Player SPOTLIGHT Henry Musselman Henry Musselman has seen the ups and the downs of the oil industry and the Midland Polo Club through his 50 years of experience with both. Born and raised on a ranch near Albany, Texas, horses were not only recreational but a critical part of daily life on a working cattle ranch. Henry left the ranch to attend college at the University of Texas at Austin but always missed the horses and the ranching way of life. While driving home one semester he stopped to grab lunch and noticed some polo mallets in the corner of the country diner. Henry struck up a conversation with the owner of the mallets and thus began his long polo career.
Once graduated from college, Henry moved to Midland, Texas to pursue a career in the oil and gas industry. A driving force in this decision to move to Midland just happened to be the Midland Polo Club, who’s fields he has played on since 1982. The 1980’s were an interesting time in Midland’s history, with high highs and low lows. During this time Midland Polo Club had legendary characters at its helm, including Carleton Beal, Bobby Holt, Jim Stimmel, Bart Evans, Willie B. Wilson, Tommy Wayman, George Landreth and Ronnie Hissom. These innovators of our community brought in the best professional polo players in the country to participate in matches at MPC, and Henry witnessed it all. In 1988 Henry and his mother-in-law Mary Anne McCloud decided to create Polo on the Prairie, a polo match at the ranch in Albany, Texas benefitting M.D. Anderson Cancer Center. Polo on the Prairie now brings crowds up to 2,000 people, and has raised over 7 million dollars for M.D. Anderson. Henry brought his three children, Louisa, Luke and Molly, into the sport, and each still plays today. Molly teaches kids to play polo and Louisa is the President of Midland Polo Club. Henry is still a force to be reckoned with on the polo field, with strong horses ready to “ride-off” any adversaries up to the challenge. If you don’t find Henry riding the grounds of MPC you will find him walking the fields, which he has maintained for years. Henry has not only seen the history of Midland and Midland Polo Club enfold, he has participated and made both a better place to be. Henry has dedicated his life to preserving legacies such as Polo on the Prairie and Midland Polo Club, and we are all better off because of this unwavering vision!
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