February 16, 2021

North America, Polo News

Dundas Defeats Dundas II to Capture Title in Limited Edition 12-Goal

16. February 2021

By: Rebecca Baldridge
Photos by: ChukkerTV

WELLINGTON, FL, February 15, 2021— Dundas defeated Dundas II by 11-9 on Sunday to capture the Limited Edition 12-Goal title.

Dundas (Sarah Magness, Hugo Taylor, Mariano Fassetta, and Robertito Zedda) faced off against Dundas II (Cable Magness, Juan Cruz Marcos, Geronimo Obregon, and Juan Martin Obregon) at Jan Pamela Farm yesterday in the Limited Edition 12-Goal final.

The road to the championship was slightly more complicated this year as La Portola, Dundas, and Dundas II were tied after the semifinal with two wins and one loss each. Following a shoot out, Dundas II and La Portola were set to meet on Sunday, but due to scheduling difficulties La Portola was forced to forfeit and cede their place to Dundas. With a team handicap of 12 compared to 13 for Dundas II, Dundas started the match with one goal on the board.

Play was open and fast from the beginning of the first chukker, with both teams playing above their handicaps. After two and a half minutes of solid running, Sarah Magness of Dundas converted a Penalty 2 for the first goal of the day. Juan Martin Obregon knocked in the first goal from the field for Dundas II, while Sarah followed up with another successful penalty shot to end the chukker with Dundas in the lead at 3-1.

Juan Martin Obregon took the ball to goal at the very beginning of the second chukker, and at the bowl-in Geronimo took control of the ball and, five lengths ahead of his nearest pursuer, made an easy hit between the posts. Juan Cruz Marcos put Dundas II into the lead after taking the ball to the goal on the near side. Sarah Magness tied it up with a Penalty 2 conversion, and Hugo Taylor tapped in a loose ball to put Dundas back in the lead by 1. Dundas was frustrated in the third chukker and couldn’t get on the board, while Geronimo Obregon scored to end the half with both teams tied at 5.

Dundas was awarded a goal on penalty at the beginning of the fourth chukker, and Sarah Magness followed up with another successful penalty shot, her fourth of the day. Hugo Taylor scored from the field, putting Dundas ahead 8-5. Juan Martin Obregon converted on a Penalty 4 with an impressively lofted shot to cut the lead to two goals.

With 5:15 left to play, Hugo Taylor picked up the loose ball and carried it through the posts to put Dundas in the lead 9-6. Another penalty conversion by Juan Martin Obregon and a big goal from Geronimo drew Dundas II into stricking distance with the chukker ending 9-8. Juan Martin Obregon tied the game at 9-9 early in the sixth chukker but the Dundas II defense wasn’t able to keep Dundas from scoring. Goals by Mariano Fassetta and Hugo Taylor sealed an 11-9 win for Dundas.

Robertito Zedda, controlling the game from the number four position, was the Most Valuable Player while Dolfina Secuaz, owned by J5 Equestrian and played by Zedda in the fifth chukker, was the Best Playing Pony.

By: Rebecca Baldridge Photos by: ChukkerTV WELLINGTON, FL, February 15, 2021— Dundas defeated Dundas II by 11-9 on Sunday to capture the Limited Edition 12-Goal title. Dundas (Sarah Magness, Hugo…

North America, Polo News

Richard Mille Defeats Santa Rita to Advance to WPL All Star Challenge Semifinals

16. February 2021

By Rebecca Baldridge
Photos by ChukkerTV

WELLINGTON, FL, February 15, 2021— Richard Mille trounced Santa Rita by a score of 16-8 to advance in the WPL All Star Challenge.

Richard Mille (Marc Ganzi, Jeta Castagnola, Pablo MacDonough and Paco de Narvaez) took on Santa Rita (Sugar Erskine, Pablo Spinnaci, Horacio Llorente, and Nacho Figueras) yesterday on Grand Champions Field 4. Santa Rita, with a team handicap of 24, started the match with two goals on the board.

Santa Rita started the match with a foul, allowing Pablo MacDonough to score his first goal of the day on a Penalty 3. Both teams were running hard in the first minutes, with neither finding the goal until Nacho Figueras scored at just under five minutes. A couple of unlucky fouls allowed Marc Ganzi to convert a Penalty 4 and a Penalty 2, tying the match at 3-3. In the last minute of the chukker, Nacho put the ball in play following a foul and found Sugar Erskine, who in a textbook move took out his man and ran to goal. The chukker ended with Santa Rita up 4-3. In the second chukker, the cracks began to show for Santa Rita, and they weren’t able to get on the board. Pablo MacDonough scored back-to-back goals, the second with a breathtaking neck shot, and Marc Ganzi sank another successful Penalty 2.

Going into the third chukker with Richard Mille leading 6-4, Santa Rita was starting to feel the pressure and missed several chances at the posts. Another goal by MacDonough, topped off by a Penalty 2 conversion from Ganzi, saw the half end 8-4 in favor of Richard Mille.

Santa Rita played more aggressively in the fourth chukker, with Sugar Erskine answering a goal from Jeta Castagnola. With only 14 seconds remaining to play, Jeta Castagnola slammed the ball downfield from 130 yards in a spectacular shot and the chukker ended 10-5. Santa Rita successfully converted two penalties in the fifth chukker, but continued to weaken, giving Richard Mille the opportunity to stretch their lead. At the 5:25 mark, Ganzi picked up a ball lost by Castagnola and took it to the goal. Castagnola redeemed himself for the loss by taking a ball out of the air and slamming it between the posts. Pablo MacDonough, finding himself left alone in an unfortunate error by Santa Rita, made an easy goal to end the chukker 13-7 for Richard Mille.

Santa Rita put their last goal of the day on the board with a Penalty 2 at the beginning of the final chukker. While the team in yellow fought to the last, Richard Mille continued to control the game as they had from the start and scored three more goals to win the match by 16-8. Pablo MacDonough was named MVP and the Best Playing Pony was Clavel, owned by Paco de Narvaez.

Founded by Grand Champions owners and president Melissa and Marc Ganzi, the World Polo League is the only 26-goal polo in the world outside of Argentina. The WPL was created to preserve the highest level of polo and its rich, hallowed tradition in the United States. The WPL, boasting 11 tournament-quality fields to play on, will follow the season opening All-Star Challenge with a number of top-level tournaments that will include: Founder’s Cup, Palm Beach Open, Triple Crown of Polo, and Beach Polo World Cup, Miami Beach April 21-25.

The World Polo League attracts the sport’s top players from every corner of the world, including: Australia, Chile, India, Mexico, New Zealand, Costa Rica, Argentina, Canada, Ecuador, Brazil, Switzerland, France, Germany, Uruguay, Venezuela, Azerbaijan, South Africa, Nigeria and the United Kingdom.

Grand Champions and Santa Rita Polo Farm is the largest and most unique polo facility in Wellington with 120 stalls in five self-contained barns, an exercise track, five climate controlled tack rooms, a vet room, staff quarters, a guest house and three polo fields with state-of-the-art underground irrigation including one field for stick-and-ball and plans to build more in the future.

World Polo League matches will continue to be closed to the public due to the COVID-19 pandemic. We closely adhere to Florida state and CDC guidelines, and take all measures possible to maintain a safe environment that will allow us to continue playing. We look very forward to the day we can welcome our fans back. In the interim, please visit www.worldpolo.org for more information. Matches can be viewed on www.chukkertv.com.