The Ylvisaker Cup is played annually as a tribute to William T. “Bill” Ylvisaker, a true pioneer who was responsible for developing the Wellington, Florida, area into the high-goal winter polo capital of the world. Ylvisaker contributed extensively to the sport’s resurgence in the 70s and 80s. Ylvisaker created the Palm Beach Polo and Country Club out of the unwelcoming, wild and forbidding marsh on the edge of the Florida Everglades. Palm Beach Polo Club flourished and the town of Wellington sprung up around it, going on to successfully host not only, polo but numerous other equestrian sports.
Established in 2003, the prestigious tournament has consistently fielded talented rosters of up to 16 teams over the past decade. New Bridge/La Dolfina captured back-to-back wins in 2006 and 2007, the only consecutive wins by one team in the history of the Ylvisaker Cup. Additional contemporary champions include Coca-Cola (2017), Valiente (2018), Dutta Corp (2019), Patagones (2020), Beverly Polo (2021), CK Shack (2022) and Iconica (2023).
The Ylvisaker Cup will serve as the second qualifying leg of four prestigious national tournaments (Joe Barry Memorial, Iglehart Cup, Outback Cup) culminating in the NPC 16-Goal Championship. Qualifiers will be played across multiple clubs, with the championship final hosted on Sunday, April 13 at the National Polo Center – Wellington (NPC). Participating clubs include Port Mayaca Polo Club (Okeechobee, Florida) and the Wellington Polo Tour (WPT) led by Patagones Polo Club (Wellington, Florida) and a series of private fields falling under the WPT umbrella.
