USA Water Polo

Official Club Name: Sharks WPC (Santa Monica/Malibu, CA)

On The Web: www.sharkswaterpolo.com

Director of Club: Gary O'Brien

Club Coach: Gary O'Brien

Age Groups & Genders: Male 16U and 18U, Masters, Collegiate Level

How Did They Get Started?: The club started in 2005 when Director Gary O'Brien and a few friends who were part of the Santa Monica Masters program decided to branch off and create their own club. Their goal was to have a club that appealed to a higher level water polo athlete that was out of college. In Gary's words, "we looked for the working man, who loved the game enough to practice and compete, and one who enjoyed the camaraderie of fellow water polo players."

Home Base: The club calls the pool at Santa Monica high School home and it is where they have their masters practices.

Who Do They Play?: The club plays in all sorts of open tournaments such as the Desert Duel in Tempe, Arizona and Winterfest in Southern California. In addition they get involved in age group tournaments like World Masters and the USA Water Polo Masters Nationals presented by S & R Sport. The club were champions in 2009, taking the 30+ division on the men's side at Masters Nationals.

Great Success: The club has had quite a run in recent years at the Masters level, taking top finishes at a variety of competitions

2006    Las Vegas Invitational        1st
            San Luis Tournament        1st
            US Masters Nationals      20+    1st
            Fina World Masters          30+        6th


2007        California Cup                1st
                Winterfest                      1st
                US Masters Nationals    2nd


2008        Winterfest                    1st
                Desert Duel, AZ            1st
                So Cal Zone Premiere League    1st
                US Masters Nationals  20+      2nd, & 4th


2009        Winterfest                    2nd   
               Desert Duel, AZ            2nd
               US Masters Nationals    30+    1st
                                                    50+    2nd
                                                    20+    4th

Five Years From Now: Coach O'Brien and the club has hopes of continuing the success the club has enjoyed along with keeping up the weekly competitive practices. In addition they'd like to be victorious over the other top clubs in the masters scene such as Newport Water Polo Foundation and the Olympic Club, as well increasing the number of motivated youth players in their area to reach the top level of collegiate play.

The College Years: Sharks Water Polo brings together players that have had a variety of different experiences at the collegiate level from places like UCLA, Pepperdine, USC, Cal, Redlands, Princeton, UCSD, etc. O'Brien notes that this leads to a real bond as for many years these athletes competed against each other in the collegiate arena only to now be teammates with the Sharks.

And The Winner Is: One of the true highlights for the Sharks club every year is their awards banquet. The team gives out standard awards such as Most Valuable Player but also had another set of awards that are less serious. These include the "Brick Award" for the player who misses the most shots in front of the goal, the "Hammer Award" for the player who gets the most physical in the water, to name a few. Things like this keep a light and fun atmosphere for those that play with the Sharks.

To Get Involved: For those interested visit the website, www.sharkswaterpolo.com or contact Coach O'Brien at gary@sharkswaterpolo.com.

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