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followed by the USPA Piaget Silver Cup July 31 to August 11.
But as prestigious as they are – the Silver Cup dates back to the early
1900s – they’re merely preliminaries to the Bombardier Pacific Coast
Open, the granddaddy of them all at the SBP&RC, which first staged the
event back in 1909.
“It’s a treasured tournament, something all polo players want to be
able to say they won during their time in the world of polo,” says Dan
Walker. “It’s a very historic and coveted tournament.”
Taking on the PCO drew Adolfo Cambiaso – considered the No. 1
polo player on the planet – to make SBP&RC his mid-summer home here
for the last three years. While Cambiaso won’t be back this season – he’s
off to Spain to continue his global travels in the world of polo – another
among the handful of 10-goalers in the world is making his Santa Barbara
debut in 2013.
David ‘Pelon’ Stirling, whose rating was increased to the coveted
10-goal mark at the end of 2011 after his team won the Argentine Open
(the most prestigious of all polo tournaments), will compete for Lucchese,
taking Cambiaso’s spot on the team that scored a PCO three-peat. But he’s
not the only big name on the SBP&RC roster.
Lucas Criado, a 9-goaler who is arguably among the top dozen players
worldwide, will anchor Walker’s Farmer & Merchants team; brothers
Carlos and Memo Gracida, former 10-goalers now rated at 7 who are
part of one of polo’s most famous families, team up for new sponsor La
Herradura; 9-goaler Hilario Ulloa returns to lead Mansour and 7-goaler
Jeff Hall, one of the few highly-rated American players, shares top billing
with fellow 7-goaler Sugar Erskine on ERG.
“Each team has to bring in at least one higher level player from
around the world in order to compete,” says Walker. “We have very good
polo here.”
THE RULES OF PLAY
Two games are contested every tournament match day in round-robin
format. Each game consist of six 7 ½-minute periods, called chukkers,
with play only being stopped for penalties, broken tack or an injured
horse. (The clock continues to run after goals are scored, although the
teams do switch goals). The teams are handicapped according to rating, as
in team golf, so that the sides start off with equal opportunity. The players
are rated anywhere from -2 (rank amateur) to 10 goals, although the
numbers have nothing to do with expected scoring.
Many of the rules for polo – which is played four horses and
mounts to a side on a field measuring 300 yards by 150 yards, which
could fit 9 football fields – are designed for the safety of both the players
and the horses.
The most basic concept in the sport is the line of the ball, a right of
way established by the path of a traveling ball, and re-established as a new
imaginary line formed each time the ball is struck. When a player has the
line of the ball on his right, he has the right of way, and crossing in front
of it results in a penalty. These can range from a free hit at the spot of the
foul to an uncontested penalty shot just 30 yards from the goal, or even
closer if the penalty happened within that range.
Often, up to half or even more of the goals during a game are scored
on penalty shots, and players’ ratings are partially based on their abilities
both to draw and avoid penalties, as well as horsemanship, athletic ability,
scoring and tactics.
AWARDS & PLAYERS
Polo in Santa Barbara, which takes place May 1 to October 7, has
three very distinct seasons based on goal ratings.
The spring tournaments are 12-goal, meaning that the four players’
ratings must total no higher than 12. The summer games, also known
as high-goal season, rated 20 goals, which is the highest played in the
United States and where you’ll find the top performers. New this year is
an extended 8-goal season that will be played simultaneously with 20-
goal. Finally, the season closes with another round of 8-goal polo that runs
through the first half of autumn.
It’s high-goal season, of course, that draws the best players. There are
three two-week tournaments in July and early August, beginning with
the El Encanto Polo Classic, formerly the Mayor’s Cup, which has a new
sponsor in the recently reopened luxury resort on Santa Barbara’s Riviera.
The US Polo Association Lucchese America Cup is contested July 17-28,
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