1860–1941 · American polo pioneer and steeplechase trainer
Thomas Hitchcock Sr. organised the first polo match on Long Island in 1877, helped establish the Meadowbrook Polo Club in 1881, and became one of the earliest Americans rated at the maximum ten goals. He is equally remembered as the father of American steeplechasing — he trained thoroughbreds, won the American Grand National with Good and Plenty in 1906, and was elected to the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame in 1973. He is the first person any source names in connection with this adage, but the credit reaches us second-hand through his son Tommy Hitchcock Jr., who repeated it as something his father emphasised — and the maxim was already in print years before either Hitchcock was linked to it.