July 2021 Polo Players' Edition- The Argentine Team

The Argentine Team

California winners outdoors & N.Y. beginner indoors, 1930

By Dennis J. Amato

In 1930, an Argentine team made a memorable trip to the United States to play in a series of matches in California, including the Pacific Coast Open Championship. However, they also made a short, last-minute courtesy trip to New York where they even tried their hand at indoor polo. Part I recounts the California leg of their famous visit and in Part II in the upcoming August issue, the story of their fascinating but largely forgotten New York stopover will be told.

The Argentine ponies arriving in California in December 1930, after a harrowing 42- day voyage from Buenos Aires. Of the 47 horses transported, 44 survived.

Part I–The California Visit

During the 1920s and ‘30s, several Argentine teams made a number of historic visits to the United States. The first one was a relatively impromptu affair. An Argentine brigade of six players had gone off to England in 1922 to compete in a variety of events during the so-called “London Season,” which revolved around individual games and several tournaments at the Hurlingham, Ranalagh and Roehampton Clubs. As word quickly spread across the pond of this unheralded group’s outstanding exploits, the American Polo Association—as the USPA was then called—invited them to travel on to the United States upon the completion of their British tour.

As Newell Bent in American Polo put it: “… and on they came, players and ponies arriving here in mid-summer for a series of international tournaments at the Rumson, Philadelphia, Bryn Mawr and Meadow Brook Clubs.”

The die was cast and the Argentines returned again in 1926 for a season of tournament play at Rumson, Philadelphia, Meadow Brook and Narragansett Pier. Two years later, they found themselves again in Westbury, this time for the inauguration of the Cup of the Americas competition. In 1931, the Santa Paula Polo Club team competed in the Open Championship, which occurred a year after their phenomenal American presence—the focus of the story below.

Another visit to Meadow Brook transpired in 1936 when an Argentine quartet took the Gold at the Berlin Olympics and was invited to sail to our shores for an improvised Cup of the Americas contest (pitted against the winner of the U.S. Open Championship, Greentree, rather than against a high-goal team picked by a defense committee). The final invasion before the war came in 1937 when a team from the San José Polo Club entered the Open tournament.

Andrada with one of his ponies along with one of the grooms

The 1930 California Visit

Among the Argentines most noteworthy excursions beyond the Eastern seaboard was the aforementioned 1930 Santa Paula visit, which turned out to be one of their most successful and certainly their longest (a two-month stay in California followed by a short side trip to New York).

The logistics alone for an undertaking of such length and breadth read like the preparations for a major military campaign. There were not only the players and their polo colleagues to be transported to America but also their ponies and grooms, an enormous amount of equipment for both the players and their ponies (mostly supplied by Lacey & Sons of Buenos Aires according to the many advertisements that were published) and probably steamer trunks and luggage galore packed with all the personal apparel for the entire entourage. In terms of the latter, the amount of clothing must have been fairly monumental as the players alone had not only to bring multiple polo outfits but also attire for casual, more dressy and most likely, even formal occasions. Complicating matters further, members of the Argentine armada were required to have wardrobes to contend with three different seasons of dress: summer during their voyage north from the Southern Hemisphere; winter, albeit mild, in Southern California; and early spring—where it can be chilly—for their unplanned New York stopover.

The California press dubbed the Santa Paula team as “The Four Horsemen of the Pampas.” In this casual photo are clockwise Harrington, Juan and Jose Reynal and Andrada.

The Argentine caravan headed to North America in two distinct groups. The first to depart were the ponies, which left Buenos Aires by boat in early November 1929. So monumental and harrowing was this voyage that it merited lengthy stand-alone write-ups and multiple photographs in such magazines as Polo in the United States and Polo y Equitacion in Argentina.

Under the ever watchful eye of Thomas Nelson, a well-known breeder and a cousin of the great polo player Jack Nelson, 47 ponies were loaded on board a freighter into improvised stalls. According to an article by Peter Vischer in Polo magazine (January 1930), Tom Nelson considered these horses to be the “cream of the Argentine lists,” an opinion his cousin Jack fully shared.

In a very clever innovation, the horses were outfitted with specially designed felt soles which allowed them to promenade on the decks, 12 at a time for exercise. Caring for the petizos were 12 grooms, 11 of whom got sick during the extremely rough voyage north. As a result, for 25 of the 42-day trip, there was not a full complement of gauchos to look after the ponies, a problem further compounded by a loss of feedstock.

Alfredo Harrington and Carlton Burke engaged in some fast play in the final.

On the Atlantic side, the weather was incredibly atrocious so that during one 25-hour period, still far from the Panama Canal, as the ship heaved in heavy waters Nelson apparently stood and watched—and wondered who would be the first to plunge overboard! In his own words, he described the ordeal: “We were rolling and pitching to such an extent that at times I was in despair of getting the ponies to California.”

When this advance group finally reached the Panama Canal, they faced yet another setback: blistering heat instead of icy gales, which turned the vessel into a steam bath as waves came cascading over the decks. After this grueling 8,000 mile saga, the ship at long last arrived in the Harbor of San Pedro near Los Angeles on Dec. 20, 1930. The ponies were then loaded into cold vans and transported to the Midwick Country Club, arriving at 10:30 that night. Of the 47 horses that Nelson started out with, one died at sea and two shortly after their arrival. According to one knowledgeable source, the estimated value of the surviving 44 ponies was $250,000 (about $4,000,000 in today’s dollars).

In dramatic contrast to the ponies, the players and their polo companions had a much easier and a much more enjoyable journey north described as a leisurely trip, although they took a rather circuitous route. The playing group from the Santa Paula Polo Club of Manuel Andrada, Alfredo Harrington, Juan Reynal and Carlos Uranga were joined by Carlos Echeverrigaray, a club official and Tomas Moore. Accompanying the delegation were also many family participants. The group left Buenos Aires by train on Dec. 22, 1929, for Chile where they met up with José Reynal who was already in the country.

From Chile, they all continued by rail north to Peru. During this short layover in the land of the Incas, officials of the Lima Polo Club entertained them as well as arranged a friendly polo match. (As a footnote, several American press reports mentioned the Argentines had also stopped in Brazil where they played polo but there is no evidence that this ever took place.)

From the port near Lima, Callao, they embarked upon the passenger liner Esequibo, which took them out to the Pacific Ocean, then through the Panama Canal and on to Cuba where they docked on Jan. 10, 1930. While in Havana, the South Americans once again enjoyed a friendly game with a local team, most likely an army quartet. The next leg was from Havana to New Orleans where the travelers disembarked from their ship and then boarded a train for the long ride to Los Angeles where they arrived on Jan. 20, 1930.

Carlos Echeverrigaray, Manuel Andrada, Jim Spalding and Neil McCarthy visited the Paramount studio. With them is actress Mary Brian.

On the following day, the Argentines headed over to Alhambra for a practice game against a Midwick Country Club team. The Argentine team of Alfredo Harrington, Juan Reynal, José Reynal and Manuel Andrada were rated at 24 goals, while the host team of Neil McCarthy, Gordon Cronkite, Elmer Boeseke Jr., and Carlton Burke had a handicap total of 21 goals. Despite the long trip from their homeland, the visitors were said to be “fit as a fiddle,” although the same could not be said for their ponies, which were still recovering from their debilitating ocean voyage. Nevertheless, the Argentines won easily, 13-5.

In preparation for the California season in general and the crown-jewel Pacific Coast Open Championship in particular, arrangements were made to supplement the cadre of West Coast highgoal players with a number of top players from elsewhere. Among the illustrious names brought in were Laddie Sanford, Aidan Roark, Gerald Balding, Capt. Hugh Walford and Capt. Wesley White, the latter as both a player and an umpire. As a result, the organizers were able to assemble five strong teams: Midwick at 26 goals, Santa Paula at 24 goals as noted above, Rancho San Carlos at 24 goals, Cypress Point at 23 goals and the Hurricanes at 22 goals, all of whom played in the PCO. In addition, the tournament included the San Mateo team, which was somewhat of an outlier at only 12 goals.

Besides augmenting the player pool, the tournament planners in anticipation of significant public interest in the games decided to increase the seating capacity at the picturesque Midwick stadium by expanding its length and by adding stands along one end of the field behind the goal posts.

Initially, the Argentines were to play San Mateo but the latter squad forfeited outright as they most likely did not care to play in a match in which they could easily be overwhelmed, according to Horace Laffaye in his book Polo in Argentina. Consequently, the first game was between Midwick and Cypress Point with the home team winning, 10- 7. In the second game, Santa Paula bested Rancho San Carlos, 10-5. The third game saw Midwick squeak by the Hurricanes, 11-10. Thus, the stage was set for the final match between Santa Paula and Midwick.

And what a final game it was! The Santa Paula foursome of Alfredo Harrington, Juan Reynal, José Reynal and Manuel Andrada took on a powerful Midwick team comprised of Neil McCarthy, Elmer Boeseke Jr., Eric Pedley and Carlton Burke. Rounding out the well-known players on the field was a complement of equally well-known officials: White and Balding as umpires, assisted by none other than Louis E. Stoddard, the chairman of the USPA as the referee!

The match was tightly contested and according to White, writing in The Sportsman (May 1930): “The game was finally won by the Argentine team 8 to 7, but it was not decided until the final bell rang.”

Indeed that was the case. Santa Paula had a commanding lead during most of the game. At the end of the sixth chukker, they were ahead 7-3. Midwick though bounced back scoring two goals in each of the final two periods, while the Argentines were only able to put one more point on the scoreboard in the final chukker. Thus, in the closing moments of the game, the score stood at 8-7.

As The New York Times reported, “[The Argentines] frustrated every [Midwick] attempt to score but in their anxiety to defend the goal, fouled Boeseke. Boeseke’s free shot went six inches wide of the goal and the game ended.” Ironically, had there been an MVP award, it might well have gone to the vanquished team’s Elmer Boeseke who racked up an impressive six goals.

Argentine gauchos are shown giving a tango demonstration and lessons to a bevy of UCLA “flappers,” while their polo patrons and compatriots cheer them on!

White attributed around 65% of the visitors’ victory to their superior ponies and around 35% to

the players’ individual skills and their collective teamwork. In the March issue of Polo, the magazine’s publisher, Martin J. Quigley elaborated on this last point: “The outstanding feature of this Argentine aggregation’s game is the adroit and dependable team play it has achieved. Time after time, they came down the field in perfect combination with two players, and frequently three players, in position to have a shot at the ball. With almost magical certainty an Argentine player appeared when and where he was wanted.”

One unusual incident in the game occurred that is well worth highlighting as it was such an extraordinary demonstration of skill and courage as well as an amazing acrobatic act! Quigley explained, “In this play, the Argentine [Andrada], riding at top speed, overtook an opponent who was carrying the ball straight in a line for the Argentine goal. Apparently with no other stroke possible, Andrada took a savage under-belly shot, knocking the ball safely towards the boards but at the same time upsetting his pony. The rider catapulted a great distance beyond the fallen mount, rolled head over heels many times, and finally taking one grand leap into the air, landed on his feet. This seemingly imperishable player, after obtaining a fresh mount, was back in the game in a few minutes.”

Excitement for the Pacific Coast Open series was so tremendous that the matches brought out record crowds to Midwick. For the final match alone, 15,000 spectators attended. London’s The Polo Monthly (March 1930) also noted that at this game, hundreds had to stand and many hundreds more were turned away. The gate was said to be almost double than any previous day in the history of the club. Commentators universally concurred that these were the largest gatherings for a series of polo matches in the United States other than the Internationals held at Meadow Brook on Long Island. The terrific turnout at Midwick was quite a testimony to the games’ drawing power.

Manuel Andrada with his son, Manuel Hector “Bebe,” who served as the team’s mascot and attended all the games. When his father would get close to the ball, Bebe would shout from the stands: “Get to it, papa, get to it!” Bebe would go on to become an accomplished player in his own right but never was able to quite equal the successes of his father.

The championship competition did not mark the end of the Argentines’ West Coast visit but rather only the beginning of it. Over the next several weeks, the Santa Paula team went on to play a series of high-goal exhibition matches against a variety of competitors at Midwick, Santa Barbara, Del Monte and San Mateo. In total, the Argentines played 13 games over the course of their entire California stay and won all of them.

Interestingly, the “fifth man” of the Argentine team, Carlos Uranga, actually played a fair amount of polo during the California tour. In total, he participated in five exhibition matches: three times as a member of other teams and twice as a member of the Argentine team. However, only once did he play directly against his compatriots.

The press’ assessment of the games was glowing with such comments as: “The whole series has been acclaimed as one of California’s outstanding seasons of high-goal polo” and “[It] produced some of the finest polo ever seen in California.”

As a result of their stellar performance in California, the Argentines were invited by Stoddard to play at Meadow Brook in the fall after the Westchester Cup tournament in September. Initially, the visitors accepted but indicated they would return home in the interim to relax and to recuperate. Later on, they wisely decided to defer the trip until 1931 when they could compete in the U.S. Open Championship.

Shortly after leaving Los Angeles for the brief stopover in New York, half of the Argentine ponies were sold at auction of which seven were purchased by the USPA as part of their defense preparation for the upcoming Westchester Cup matches. The rest of the string remained at a ranch in the area under the oversight of Thomas Nelson with the intention to bring them east the following year to play in the Open. The plan did in fact materialize in 1931. Given the long transcontinental trip, the Argentines agreed to pause along the way and play some exhibition matches in Chicago and Detroit before reaching their final destination of Westbury, New York.

Finally, it should be noted, that since the Argentines were the toast of the town in greater LA and elsewhere in California that winter of 1930, their activities extended far beyond the polo fields. They were feted at a number of lunches and dinners, including it is believed at least one or more formal black-tie affairs. Hollywood opened its gates to welcome them and memorialized their visit for posterity with several wonderful and carefully staged photographs. Tout le monde, it seemed wanted to meet “The Four Horsemen of the Pampas,” as the local press dubbed them. Among the constellation of celebrities, movie studio moguls and cinema stars were Lady Edwina Mountbatten, Charles Lindbergh, Douglas Fairbanks, Will Rogers and Charlie Chaplin, not to mention fellow poloists Lindsey Howard and Hal Roach.

Even the gauchos got caught up in the frenzy by giving a tango demonstration and lessons to a bevy of UCLA “flappers,” while their polo player patrons and fellow countrymen cheered them on.

So great was the fame of the Argentine players that even such notables as Charles Lindbergh came out to see them play. Lindbergh is pictured at one of the exhibition matches in Del Monte along with Cheever Cowdin.