7-Goaler Santi Torres Is Always Working And Training ToBecome A Better Polo Player

7-Goaler Santi Torres Is Always Working And Training ToBecome A Better Polo Player

For polo player Santiago “Santi” Torres, the sport and the culture of polo were part of his upbringing and made him who he is today. Everyone in his immediate family rode and played the “sport of kings” at some point in their lives, and polo continues to be the lifestyle Torres chooses to lead.

“I grew up in the sport. Both my parents played. So, I was born right into it. My big brother plays. I started from there,” Torres recalled.

Torres was born in Santa Barbara, Calif., where he would go to school for half of the year, and then he spent the other half in Palm Springs, Calif.

After playing for the Valiente team last year, Torres is a free agent this season, but returned to Wellington for the winter with his horses to train and seek out new opportunities. “I’m still young. These past few years have been great,” Torres said, before adding that this season has not gone as smoothly as he hoped. “In anyone’s life, there will be ups and downs to go through, so I’m trying not to freak out about it.”

But even when he is not playing on the high-goal teams, he still keeps to his regimen. “Even if I don’t have anything, I still have to work and try my hardest to get the next opportunity,” he said.

The 2017 season did bring some unexpected opportunities outside of the high-goal tournaments.

As a Team USPA member, Torres played on a USPA-sponsored team at the $50,000 National 12-Goal Tournament staged at the Grand Champions Polo Club in March. Team USPA is a United States Polo Association program designed to enhance and grow the sport by identifying young, talented American polo players and providing mentored training and playing opportunities.

Torres also is involved in the new Gladiator Polo program, which has been highly recognized in the local polo community and across the country. He plays on Team Crixus with Matias Magrini and Mike Azzaro in the new arena polo league.

“Luckily, Gladiator Polo started, and luckily I have this $50K [tournament] to play in. I was hoping to get more opportunities, but I haven’t yet,” he said.

Currently swinging his mallet at a 7-goal handicap, Torres has been playing professionally since he was 10 years old. His love for the game and his ability started with and are centered on family. His parents never wavered, Torres said, as he grew up, always showing enthusiasm and dedication for the game.

“That’s what I grew up around, and there was never a doubt that is what I wanted to do,” Torres said. “All the kids who are born into polo, if their parents play, they always bring them on the horse with them or buy a little horse for them to have fun with and start learning to ride.”

That is how it started for him. His parents, Kelita and Miguel Torres, were riders and played polo. “My parents would ride all day, every day. My dad would ride more. He would ride 10 to 15 horses a day. That’s what he knew how to do, and that’s what he liked,” Torres said. “That was his passion.”

Torres’ father put both of his children up on horses early and often. “He saw that we liked it, and I would be riding every day,” Torres said. “It was just something that everyone enjoyed.”

Their love for the game quickly translated into Santi’s life as it had for his older brother, Miguel, who plays professionally based in Houston, Texas.

“When were younger, we played together,” Torres said.

Growing up as an athlete, Torres said his parents were always dedicated to him and his drive to get better and better as a polo player. “They didn’t take polo away from me ever. They knew I wanted to do that,” he said. “I would just be thinking about getting out of school and going to the barn.”

As there are obstacles to face during a match, there are obstacles that people face in their personal lives, and the Torres family faced one when Miguel Sr. lost his battle with brain cancer in 2007.

Riding through adversity, Torres continued to hone his craft as a player during this time. He and his mother and brother are together during the winter season in Wellington every year.

“It has gotten a lot better these past couple of years,” he said. “We always help each other and are there for each other.”

Some years, like this one, returning to Wellington is more of an act of faith.

“It’s like an investment coming out here with horses, feeding them, laying them up and getting them ready for if an opportunity comes up, instead of having something secure for a season,” Torres said.

He continues to work hard every day so that he can continue to perform at a high level of play.

“I’m just taking the season one week at a time, you can’t stop working, or let it get to you, and you can’t stop trying,” Torres said. “I wake up, go to the barn. Lately, I’ve been working more at the barn, exercising horses, taking care of them, playing practices around Wellington with everybody, getting the horses fit for any new opportunities.”

With some extra time, Torres finds contentment in the areas he can improve off the field. “I’m trying to be better as a person at communicating with people, just in general and in the sport, and trying to be a bigger person,” Torres said. “I’m really hard on myself. Even if someone doesn’t get mad at me, I’m going to get mad at myself for not playing good one day or messing up.”

As the season in Wellington winds down, Torres has much to look forward to. The summer greets him with an opportunity to play in Sheridan, Wyo., where he will continue to gain more experience as a professional rider.

“I have a job for the summer, so I’m happy about that,” Torres said. “Anyone who doesn’t have a job is obviously going to worry about it because they have their life to take care of and their animals to feed.”

Torres finds strength in himself when he plays the game, and he also loves his surroundings off the field.

“I always try to give my best and play the hardest I can for the team and for myself,” he said. “You need to let people see that this is what you want. Even in the down times, you’re working on it. Just being there, waking up, going to the barn, being with the horses, seeing the horses, and seeing the people there who work for you and the horses.”

 

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