40 SIDELINES JUNE 2014
FORHORSEPEOPLE • ABOUTHORSEPEOPLE
By LaurenR. Giannini
Max Langlois figures he was born into the sport of polo. His
father hasplayed thegame for 30yearsandMaxstartedwhenhe
was 8. Hemight have started sooner, but a bad fall when hewas
6 put him off riding for a while. Fortunately, Max couldn’t resist
the magnetic pull of horses, riders armed with mallets, and the
excitement of galloping full-tilt boogie after a relatively small ball
onagrass expanse bigger than nine football fields.
Just finishing up his freshman year at Southern Methodist
University (SMU) inDallas, Texas, Max has a head for business,
financeandeconomics, but hasn’t chosenanacademicmajor yet.
In sports, hemajors in polo and is currently rated 1 on grass and
unrated in arena. He rides onSMU’s polo team, which competes
in the United States Polo Association (USPA) Intercollegiate
circuit. TomGoodspeed, his college coach, has been a factor in
Max’s life for as long as he can remember. “Tom taught me how
to play when I first got started,” Max said. “He was manager at
MashomackPoloClub inBedford, NewYork, for about six years,
wheremy father and I play. I’ve learned a lot from him.”
Tom has been reminding Max to correct his position. During
Team USPA tryouts last February in Florida, former 10-goaler
Owen Rinehart also critiqued Max’s position. “Yeah, it was one
of mymemorablemoments,” Max said. “Owen toldmemy riding
was off, that I was too far back in the saddleandhedid yell atme
a couple of times. Youdefinitelywant to improve after that!”
MaxalsocitedGastonLisioli, a6-goal professional, for inspiring
him to push himself and become a better rider and player. “After
seeing what he could do on the field, I was really blown away,”
Max said. “Gaston was my dad’s professional for four years
and he taught me a lot about the game and horses when I was
between the ages of 12 and 16. He really got me hooked on the
sport. His lessonwas hitting the ball as far as you can, extending
your armandbringing themallet fromwayup. It’sprobablyoneof
the best aspects of my game.”
But perhapsMax’s greatest influence has been his own father,
Don Langlois. “He’s a talented patron, reaching two goals and
staying there for about 20 years,”Max said. “Healso letsmeplay
Bibi, who is his horse really, but my best mare – we bought her
fromGaston.She’sstill youngand improveseveryyear.Mymother
and father have been very supportive. I have seven horses. We
got someof them fromPolitoPieres inArgentina. Heused toplay
myRosa and Zorra backwhen hewasmy age and coming up in
the sport. Rosa is fast, handy and can bump anything shewants.
Zorra is one of themost athletic horses in the barn. This summer
I’mgoing to take twohorsesoff the trackandmake them intopolo
ponies. Hopefully, one of the two will work out and make me a
better player on the field.”
Practice is important, but actually playing polo is the key to
improvement, because developing quick reflexes and automatic
responses under pressure canmean the difference between win
and lose. “Two years ago, I was playing an 8-goal tournament up
in New York with my father, Bautista Crotto, and Bruce Colley,”
said Max. “There was a foul called against the opposing team
and we were given a penalty four, the longest defended penalty
shot from 60 yards out – the other team can try to stop if from
going in. I was elected to hit the shot, the first time I had ever hit
a penalty four in a game. I hit it perfectly and the ball soared over
the heads of the opposition and right through the goal posts. The
spectators cheered. Thatmoment reallywas a turningpoint inmy
confidence.”
Like every member of Team USPA, Max is totally committed
to polo and his primary goal is to play as a professional or as
a patron. “It all depends on how well I’m playing when I get out
of college, what my rating is, how goodmy horses are and from
there I’ll decide,” Max said. “Right now I feel I have the potential
to be a professional, but it’s a tough road and a hard decision to
make. I love polo. I could be an announcer, an umpire or even a
topamateur player – I just want to have polo inmy life.”
About TeamUSPA: In 2010, theUnitedStatePoloAssociation
developed Team USPA, a program designed to remedy the
decline of young Americans in the sport of polo by providing
exceptional players, 18-23, male and female, from across the
USA with unique training, mentoring and playing opportunities.
Formore information, visit
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Polo
MaxLanglois–ABornPoloPlayer
Max, a 2014TeamUSPAmember, in action
Photos byKayleeScherbinski
Max Langlois
