August 13, 2021

Europe, Polo News

Talacrest Prince of Wales’s Championship Cup – Day 5

13. August 2021

Park Place 9- 8 Monterosso on The Castle Ground

Park Place are the only team to have secured three wins so far in the Talacrest Prince of Wales’s Championship Cup and so are in a strong position to secure their place in the final on Sunday 22^nd August. Park Place initially showed their dominance in this match against Monterosso, who have one win under their belt, with Park Place leading 6-2 at half-time. Facundo Pieres, who scored seven goals in this match, was impressive in the third chukka, firing through four goals in this period of play Facundo Sola and Matt Perry started to make their presence felt in the second half for Monterosso, with Park Place suddenly looking vulnerable. Some good defensive play from Will Harper kept Monterosso at bay in the fourth but Sola, Perry and Cubi Toccalino all scored in the fifth to bring the scores level 7-7. Pieres converted a 30-yarder at the end of the fifth to give Park Place a narrow 8-7 lead going into the sixth, bur this was now anyone’s game. Juan Britos put Park Place two ahead with a lovely shot to goal in traffic only for Toccalino to get one back for Monterosso. With a huge hit from distance from Britos going wide, Toccalino was on a run to goal when the final whistle blew. As the commentators reflected, another minute could have easily sent this game into extra time., it was that tight at the end.

Next game
Saturday 14 August: Bardon Polo Team v UAE Polo Team
All matches are available to view live at Guards TV

Photos by IMAGES OF POLO

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Park Place 9- 8 Monterosso on The Castle Ground Park Place are the only team to have secured three wins so far in the Talacrest Prince of Wales’s Championship Cup…

North America, Polo News

PACIFIC COAST OPEN: HIGHLIGHT OF THE 16-GOAL SEASON AT SANTA BARBARA POLO & RACQUET CLUB

13. August 2021

The only outdoor open trophy on the west coast, the Pacific Coast Open is a staple of high-goal competition at Santa Barbara Polo & Racquet Club in Carpinteria, California. Competing for the final 16-goal title of the season, six teams will leave everything on the field for a chance to win the impressive trophy, including two-time winners (2020, 2018) and defending champions Klentner Ranch. Located just five miles south of Santa Barbara and 60 miles north of Los Angeles, Santa Barbara Polo & Racquet Club overlooks the Pacific Ocean providing an attractive backdrop to an active polo calendar. The Pacific Coast Open will begin on Sunday, August 15, with the final slated for Sunday, August 29. On opening day the 7:00pm ET/ 4:00pm PT game between BenSoleimani.com and Farmers & Merchants Bank has been dedicated the Charles Ward Memorial Match, honoring Mr. Ward who was instrumental in club sponsorship. Games will be held on Sundays and Fridays.

Serving as the Official Stadium & Apparel Sponsor, U.S. Polo Assn., the official brand of the United States Polo Association, will provide stadium branding and apparel for the high-profile west coast tournament.

Standing at a striking height of five feet, the glorious silver-and-gold trophy for the Pacific Coast Open is a dazzling sight. Crowned with an eagle supporting a globe and adorned with semiprecious stones, the trophy is mounted on a redwood base, featuring side panels depicting lively polo scenes. Initially titled the All American Polo Trophy, the cup was commissioned in 1908 by friends and members of the Coronado Country Club in Southern California.

Throughout the late 1920s until the early 1940s the tournament was hosted by numerous clubs throughout California. After World War II, the Pacific Coast Open moved to the posh and glamorous Beverly Hills Polo Club until 1952, when it took residency at the Santa Barbara Polo & Racquet Club, where it remains today. Coming off a win in the Silver Cup®, Klentner Ranch’s 2020 teammates Justin Klentner and Jesse Bray are joined in 2021 by Justin’s son Jacob “Jake”

Klentner and 8-goal Argentine Santiago Toccalino. With four tournament titles, Lucchese holds the most wins of all teams competing (2015, 2012, 2011, 2010), followed by Klentner Ranch and Farmers & Merchants Bank with two (2019, 2017) and Antelope with one (2004). Featuring

father-and-son combinations on multiple teams, the 16-goal rosters feature a variety of young rising stars including several active and graduating Team USPA members and alumni.

2021 PACIFIC COAST OPEN TEAMS:

Bracket I
1. Santa Clara (15) Luis Escobar (5), Lucas Escobar (4), Nico Escobar (5), Federico Escobar (1)
2. Farmers & Merchants Bank (16) Danny Walker (2), Matt Walker (3), Lucas Criado (7), Lucitas Criado (4)
3. Klentner Ranch (16) Jesse Bray (6), Jacob Klentner (1), Justin Klentner (1), Santiago Toccalino (8)

Bracket II
1. Antelope (16) Grant Palmer (1), Santiago Trotz (4), Tomas Garcia del Rio (8), Segundo Saravi (3)
2. Bensoleimani.com (16) Ben Soleimani (0), Tomas Alberdi (4), Iñaki Laprida (7), Santiago Wulff (5)
3. Lucchese (15) John Muse (0), Facundo Obregon (6), Jeff Hall (6), Kristos ‘Keko’ Magrini (3)

“The true challenge in Santa Barbara is to win all of the 16-goal tournaments,” said USPA Executive Director of Services Carlucho Arellano. “Most summers it seems customary that a different team win each trophy. Mainly because it is so difficult to keep a single team’s horses peaking for that long—prime fitness is tricky to maintain. Klentner Ranch just might be able to accomplish the feat and finish the Santa Barbara season with a Pacific Coast Open victory.”

The Pacific Coast Open, will be livestreamed exclusively on Global Polo TV with the purchase of the Polo Pass at globalpolo.com. All USPA playing and lifetime members who have paid their membership dues will receive the Premium Polo Pass complimentary while all USPA Social Members will receive the Polo Pass for free, once dues are paid in full. All games of the Pacific Coast Open will be available with the Polo Pass or the Premium Polo Pass.

Santa Barbara Polo & Racquet Club is now open to the public for spectating. To purchase tickets please visit sbpolo.com. The club will host Happy Hour after each public match with drink specials, and food available for purchase at the Fieldside Grill. For more information on the Pacific Coast Open and to view the schedule, please visit the Pacific Coast Open tournament detail page on uspolo.org. To purchase a polo pass please visit globalpolo.com/products.

Photos by David Lominska

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The only outdoor open trophy on the west coast, the Pacific Coast Open is a staple of high-goal competition at Santa Barbara Polo & Racquet Club in Carpinteria, California. Competing…

Europe, Polo News

Talacrest Prince of Wales’s Championship Cup – Day 4

13. August 2021

UAE Polo Team 11 – 8 Vikings

The UAE Polo Team’s first game in the Talacrest Prince of Wales’s Championship Cup last Saturday had seen them struggle against an in-form Park Place. The team did not appear to gel but it was the first time that this quartet – HH Sheikha Maitha, Lucas Monteverde Junior, Barto Castagnola and Alfredo Capella – had played together. That match report concluded with the words “UAE will build on that experience for their next match”. Build they did today, the UAE Polo Team delivering some strong, cohesive play to win this match and put themselves very much back into contention in this new high-goal tournament.

Vikings, again playing Max Voelker at one in place of their patron and with a win already under their belts, offered a tough opposition. They might have been trailing 4-2 at the end of the second chukka but had put themselves comfortably ahead by two goals (7-5) at the end of the fourth, with Chris Mackenzie, who scored a hat-trick in this match, and Juan Martin Zubia delivering strong performances.

The direction of this game changed again in the fifth when the UAE Polo Team were awarded three penalties. These were successfully converted by Castagnola and Capella to put UAE ahead once more (8-7). Perhaps more importantly Vikings failed to score at all in this chukka. Although at this level of polo it was still very much game on, even when Castagnola delivered a lovely angled shot to goal at the very beginning of the sixth. Zubia converted a 30-yard penalty with four minutes left on the clock to keep Vikings’ hopes alive. However, when the UAE Polo Team were awarded a couple of penalties in the final two minutes – successfully converted by the huge hitting Capella – the UAE Polo Team’s victory was assured.

Next Game

Thursday 13 August at 3pm: Park Place v Monterosso on The Castle Ground, Flemish Farm
All matches streamed live at Guards TV