Richard “Dick” Latham, Virginia Alpha 1960, University of Virginia class of 1963, and Virginia Polo Club alumnus, will be inducted into the Polo Hall of Fame in 2024. Dick has been involved in polo most his life as a player, a sponsor, and an administrator working with the US Polo Association. Most significantly, this passion for polo was sparked at the Virginia Polo Club. With his introduction to the sport while at the University, Dick Latham is a Virginia Polo-grown player.
Growing up in Texas, Dick had ridden all his life and always had horses, but rode in stock saddles. He decided he would like to go East for college and chose the University as his destination. In September 1959, he arrived on Grounds for the first time and attended an interest meeting for the fairly new Virginia Polo Club (then 6 years old) at Memorial Gymnasium, never having seen a polo game. He found the Virginia Polo Club men to be a welcoming group and joined the club then located at Brook Hill Farm on Polo Grounds Road. He began with stick and balling, walking shots, and spending lots of time in the hitting cage working on improving his swing.
Dick continued to play polo after graduation and until 1978, when financial realities set in and the expense in time and treasure of playing at a competitive level became too great
For his active involvement and contributions to the sport of polo over a span of 45 years Dick Latham will be accorded this single honor and the culmination of a lifelong journey that began at the humble Virginia Polo Club in 1959.