There is a rumor floating around that the USPA will be asked to lower the handicap limit for the Open, the Gold Cup and the C. V. Whitney Cup from 26-goals to 22-goals. It appears someone is making the argument that because the Brits are doing so well with their 22-goal polo, we should follow their lead and drop our 26-goal tournaments. Expense is one of the excuses that is being bandied about, but we know better than that.
I imagine that since the USPA has all but accepted the fact that we don’t compete internationally any more (nor more Westchester Cup involvement, nothing to do with the Camacho Cup and can’t remember the last time we played in the Coronation Cup), they might as well finish dismantling the rest of the higher level polo in America.
Now don’t get me wrong. I’m not suggesting that the high-goal tournaments are the end all of polo in America, or that more than 10% of the players in this country will ever compete in them, but there has to be something to shoot for, even if it’s only a dream. There are a hell of a lot more little league teams in this country than there are major league baseball teams, but the kids love rooting for the big leaguers. Polo should be no different.
The expense of the game is the excuse some people are using, but with all of the success the British are having with their 22-goal tournaments (and I’m thrilled for them), you won’t hear the fact that they are paying more for their 22-goal teams than we are for our 26-goal teams. My next concern is over the Joe Barry Memorial and Ylvisaker Cups. Once rated at 22-goals, they were dropped to 20-goals last season. So will they stay at the 20-goal limit only to be followed by the Open, the Gold Cup and the C. V. Whitney at 22-goals? Or will they be lowered again, too?
I wish people would take a page out of history-and read it. In 1979 the handicap limit of the US Open was raised from 24 to 26 goals. The field of teams dropped from 12 teams in 1978, in Oak Brook’s last year with the Open to only 8 teams in the Open at the Retama Polo Center in Texas. However when the USPA Gold Cup moved from Milwaukee in 1978 to Palm Beach Polo and Country Club in 1979, the field narrowed from 11 teams to 10 teams, but Palm Beach Polo was just getting started.
In the early days of Palm Beach Polo every level of polo was available, and the number of teams grew each year. The key to its success was good management (Herbie Pennell/Alan Scherer) and strong leadership-Bill Ylvisaker. The other key was good service and a sense of community.
Now we’re taking a look at the number of teams that are appearing in the British Open and immediately deciding that we should lower our handicap limit in order to emulate their success. I’m astounded! Understand that there used to be a high-goal fall season and a high-goal winter season in the past. Today it is all located at one club, in one season.
You might also want to compare the length of seasons, etc. But maybe, just maybe the USPA and polo leadership in America might want to take a deeper look at why England manages to attract so many teams (you might also like to take a look at the number of English players competing in their tournaments). The proximity to France, Spain, Italy, Asia, Africa, etc. has to have some effect on it. But I think you’d have to admit that there was even more to it than that. Why don’t we take a look at the management of the Hurlingham Polo Association? At the success their school and university programs are, how they manage to attract such large audiences to major matches, how they manage to get television coverage.
According to the USPA our playing membership in 1980 was 1,487; in 1980 it was 2,856; and in 1999, 2,524. Maybe it’s just me, but I don’t see that things are getting any better. Toda, according to the Executive Director’s article in Polo Players Edition, we have a US playing membership that is lower than that of 28 years ago! Can’t anyone figure this out?
Please don’t think lowering the handicaps of our most prestigious tournaments is going to fix the problems you have here. It’s going to take open minds (good luck finding them) and a willingness to experiment with minor adjustments. It’s also going to take a willingness to learn, a difficult task when you are dealing with egos that refuse to admit making errors.
If the USPA starts to lower the handicap limits of our major tournaments they will be well on their way to reducing the United States Polo Association to a mere front for the sales of a clothing line. How ironic. The USPA is dismantling the sport and expanding its clothing line while Ralph Lauren is stepping up its sponsorship of polo in the US and Argentina. There may be a lesson here somewhere, but you’re going to have to figure it out on your own-or, you can call the USPA and have them explain it to you.
