Wellington The Magazine – June 2016 Years Of Hard Work Paying Off For Teen Polo Player Riley Ganzi
Story and Photos by Julie Unger
Polo is a family sport; a legacy of sorts. But for young Riley Ganzi, it’s more than that. It is her life.
Ganzi plays polo along with her parents, Grand Champions Polo Club owners Marc and Melissa Ganzi, and brother Grant, as well as many other top players and up-and-coming competitors in the polo community. She works hard, and it has been paying off.
For this upcoming season, Ganzi’s polo handicap was moved up to zero, or “A.” Handicap ratings start at the beginner level of -2 and go up to the coveted 10-goal ranking. Most players, according to the United States Polo Association, never advance above 1. Still in her teen years, Ganzi is already far ahead of the curve.
“I was so excited. I was shocked when my parents told me. They were so proud,” she said. “It’s really cool to be working hard all season and finally see not only improvements in the way you’ve been playing and what people are telling you, but to actually be moved up rating-wise.”
Ganzi’s love for horses started at a young age and hit critical mass on a very special birthday.
“I’ve always loved horses, and when I first saw minis, obviously as a little girl, I fell in love with them,” she said. “For my seventh birthday, I got my first mini, and that was Baby Berry Blast.”
Ganzi showed her minis, taking them to horse shows, entering them into contests and dressing them up in costumes. “It made me want to come to the barn every day,” she recalled. “When I was done riding, I’d always play with them.”
The minis helped make her childhood special and were always a hit with her friends. They also help boost her morale. “And still, whenever I’m sad, I’ll come see them,” she said.
But Ganzi has many things to be happy about. She has continued playing in Polo Training Foundation junior polo tournaments and competing in interscholastic arena tournaments, learning every step of the way.
“That was actually my favorite thing that I’ve played in all year because we succeeded here in Florida,” she said. “My team was the best girls team for interscholastics in Florida. We advanced to the regionals in Maryland.”
She also enjoyed it as a bonding experience.
“I played with Rachel Kelly and Alyssa Tranchilla,” she said. “We’ve never gotten to play with each other on the same team, but we had competed against each other all season. It was really cool to play with two other girls my age. Even though we lost, we really fought for it the whole time. It was an amazing weekend.”
Ganzi is not discouraged and hopes to advance to nationals this year.
In March, Ganzi competed in the Great Futures Celebrity Match at Grand Champions to benefit the Neil S. Hirsch Family Boys & Girls Club in Wellington. The youngest competitor at only 16, Ganzi was named Most Valuable Player, playing on Team Grand Champions with John Walsh, Nacho Figueras and Stewart Armstrong.
Also playing in the event were stars such as Joe DiMenna, Martin Pepa, Juan Bollini, Annabelle Gundlach, Leo Mandelbaum, Malcolm Borwick and Brandon Phillips.
“It was a little intimidating at first because I saw the roster, and I saw that I was the only teenager playing,” Ganzi said. “I was playing with all of these adults who I had watched play my whole life and who I looked up to. I got to play alongside them and really work with them and get advice from them throughout the game. It was something I had always dreamed of doing.”
With the Boys & Girls Club kids in the audience cheering everyone on, it was a special tournament for Ganzi. After the awards, they besieged the players for autographs. “It made me feel like a celebrity,” she said.
As 2016 continues, Ganzi looks forward to seeing progress with her skills. “I’d like to play with my brother more,” she said. “We’ve been playing together more than we ever have.”
Her mother’s accomplishments also give Ganzi something more to strive for.
“My mom has achieved so much, and here I am a little girl, and I have so much to achieve,” she said. “It’s really cool; I can see what she’s done and try to go after that as well.”
Traditionally, polo has been a male-dominated sport, but that isn’t stopping Ganzi.
“At no time do I think that should hold any girls back from going for it and signing up for any tournament, even if they’re going to be the only girl. Don’t let gender in a sport hold you back,” she said. “If you really love it, it’s about the sport and it’s between you and the horse — yes, the other teammates as well — but if you love the sport, it doesn’t matter. No one is thinking about the fact that I’m a girl or I’m surrounded by all guys. It’s just a bunch of people who love the sport and love the horses and are having fun going for the ball.”
Part of the polo family, for Ganzi, includes the boots she wears.
“As you can see, they’re definitely not new boots, or look very well-polished. Don’t let that fool you; they’re well cared for and very comfortable,” she said. “They were first Juancito’s, Juan Bollini’s son. Juan got them for him in Argentina. Once he grew out of them, he gave them to Grant, his best friend. Then Grant gave them to Juancito’s little brother, we call him Tato, Santos Bollini. Once Tato grew out of them, they were mine, finally, because I’ve heard so much about them and how they’re the greatest boots.”
Ganzi is growing out of the boots now, and will soon have to find new boots and someone to pass hers on to. “It’s a ‘Sisterhood of the Traveling Boots’ sort of thing,” she joked.
The boots are a symbol; part of the game and the community surrounding the sport. “Polo combines everything I love,” Ganzi said. “It has horses. It’s a team sport, which I think is very important because I love playing sports with other people. It’s very social. It’s also very competitive and intense. In a game, you can’t be thinking of anything except polo and giving it your all.”
