Mariano Aguerre, (born May 25, 1969 in Buenos Aires) is a professional

polo Polo is a ball game played on horseback, a traditional field sport and one of the world's oldest known team sports. The game is played by two opposing teams with the objective of scoring using a long-handled wooden mallet to hit a small hard ...

player in

Argentina Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, th ...

and the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

. He achieved a

10-goal A polo handicap is a system created by Henry Lloyd Herbert, the first president of the United States Polo Association, at the founding of the USPA in 1890 so teams could be more evenly matched when using players with varying abilities. The players ...

handicap in the

in 1994 and in

in 1998. He is currently rated at 9 goals in both countries. He is a nine-time winner of the

Argentine Open The Argentine Open or Abierto de la República or Abierto de Argentina is one of the oldest national golf open championships. First played in 1905, when it was called the Open Championship of the River Plate, it has featured numerous notable winn ...

at Palermo, winning with three different teams: Ellerstina, Chapa I and

La Dolfina La Dolfina (currently named La Dolfina Sancor Seguros due to sponsorship reasons) is an Argentine polo team, founded by Adolfo Cambiaso and Bartolomé Castagnola in 2000, based in the city of Cañuelas, Buenos Aires Province. La Dolfina won th ...

. The

Museum of Polo and Hall of Fame The Museum of Polo and Hall of Fame is a 501(c)(3), non-profit organization to celebrate the sport of polo.Horace Laffaye, Dennis J. Amato, ''Polo in the United States: A History'', Jefferson, N.C.: McFarland & Company, 2011, p. 28/ref> Overview It ...

announced that Mariano was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2017.

Biography

Career

U.S.

Adolfo Cambiaso Adolfo Cambiaso (born 15 April 1975) is an Argentine professional polo player with a 10-goal handicap rating. Early years From an early age his mother, Martina de Estrada Lainez, encouraged her son Adolfo and his half brothers to play polo.

, Mariano was trained by

Gonzalo Pieres, Sr Gonzalo may refer to: * Gonzalo (name) * Gonzalo, Dominican Republic, a small town * Isla Gonzalo, a subantarctic island operated by the Chilean Navy * Hurricane Gonzalo, 2014 See also * Gonzalez (disambiguation) * Gonzales (disambiguation) * ...

. His international career as a professional player began when he won the USPA Gold Cup with the White Birch Team in 1987 with Gonzalo, Alfonso Pieres and

Peter Brant Peter Mark Brant Sr. (born March 1, 1947) is an American industrialist, as well as a magazine publisher, film producer, and art collector. He is married to model Stephanie Seymour. Early life and education Brant was raised in Jamaica Estates, ...

. According to Horace A. Laffaye's book "Polo in Argentina," Gonzalo told the author at the time, "that kid is going to be a 10-goal player." Seven more USPA Gold Cups followed, as did other important wins including the “US Triple Crown” in 2005. Mariano achieved 10-goal handicap in the U.S. in 1994. He has won some of the most prestigious U.S. tournaments multiple times, including the C.V. Whitney (6 times), and the U.S. Open (2 times). In 2006 he was named “Best Mounted Player” in Palm Beach. Mariano has played with White Birch team owner Peter Brant since 1987 and the team has won more titles than any other U.S. professional polo team. In 2016 Mariano competed with White Birch in three 26-goal tournaments at the International Polo Club in Wellington, Florida and played the summer polo season at

Greenwich Polo Club Greenwich Polo Club is a polo club and event venue in Greenwich, Connecticut that was established in 1981. It is one of only three polo venues in the United States offering high-goal polo (20 goals or above). The club hosts high goal polo matches ...

Greenwich, CT Greenwich (, ) is a New England town, town in southwestern Fairfield County, Connecticut, United States. At the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census, the town had a total population of 63,518. The largest town on Connecticut's Gold Coast (Conne ...

where the White Birch team is based, winning the 2016 Monty Waterbury Cup, Butler Handicap and East Coast Open. It was announced that in 2017 Mariano was inducted into the

for his long and illustrious career in American polo. He has, according to Team USPA committee Chairman Charles Smith, been an enormous help in mentoring the aspiring young players of the “Team USPA” program.

Argentina

Mariano won the “Argentine Triple Crown” with Ellerstina in 1994 with teammates

, Gonzalo Pieres, Sr. and

Carlos Gracida Carlos Gracida (September 5, 1960 – February 25, 2014) was a Mexican-American polo player. He reached a 10-goal handicap at the age of 25. Biography Gracida was born in Mexico City. As a product of the Gracida polo dynasty, Ca ...

. He is a nine-time winner of the Argentine Open at Palermo, winning with three different teams: Ellerstina, Chapa I, and

. He obtained the “Best Mounted Player Award” in the Argentine Open on three occasions: 2004, 2005 and 2007. In Argentina, in 2012-2013 he was the captain of the Ellerstina team, completing the quartet with his three brothers-in-law: Gonzalito Pieres,

Facundo Pieres Facundo Pieres (born May 19, 1986) Buenos Aires, Buenos Aires Province is a professional Argentine polo player with a 10 goal handicap. As of October 2022, he is ranked number one in the world. Biography Facundo was born into a family of polo ...

and Nico Pieres. Up until the year 2014, he played on Ellerstina as the Titular player. In 2015, he began serving as the team’s coach. He achieved 10-goal handicap in Argentina in 1998.

Horses

Mariano runs Los Machitos with professional polo players, Nick Manifold and Naco Taverna. Los Machitos, based in Argentina, is a breeding and training facility for high-goal polo horses. Mariano’s horse Califa is a 2016 Polo Hall of Fame Inductee. A bay gelding foaled in 1996, Califa was a durable war horse played by Mariano in many memorable contests. Gathering a number of Best Playing Pony awards along the way, Califa ultimately earned the U.S. Open’s Hartman Award for Best Playing Pony for his gritty and intense play for two chukkers under Mariano in 2004. Mariano called on Califa again for the 2005 high-goal season and the gutsy gelding didn’t disappoint; they fought together through numerous crucial games helping their team take all three of the season’s 26-goal tournament victories. Califa was recognized as Horse of the Year in 2006.

Family

Mariano is the son of Martin Aguerre and Estela Martinez. Mariano is married to Tatiana Pieres, daughter of

. He has three daughters, Sophie, Lola and Carmen, and one son, Antonio. His three brothers-in-law, Gonzalito Pieres,

and Nico Pieres, are all professional polo players. Mariano has played with them on Ellerstina and now serves as coach.

References

Sources

Profile at World Polo TourLa DolfinaInterview with Aguerre
{{DEFAULTSORT:Aguerre, Mariano Argentine polo players Sportspeople from Buenos Aires Province 1969 births Living people