The short answer: Palm City Polo Club is Joey Casey's club in western Boynton Beach, Florida, a short drive from Wellington. Joey opened it in late 2014, and he built it for arena and outdoor training, mentoring new players, and affordable low- and medium-goal polo. When I visited in April 2022, I found some of the greenest, most level fields I'd seen anywhere in America, a very steady horse named Griffin, and a fix for my legs in the hitting cage.
These notes come from my 2021 and 2022 tour, when I tried to visit every polo club in America as a playing USPA member. Seasons, contacts, and prices change, so check each club's Instagram or the U.S. Polo Association before you go.
Palm City Polo Club at a glance
Where: Western Boynton Beach, in Palm Beach County, Florida. Despite the name, it isn't in the town of Palm City.
Founder: Joey Casey, a former 7-goal player and a Museum of Polo Hall of Fame inductee.
What's offered: Arena and outdoor polo training, mentoring for novice players, and affordable low- and medium-goal competition, according to the Museum of Polo.
Season: Fall through spring, like the rest of South Florida polo.
Best for: New and improving players who want coaching, safe horses, and a friendly club.
Meeting Joey Casey
Meeting Joey was awesome. He is so kind, and a little bit not what you'd expect from a man who runs a polo club. I think he likes it that way.
He told me he started the club all on his own, after about 20 years working for another patron, and that his wife thought he was crazy. Polo runs in his family, going back generations. He's really proud of the place he's built, because it's friendly. He'll even ask people to leave if they aren't friendly enough, to keep a good vibe. Everybody there is happy to play, and it's fun and safe.
I'm not the only one who noticed how he looks after people. A player who trained with him for two years described Joey's "obsession with minimizing the risks and dangers of the sport, especially with new players" to Wellington The Magazine. That matched what I saw.
The fields, and a horse named Griffin
The fields are gorgeous: really green, really level, and honestly some of the best I've seen on my tour of every polo club in America.
Joey offered me a horse to stick and ball with alongside Misha, a player at the club. The horse's name was Griffin, and Griffin was incredibly steady: one speed, one pace, no over-accelerating after I hit the ball, and really nice turns. A really, really great horse. Griffin reminded me of Costa Rica.
What I learned in the hitting cage
Joey took me into the hitting cage and gave me tips on riding. The problem was my legs. Right before I hit, I was taking them back behind me, and that pushed my chest forward. His fix:
Keep your legs under you, right next to you and in line with the ball. Don't take them back before you hit.
Misha added a few tips of his own:
Always hit the ball in the same place, so your eye gets trained.
Stay in your seat more.
Keep your eyes down on the ball, even after you've hit it.
I collected the best coaching from the whole trip in the best polo tips I got from coaches across America.
The swag, and the branding
Joey gave me a hat and a shirt, which was super nice of him. And I love that the club's branding is so clear: a palm tree, a horse, and someone playing polo. Palm City Polo. One look and you know exactly who they are. (Branding is my day job at Unrth, so I notice these things. More in how to market a polo club.)
Who should go
If you're new to polo or still building your seat, this is the kind of club I'd send you to: real coaching, steady horses, and people who want you to have fun. And if you're in Wellington for the high-goal season, it's a short drive to get on a horse yourself instead of only watching. For the rest of the state, see my guide to polo clubs in Florida.
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