86 SIDELINES DECEMBER 2013
FOR HORSE PEOPLE • ABOUT HORSE PEOPLE
By Lauren R. Giannini
For Wesley Finlayson, polo is more than a sport or a game:
it’s an integral element in in his life. “I want to play polo as much
as I can,” the 18-year-old said. “I’m looking forward to being a
professional.”
Over Labor Day weekend, Wes and his Florida Zone 3
teammates – Juancito Bollini, Justin Daniels and Grant Ganzi –
harvested the national championship in the inaugural National
Youth Tournament Series (NYTS), sponsored by the U.S. Polo
Association (USPA) and the National Club Development (NCD).
The finals, hosted by Virginia International Polo Club in Upperville,
Virginia, brought together four regional teams composed of 16
all-stars, who were selected over the course of several months
of qualifiers played across the nation. John Gobin, polo pro and
manager of Great Meadow Polo in The Plains, Virginia, coached
the Florida Zone 3 team to their victory.
“John is a really good coach and helped us to get organized
during the finals,” Wes said. “It was a lot easier for us to play
together after John helped us with our strategy.”
Wes was named the NYTS Most Valuable Player. Earlier this
year, he had earned MVP when the Grand Champions Polo Team
won the National Presidents Cup. His player rating is 2-goals on
grass and 3-goals in arena. He does not hail from a polo dynasty;
in fact, he is the first polo player to emerge from his family, which
boasts four generations of equestrians.
“It was great to win the NYTS tournament – it’s always nice
to win, but even when we lose, I figure there’s always going to
be another polo game,” Wes said. “Being named MVP really
e
Polo
Wesley Finlayson, MVP and
member of the championship
team, Florida Zone 3, at the
inaugural USPA NCD NYTS
national finals at VIPolo,
Upperville, VA.
Photo by Elizabeth A. Hedley - USPA
National Club Development
motivated me – to do my best as a player, to focus on my riding
and on my care of the horses to keep them safe and sound. Most
of the time, it’s how you play them that really matters.”
Wes also admitted readily that he knows how lucky he is to be
able to play polo and that he is always working to improve his
horsemanship and his game. “When I was nine, I was introduced
to polo by a friend, Martin Estrada, a 5-goal player,” recalled
Wes. “Martin said that polo involved horsemanship and riding,
not just hand-eye coordination. I grew up riding, and I wasn’t
really interested in jumping. I started playing kid polo through
the Polo Training Foundation (PTF) and in 2008 our team won a
tournament.”
A major mentor has been 7-goaler Luis Escobar. “Luis taught
me about riding with your legs, being connected with the horse and
staying out of the horse’s mouth,” Wes said. “He really influenced
my horsemanship in terms of the conditioning of the horses and
their physical upbringing. I have some made ponies and some
green horses I’m bringing along right now.”
Wes started off with two polo ponies at nine and added two
more by 11. By the time he was 15, he had a full string of eight
horses. “Right now all my polo ponies are Argentines, although I
do love Thoroughbreds,” Wes said. “My
favorite is a mare called Teta – I got her
from Gringo Columbres – she’s eight or
nine and really smooth, soft and handy.
She’s very easy to play and she’s fast.”
A senior at Benjamin School in
North Palm Beach, Wes, who lives in
Wellington, hopes to combine college
and a major in business management
and finance with a great polo program.
“Hilario Ulloa is a good example of the
kind of player I want to be,” Wes said.
“He’s a relatively young Argentine,
9-goals – a great player and excellent
rider. I want to play as much as possible
as often as possible – at Palm Beach
Polo Club, Grand Champions and the
International Polo Club. In 10 or 20
years, I want to be managing my life
with horses and everything, having my
own organization and I definitely want to
still be playing polo.”
About the writer: Sidelines’ Lauren R. Giannini
is an award-winning “wordsmith” specializing in
stories and photos about the equestrian world.
Crazy about horses her entire life, she lives in the
horse and hunt country of Virginia. Lauren’s motto
is “write, ride - not necessarily in that order!”
Wes and Pompa, owned by J. Levine
Photo Courtesy of Finlayson Family
Wes Finlayson:
Polo Is Part of His Life
