Gaston conquered the St. Regis British Open Polo Championship for the Cowdray Gold Cup — the 70th edition of the British Open — by beating Dubai 9-8 on Sunday, July 19, at Cowdray Park Polo Club, in Midhurst, West Sussex. The winners pulled off something genuinely difficult: lifting this prestigious trophy in what was their first-ever final in the tournament's history.
The outcome carried a special flavour, among the several the match served up: the clash of the Heguy cousins. Cruz, for Gastón, got the better of Antonio, for Dubai. They are the sons of Eduardo "Ruso" and Alberto "Pepe" Heguy, respectively — both former 10-goal handicap players and four-time winners of the Argentine Open with Indios Chapaleufú II. Eduardo, moreover, won this very tournament exactly 30 years ago, in 1996.
Fielding a 21-goal lineup against Dubai's 22, Gaston came out determined to dictate terms from the outset and closed the first chukker 3-0 up on the scoreboard. Dubai, a six-time winner of the title, responded in the second period and stayed on their heels throughout, driven by their two top scorers, Bartolomé Castagnola Jr. and Antonio Heguy. The following chukkers reflected a tight match, with the margin locked at two goals or fewer for much of the way.
The final chukker was the tensest. A goal from Cruz Heguy stretched Gastón's lead to 9-7, but Dubai answered at once through Santos Merlos to close within a single goal, with barely two minutes left to play. From there, Gastón held off their rival's late attempts to secure the 9-8 win. The result left Dubai on the doorstep of a seventh crown. For Gastón, the title came on the team's very first appearance in the tournament. Cruz Heguy was named MVP of the final.
The duel also carried historical resonance. The first edition of the British Open, in 1956, was won by an Argentine lineup, Los Indios, which had among its ranks Antonio Heguy — great-grandfather of Cruz and of the Antonio who defended Dubai's colours this Sunday. Seventy years on, the family's new generation was once again at the heart of the decider of one of the two most prestigious tournaments in English polo, in a continuity the dynasty has sustained unbroken over time.
Gastón lined up with Chile's Jean-Paul Luksic and Argentines Beltrán Laulhé, Gonzalo Ferrari — standing in for the injured David "Pelón" Stirling — and Cruz Heguy. The attacking load was shared evenly between Laulhé, Ferrari and Heguy, while the defensive solidity in the closing minutes proved decisive in protecting the slender lead. Only Laulhé — a 2024 champion with Dubai — knew first-hand the feeling of lifting this trophy.
For Dubai, the playmaking and the goal-scoring fell to Barto Castagnola and Antonio Heguy, who combined for seven goals between them. Patron Tariq Albwardy completed a campaign in which the team reached the final unbeaten, after getting past Ferne Park in the semifinals.
With this title, Gastón etches its name for the first time onto the roll of honour of a tournament that gathers the world's leading polo players every season. For the Heguy family, the trophy confirms that the generational handover is already under way: the same surnames that wrote the tournament's history 70 years ago are once again signing its most recent pages.
GASTON: Jean-Paul Luksic 0, Beltrán Laulhé 7, Gonzalo Ferrari 7, Cruz Heguy 7 (3). Total: 21.
DUBAI: Tariq Albwardy 0, Santos Merlos 6, Antonio Heguy 7, Bartolomé Castagnola Jr. 9. Total: 22.
Score Gaston: 3-0, 4-2, 6-4, 8-6, 9-7, 9-8.
Umpires: Jason Dixon and Henry Fisher. Third man: Tim Bown.
MVP: Cruz Heguy.
Best Playing Pony (BPP): Alberta Yarará, ridden by Bartolomé Castagnola Jr.
Best Playing Pony, Patron: Vasca Sé Buena, ridden by Jean-Paul Luksic.
