The Harriott, Pieres, and Heguy Dynasties: Polo's Great Families

In the town of Coronel Suárez, a provincial Argentine settlement 600 kilometres southwest of Buenos Aires, something remarkable happened in the 20th century. The pampas grasslands of the Buenos Aires province — flat, vast, ideal for horses — became the cradle of the most concentrated dynasty of sporting excellence in any team sport anywhere in the world.

Three families — the Harriotts, the Pieres, and the Heguys — have between them produced more world-class polo players, more Argentine Open winners, and more 10-[goal](/glossary/goal) [handicap](/glossary/handicap) holders than any other polo community in history. Their story tells us something profound about how excellence transmits across generations.

The Harriott Dynasty — Polo's First Family

The Harriott family's association with Argentine polo begins with **Alfredo Harriott** (1913–1994), who established himself as one of the great 10-goal players of the 1940s and 1950s. But Alfredo was more than a player — he was an architect. He understood horse breeding, team construction, and the systematic development of talent within a family structure.

His son **Juan Carlos "Juancito" Harriott Jr.** (born 1946) carried the dynasty forward with nine Argentine Open victories — a record that stood until Cambiaso surpassed it. Juancito Harriott is widely considered the finest tactical player in Argentine polo history, a player whose reading of the game was extraordinary even by the standards of his era.

The Harriott name continues into the third and fourth generations. The family's ranch system — horses bred on the same pampas land across multiple generations — has produced polo ponies that have won the Argentine Open. Horse and human excellence have been pursued in parallel, which is the key to what makes a polo dynasty sustainable.

The Pieres Dynasty — The Modern Continuation

If the Harriotts dominated the mid-20th century, the Pieres family has been Argentine polo's defining force from the 1970s to the present day.

**Gonzalo "Gonzo" Pieres Sr** (born 1956) was a multiple Argentine Open champion and one of the most physically powerful players of his generation. His presence in a team changed the competitive dynamic — he brought intensity and force that complemented the more technical players around him.

But the dynasty's true flowering has come in the generation of Gonzo's sons: **Facundo Pieres** and **Gonzalo "Gonzo" Pieres Jr.** — both 10-goal players who have won Argentine Opens, US Opens, and Gold Cups. Facundo in particular has been considered among the world's top 3 players for much of the 2010s and 2020s.

**Ellerstina** — the Pieres family team — has been La Dolfina's primary rival in the Argentine Triple Crown for two decades. The Cambiaso vs Pieres rivalry has driven the Argentine Open to heights of competitive drama that have produced some of the sport's greatest matches.

The Pieres family's approach to polo production is systematic. Young members of the extended family are introduced to polo from earliest childhood. Horses are bred with specific polo genetics in mind. Professional coaching is provided at every level. The result is a production system that generates 10-goal talent with remarkable consistency.

The Heguy Dynasty — Coronel Suárez's Second Family

The Heguy family has shared Coronel Suárez's polo dominance with the Harriotts and Pieres across multiple generations. The founding figure was **Alberto "Pepe" Heguy** (born 1930s), who established the family's 10-goal tradition.

The dynasty's most celebrated members include **Horacio Heguy** and **Ignacio Heguy**, who competed at the highest level through the 1980s and 1990s, and the next generation of Heguy cousins and nephews who continue to play high-goal polo today.

The Heguys' playing style has typically been characterised by physicality and high tempo — a team approach that prioritises pace and pressure over the more technical, visionary style of the Pieres and Cambiaso. The contrast in styles between Coronel Suárez's three dynasties has produced rich competitive variety at the highest level.

Why Coronel Suárez? The Pampas Factor

The concentration of polo excellence in Coronel Suárez is not coincidental. The flat pampas terrain, the agricultural economy that has supported large horse operations across generations, the absence of alternative elite sports to attract athletic youth, and the community reinforcement — where polo excellence is the highest social currency — have combined to create conditions almost impossible to replicate.

The three dynasties have also competed with and against each other for a century, creating a competitive ecosystem that has raised standards continuously. The Harriotts pushed the Heguys; the Heguys competed with the Pieres; the Pieres have defined themselves against Cambiaso. Each generation's excellence has been the standard the next generation was required to match.

The Global Impact of the Three Dynasties

The practical consequence of these three dynasties extends far beyond Argentine polo. Their horses have won major tournaments on every continent. Their players — as professionals hired by international teams — have raised the standard of high-goal polo in England, the USA, France, Germany, and beyond.

The Argentine professional player model — where 10-goal Argentine professionals are hired by international patrons to complete high-goal teams — is sustained principally by the talent pipeline these three families created. Without the Harriotts, the Pieres, and the Heguys, world polo would look fundamentally different.