Wellington, FL - April 10, 2018 - Action continued at the International Polo Club in Wellington this weekend with two matches for the U.S. Open Polo Championship®.The weekend marked the debut of Flexjet and Valiente, finalists of the USPA Gold Cup® - the second most important tournament of the season. Melissa Ganzi’s Flexjet played on Saturday, taking a comfortable 9-4 victory over Colorado. Towards the end of the match, Alejandro Novillo Astrada stepped in for an injured Rodrigo Andrade.
Valiente and U.S. Polo Assn. headlined the first Sunday match of the tournament. Grant Ganzi’s team put up a good fight in the first half. The match was tied 4-all by halftime, but Valiente pulled ahead in the fourth and fifth chukkers and were able to claim another win. The Valiente team remains undefeated so far this season.
Tommy Beresford (Valiente) & Grant Ganzi (U.S. Polo Assn.)
The detail on the matches was as follows:
VALIENTE vs U.S. POLO ASSN. 9-6
Valiente: Bob Jornayvaz 2, Tommy Beresford 4 (3 goals), Facundo Pieres 10 (4), Adolfo Cambiaso 10 (2). Total: 26.
U.S. Polo Assn.: Grant Ganzi 2 (2 goals), Juancito Bollini 4, Alejandro Novillo Astrada 8, Juan Martín Nero 10 (4). Total: 24.
Score Valiente: 2-2, 3-2, 4-4, 6-4, 8-5, 9-6.
Best Playing Pony: Pecorina, played by Facundo Pieres and owned by Curtis Pilot.
Most Valuable Player: Tommy Beresford
Valiente takes home the first win in the 2018 U.S. Open Polo Championship® Sunday match
Saturday: FLEXJET vs COLORADO 9-4
Flexjet: Melissa Ganzi A, Nico Pieres 8 (4 goals), Gonzalito Pieres 9 (5), Rodrigo Andrade 9 (Replaced by Alejandro Novillo Astrada 8). Total: 26.
Colorado: Rob Jornayvaz 1 (1 goal), Magoo Laprida 8, Juan Britos 7 (1), Diego Cavanagh 9 (2). Total: 25.
Score Flexjet: 1-0, 2-1, 3-4, 5-4, 7-4, 9-4.
The tournament continues this week with the following games at IPC:
Wednesday -
10:30am on field 4: Daily Racing Form vs. Flexjet
1:00pm on field 3: Audi vs. Valiente
Sunday -
12:00pm: Quarterfinal I
3:00pm: Quarterfinal II
Flexjet beat Colorado 9-4 in Saturday's U.S. Open Polo Championship® game.
About U.S. Open Polo Championship®
Considered to be the most prestigious polo tournament in the United States, the U.S. Open is the apex of the 26-goal tournaments held during the Florida high-goal winter polo season.
After the inaugural U.S. Open in 1904, the tournament was not played again until 1910. In 2004, marking one hundred years since the tournament’s inception, the U.S. Open relocated to the International Polo Club Palm Beach, where it has been held ever since.
About the International Polo Club Palm Beach
The International Polo Club Palm Beach (IPC) is the premier polo destination in the world, hosting the largest field of high-goal teams and the most prestigious polo tournaments in the United States. Polo enthusiasts descend upon Wellington, FL each winter season to enjoy their love of the sport at the most prominent polo facility in the country. The 2018 Palm Beach Polo Season opens Sunday, December 31, and concludes 17 weeks later with the USPA 114th U.S. Open Polo Championship® Final on Sunday, April 22. Polo matches are open to the public, with a wide range of hospitality and guest seating that includes elegant grandstand viewing, field tailgating, stadium seating, field-side champagne brunch at The Pavilion, and exclusive sponsor boxes. See more at www.internationalpoloclub.
"Polo Club du Domaine de Chantilly" 
Rabii Benadada
