The Argentine season is almost here. The 2025 Triple Crown, made up of the Hurlingham Open, the Tortugas Open and the Argentine Open in Palermo, begins in September with a field of eight teams, and the line-ups tell a fascinating story.
The teams
- La Natividad La Dolfina (40 goals): Adolfo Cambiaso, Poroto Cambiaso, Camilo Castagnola and Bartolomé Castagnola. They are the only team at the maximum handicap.
- La Hache La Irenita (37): Hilario Ulloa, Francisco Elizalde, Pablo Mac Donough and Nachi du Plessis.
- El Overo Z7 UAE (37): Polito Pieres, Lukin Monteverde, Tomás Panelo and Juan Martín Nero.
- Ellerstina (36): Facundo Pieres, Gonzalo Pieres, Antonio Heguy and Cruz Heguy.
- La Ensenada (34): Juano Britos, Sapo Caset, Jerónimo del Carril and Rufino Bensadón.
- Sol de Agosto (32): Benjamín Panelo, Facundo Sola, Paquito de Narváez and Juan Martín Zubía.
- Los Machitos (32): Tortito Ruiz Jorba, Teo Lacau, Diego Cavanagh and Alfredo Bigatti.
- La Hache Cría y Polo (32): Carlos María Ulloa, Joaquín Pittaluga, Bautista Bayugar and Iñaki Laprida.
What stands out
La Natividad La Dolfina are the clear favourites. The merged team brings together the Castagnola brothers with Adolfo and Poroto Cambiaso, and they hold a handicap advantage of three goals over the next best sides. They won the Argentine Open final in December 2024, when La Natividad beat La Dolfina 13-11, so the two sides that were rivals then are now teammates.
Elsewhere, there are changes. La Hache La Irenita pair Hilario Ulloa and Pablo Mac Donough with Francisco Elizalde and Nachi du Plessis. Facundo Pieres leads Ellerstina with the two Heguys, and UAE are strengthened by Polito Pieres and Lukin Monteverde. La Ensenada have three of their four players new to the line-up.
The schedule
As scheduled, the Hurlingham Open runs from 23 September to 4 October, the Tortugas Open from 7 to 25 October, and the Argentine Open from 31 October to 6 December. It is the high point of the Argentine polo calendar.
We will cover all three tournaments closely over the next three months, so make sure you check in every Monday.
Sources: Polo School Argentina, Triple Crown 2025, La Nación, Triple Crown 2025 teams
