104 SIDELINES FEBRUARY 2014
FOR HORSE PEOPLE • ABOUT HORSE PEOPLE
By Lauren R. Giannini
John Gobin was 14 when polo inspired him with impassioned
focus to excel, setting the tone for the rest of his life. He became
a professional polo player, contributing to historical USA and
international victories. He achieved the distinction of a 7-goal
rating (10 is the highest). In 2007 he became general manager
of Great Meadow Polo in The Plains, Virginia. His assets include
diehard work ethics, enthusiasm, professionalism, sportsmanship
and a lifelong love for horses and the game.
“John has taken the best of Twilight Polo and made it better,”
said Rob Banner, president of the Great Meadow Foundation. “He
brought solid family values and sporting values to the job and has
made the game far more professional and far safer. Great Meadow
Twilight Polo [Saturday evenings, May through September] is a
star event on the US Polo Association calendar.”
If you ask John, polo isn’t just a job: it’s a way of life. Yet, it
wasn’t the easiest transition when he went from being a full-time
professional player to promoting and growing the game at Great
Meadow. He just did what he has always done: he gives polo
everything he has, and then some. He plays as often as possible,
but his rating slipped to four, not bad when you consider how busy
he stays during the Great Meadow Polo season.
“As a player you’re trying to win tournaments, get your handicap
as high as it can go, trying to get the best horses possible,” he
explained. “As a manager, you’re selling polo, attracting people to
get involved as spectators and as student players. When you’re a
pro, it’s all about you. As manager, you’re responsible for seeing
that the sport grows, that people enjoy polo and want to learn the
sport so that Great Meadow Polo becomes part of the community.”
John’s passion for polo dates back to when he was a working
class kid wanting pocket money. He had never ridden, but he
went to a barn near where his family lived and was hired to muck
stalls. “A couple weeks after I started, they needed a player for
the kids’ team and invited me to start playing with the local kids
e
Polo
Somebunny is funny! John scored the winning goal during an
Easter Sunday tournament in Palm Beach.
Photo by Nate Dailey
who stabled their horses there. That’s when I started riding,” he
recalled. “I caught on pretty quick. Within six months to a year, I
was in the arena. I’d be in deep trouble if I didn’t find polo and the
horses.”
At 17 John went to Argentina for two years to work on a polo
farm where he trained green horses, worked cows, whatever they
needed doing. That’s where he started playing grass polo. After
his return he played as much as possible and was a member of
the Budweiser team that won the World Cup, which launched his
professional playing career. In 1992, at only 23, John not only
played on the U.S. team that defeated England for the prestigious
Westchester Cup, he scored the winning goal in double-overtime.
“That was a serious high point in my career – I think I was rated
four goals,” he said. “I won Most Valuable Young Player. A lot of
the kids who were getting to play and winning were all wealthy
kids so I was quite honored to go in there and do what I did.”
Mentors included Jimmy Bachman, Ricky Bostwick, Adam
Lindeman, Bill Ylvisaker and Chris Knowles. “Chris from
Massachusetts was a huge influence. He was my first coach and
got me started,” John said. “Chris taught me everything: how to
ride, how to play, how to care for the horses. He emphasized
that the horses always come first, that without good horses, you’ll
never be a good player. He was an amazing horseman.”
John Gobin – A Real Team Player
John, the manager of Great Meadow Polo, with Whitney Ross,
the Great Meadow Polo School manager.
Photo by Lauren R. Giannini
