throughout the winter months.

They began to play in the arena on the estate of Sir Clifford Sifton, located at Lawrence Avenue (now the Toronto French School), and brought in Doc Roberts, the coach at Cornell University, to help them out. By 1960, the Toronto Polo Club was reinstated in the United States Polo Association. In 1965, Colonel Michael Sifton purchased Fox Den Farm in Gormley, just North of Toronto, which in time became

Colonel Michael Sifton and sons Derek, Mike and Cliff

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the headquarters for the club and one of the best indoor polo facilities in North America. Outdoor fields were added to the mix at Fox Den Farm, allowing members to enjoy both summer and winter polo. By 1969, membership had grown to 40 members.

An outstanding Canadian in the worlds of business, the military, sports, and countless charitable and volunteer works, Colonel Sifton had a vision to make polo accessible to all by sharing the game he loved so much, and he graciously opened his family farm for club members to use. He also saw the potential of using polo as a forum to raise money for charity. In 1979 he started the Polo For Heart charity series, which continues to be the highlight of the Toronto summer season and has raised over $6 million dollars for heart and stroke related charities. Colonel Sifton was president of the Toronto Polo Club until his death in 1995, and his three sons, Mike Jr, Cliff, and Derek—who are all excellent horsemen and players in their own right—continue his legacy. Cliff is the current club president and the honourary chair of Polo For Heart.

Many of the original members of the Toronto Polo Club were local and kept their horses at home or at nearby farms, trailering or riding over to Fox Den Farm to play. Neighbours, including the Offens, Smellies, Emerys, Calverlys, Phillips and Strawbridges

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were regulars at the club. A fun story that’s often told recounts the time Dr. Harry Strawbridge arrived at the field, only to realize he had not hitched up his trailer, and it was still back at the farm with his horses on board, ready and waiting! Strawbridge was one of the original club members who continued to play well into his eighties. One of the club’s annual trophies has been named in his honour.

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Another legendary member of the Toronto Polo Club is the late Dr. Tom Offen, who passed away in 2018. Renowned for his incredible chiropractic talents, he was a healer to horses and players alike. His equine chiropractic services extended from treating polo ponies to Olympic athletes such as showjumper “Big Ben”. The Offen family farm was next door to Fox Den Farm, and the Offen children—Dave, Todd, Kelly, and Robyn—were all avid players in their youth. Dave and Todd went on to become two of Canada’s highest rated professional players who played on high-goal teams throughout the U.S. Many of Dr. Offen’s grandchildren also took up the sport, with his grandsons Rob and Brendon going on to become professional players, as well. The legacy Dr. Offen left at the Toronto Polo Club was his passion for youth polo. He was always on the sidelines offering advice to the younger players. He loved to watch the kids play and progress. Every year he sponsored the Dr. Tom Offen Junior Challenge, a tournament which brought kids, aged eight to 18, out for a day of games, followed by a party. This tournament continues to be one of the most popular events on the Toronto Polo Club’s summer calendar.

As the club grew in the eighties, Dave Offen set up a boarding and training barn at his family farm to help bring in new members. Later in the nineties, Scott Weir and King Ward also set up a boarding and training facility at the South Farm at Fox Den. The club was expanding, as members started to come from all over. It was clear that more facilities were needed. John Daniels opened his field up for club play every spring, since his farm was situated on high land and the field was often dry early in the season. Another polo field was developed in Kleinberg on conservation land. This field was eventually replaced by the Upper Canada polo fields, near Alliston. Dave Offen spearheaded the formation of the Upper Canada polo fields, locating the land and organizing the group of founding shareholders. This was made possible by the White family who agreed to owning 50% of the shares. These fields have since become the hub of tournament play, and are some of the nicest playing fields in North America.

Over the next two decades many changes came to the Toronto Polo Club as the facilities grew to accommodate the new members and different levels of play.

THE FACILITIES

Today, the Toronto Polo Club offers the possibility of polo in every season. It has a solid indoor arena season, which runs from November until March, and an outdoor grass season that runs from May until September. The recent addition of two outdoor arenas now makes it possible to play polo in the spring and fall. Since it first relocated to Fox Den Farm in 1965, the Club has expanded dramatically. There are essentially three sets of facilities, with three different ownership groups (with some crossover) that allows the club access to seven outdoor fields, two outdoor areas, and one indoor arena—all within a 60 km radius of Toronto.

Fox Den Farm, owned by the Sifton family, offers three grass fields, a stick and ball field, an indoor arena with heated viewing lounge, and an outdoor all-weather arena. Fox Den Farm is home to the club’s annual charity events, such as Polo for Heart, Polo Under the Stars, and Polo For the Cure.

Just west of Fox Den Farm is Bancroft Farm, owned and operated by Brian and Wendy O’Leary. Bancroft Farm offers an outdoor arena, a grass field (that traditionally has been playable up to Thanksgiving weekend), a stick and ball field, and ‘The Polo Shack’—a rustic wood cabin that has been renovated and is now the hub for club parties and socials. Bancroft Farm is

1 Mich Ward and Andrew Begg at Polo For Heart 2 Snow polo at Bancroft Farm 3 MC Sifton Memorial Challenge Cup Champions Nicole Offen, Scott Weir, Derek Sifton, King Ward 4 Team meeting with King Ward, Mike Sifton, Cliff Sifton, Derek Sifton 5 Aerial view of Polo For Heart 6 Asado after the games 7 Founders Cup Champions Brian O’Leary, Evan White, Evan White Jr., Kingsley Ward Jr. 8 Early days of the 12-Goal league with Rob Follows, Evan White, Pablo Falabella, Fernando Massalin, Bobby Genovese, Mike Egan, Cliff Sifton, CJ Sifton, Marcos Bignoli THE SPORT OF POLO IN CANADA \ 79

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also home to a large polo school and polo management boarding facility. Housing over 100 horses on the property, Bancroft Farm runs lessons, clinics, and training leagues year-round. It also offers full- service polo boarding and training, which is a benefit for many members who live and work in the city. The polo school at Bancroft Farm has helped to bring many new players to the Toronto Polo Club over the years.

North of Fox Den Farm and Bancroft Farm are the Alliston playing fields. Owned by Evan White and partners, these are some of the club’s best fields. Formerly a potato farm, the property was converted into three polo fields, all with excellent drainage and a state-of-the-art irrigation system. Several club members have built barns and apartments around the fields, as most of the high-level tournament polo is played here during the summer. It is not uncommon on a Sunday to find all three fields active with games, and over 20 horse trailers surrounding the perimeter. The facility also has a snack bar area, and an asado pit for after-game social gatherings.

TOURNAMENTS

In 1992, Dave Offen began the USPA sanctioned Canadian Open at the Upper Canada fields. This was a 16-goal tournament that was played for many years in Toronto, and then in Vero Beach in 1995. Bringing high-goal professional players to Toronto, this tournament paved the way for a more competitive level of polo at the club. For years after there have been high-goal leagues organized every summer, hiring professional players from Argentina and the U.S.A.

Sign-up and team entry tournaments are offered year-round at the low-goal and medium-goal level. There is also a women’s tournament and a fundraiser, Polo For The Cure, every July. The club owns a wonderful collection of perpetual trophies, many of which have been donated

by club members, and are presented every week at the finals of each tournament. In addition to the games, the tournaments are usually followed with a party or asado.

The Toronto Polo Club has been fortunate to have excellent resident umpires, such as Dave and Cody Offen and Scott Weir, who have helped out with tournaments and overseen the club’s umpire program.

POLO FOR HEART & OTHER CHARITY EVENTS

Since its inception in 1979 by Colonel Sifton, Polo For Heart has become Canada’s largest and longest running charity event. Polo For Heart celebrated its 40th anniversary in 2019. This is a jam-packed weekend of polo, half time entertainment, shopping, and an enormous hospitality tent that holds up to one thousand guests. The longevity of Polo For Heart is helped immensely by the support it gets from Toronto Polo club members. In recent years, Mike Egan, and then Derek Watchorn, stepped up as event Chairman. They have helped to take the event to the next level by leading the sponsorship drive, and by inviting international teams and celebrities. King Ward is credited with his huge efforts in continuing the legacy of the ‘Black & White Polo Ball’ for many years, and now more recently ‘Polo Under The Stars’. These are both glamorous evening parties intended to promote the Polo For Heart weekend and attract the downtown crowd.

In addition to Polo For Heart, the club supports many other great events for charitable causes. Every September, club members travel to Niagara-on-the-lake to support a fundraiser held on the commons at Fort George. George Dell continues to spearhead this effort, which raises money for the Friends Of Fort George Historical Society. For almost a decade Maureen White ran a successful annual charity fundraiser for the local hospital called ‘Polo For Health’. Matey Nedcov was Chair of ‘Polo For Palliative Care’ for many years. Donna Malloy and Keri Weir continue to organize ‘Polo For The Cure’, which is now in its 15th year, and is Canada’s longest running women’s polo tournament and fundraiser.

THE PONIES

You see all kinds of horses at the Toronto Polo Club—off-the-track racehorses, rescues, and more commonly in the last two decades, polo ponies brought over from Argentina, or bred by resident professional Pablo Falabella. Falabella has a huge breeding farm just minutes away from the Alliston Polo Fields. Here he imports and breeds high quality Argentinean polo ponies, which are then sold to players across North America. He has been part of the Toronto Polo Club for several decades, and has shared wonderful Argentinean traditions with members, as well as some great polo ponies.

THE PEOPLE

Just like the ponies, there are all kinds of people at the Toronto Polo Club, from all walks of life. There are members who do it all themselves, with their own farms, trucks, and trailers, as well as members who work and or live in the city and must rely on boarding services to care for their ponies and get them to and from polo. The one quality that is common amongst the members is a passion that keeps them coming back; a passion that drives them to indoor polo when they can’t feel the tips of their fingers for the cold, or that beckons them back even after they missed the winning penalty shot! There is a camaraderie amongst members of the Toronto Polo Club that can be seen on the field, as well as after the games with a shared beer and a laugh (or a cry).

The club has over 60 active playing members comprised of men, women, and children of all ages. It is not uncommon to see several generations of families playing together. The club is committed to youth development, which is key to its sustainability. The younger players are becoming better and better, as the older players take a step back. The offspring of many of the original members are now taking on larger roles of responsibility within the club. Karen White has been the club manager for over 20 years and has seen it evolve into a diverse and dynamic club—one that offers something for everyone who loves the sport of polo.

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1 Ryan Roy rides off Annabel Begg at Polo For The Cure 2 Father-daughter team Kevin and Kerrigan Brown 3 Dr. Tom Offen and the polo kids 4 Outdoor arena at Bancroft Farm 5 Polo for Palliative Care