Sarasota Polo Club names new director

A polo management veteran with 50 years experience in the field, who has held jobs spanning from Illinois to Connecticut, is coming to East County.

According to a June 11 release from Schroder-Manatee Ranch Inc., Tom Hughes will serve as the new director of operations for the Sarasota Polo Club at Lakewood Ranch.

He has done it all in terms of the mallet-swinging, horseback-riding sport. 

Hughes started playing polo competitively in 1966, and played in the United States Polo Association (USPA) for 10 years. Hughes later managed polo tournaments, and served on the USPA's Rules, Handicap and Umpire committees.

He will also continue to manage the USPA Professional Umpire Program through July.

To SMR President and CEO Rex Jensen, Hughes will help generate more excitement for the local polo club.

"(Tom's) vast and varied experience in all aspects of the game, and his ability to attract new plays, will help elevate the Sarasota Polo Club to be one of the best in the country," Jensen said in a previously-released statement.

Contact Amanda Sebastiano at [email protected].