Polo Tip #29: Belly Shots – Don’t They Do Those in Mexico?

This shot used to be called the millionaire’s shot. Because swinging into the legs of the horse would usually require getting new horses to replace the ones you lamed up. Well, thankfully, in today’s polo, our intent is to hit the ball, not the legs.

So how can one pull off a belly shot and why would one even want to.

The second part of the question is a good one as belly shots are a low percentage shot. It is like that between the legs tennis return that looks cool, but falls in the low percentage category.

A neck shot or tail shot would both be higher percentage. Even if you execute a belly shot correctly, there are lots of moving parts for that ball to pass through. However, there are times when a belly shot may just come in handy if you need it. Kind of like that sand wedge in your golf bag. You don’t use it that often, but it sure comes in handy when you need it. … Continue Reading

Polo Tip #28: Playing Level

What level should you play? Play at your Proper Level of Play.

What level is that? Some present that high goal is better supervision of incoming players; others feel that the more traditional “walk before you run” approach is better in lower goal. Which way is right? They both are, depending on your resources, riding skills, and mental attitude. However, it is true, that in lower levels of play, you are going to run into personalities playing well over their heads, pros coming up the ladder trying to show their stuff, and some pretty challenging horses. If you are financially able, and you have the ability to take direction, maintain your calm in chaos, and put in the time as to your riding skills, high goal is great. Obviously, your level of participation is going to be slightly different than all those other ten-goal players running around you, but you are learning from the best the game has to offer, and it is a real thrill ride. It does take a great deal of riding skill to ride at the high goal level, so make certain to get in your riding time. For an amateur playing amongst the professional ranks, field awareness and riding ability should be your cornerstones. It takes years sometimes decades to hone your hitting skills at those speeds, but riding skills and field awareness are the more important factors to focus on. … Continue Reading

Polo Tip #27: Playing Smart — Safety

Play Within Realistic Perimeters of Your Present Competence.

You are running down the field, you alone are aware of what you are comfortable with and what you are not comfortable with, respective of speed, contact, and hitting. You need to take care of yourself, regardless of what you may be being instructed to do by a well meaning teammate. You should properly communicate any concerns or limitations that you might have to your teammates, so that you can come up with a more effective strategy for both you and your team. For example, you have been assigned an opponent that you are not physically able to stay with due to either horsepower or variance in riding skills. It is better to communicate that and try to adjust the strategy. It is true that you need to push yourself some to improve, but that should always be done carefully. Better to challenge yourself to more speed on the track and in higher goal practice matches, than throwing yourself into a competitive match, well over your head.

I have witnessed overly enthusiastic teammates encouraging a player to go to plays at speeds that they have no business attempting at their present level of competence. I have seen way too many players on horses that are not well suited to them over the years. It is true that we need to challenge ourselves to progress, but do it carefully. Polo is so much more fun when you are able to play the game for a long time.

Happy Polo !!

Polo Tip #26: Playing Smart — Higher Percentage Shots

Play Your Higher Percentage Shots/Plays. You should know the shots you are most comfortable with in making from your stick and balling. Those are the ones you should depend on in competitive play. In addition, you should always try to practice the more difficult shots as much as possible, so that when the play situation calls for that particular stroke, you have some familiarity with it.

If you are able to stick and ball regularly, you need to start to imagine play situations to help you become more effective on the field of play. For example, practicing a tail shot to the middle from the end line, as opposed to an impossible neck shot. Or even a short back shot from the end line to a teammate behind you, so that the ball does not roll over the end line, setting the other team up for a knock-in. There are times when it would be better to let that ball roll over the back line, depending on the positioning of the two teams, but having the ability to execute a short back shot to a teammate is a good thing to practice. Many teams get the ball down field, but are unable to successfully navigate the ball to goal, as most shots are wide of goal. Often times the player may have been able to get off a higher percentage shot if they were able to think a little more about ball placement, speed, and shot selection as they were approaching goal. These are things you can practice or simulate while stick and balling, instead of running around for thirty minutes hitting offside forehanders as hard as you can. However, I will admit that running around just hitting offside forehanders can be pretty good therapy on certain days.

Polo Tip #25: Playing Smart — Meeting the Play

Ride in the Direction of the Pack/Meeting the Play.

You will see some of the awesome magicians of our sport run into a melee, opposite of the direction of others and emerge from the pack with the ball and continue down to goal. It is always wonderful to watch, but not quite as easy to execute. I would advise for the most part, that players learn to turn with the direction of the flow of horses, so that you are in better position to defend the attacking players. When you see the pack beginning to turn, begin to slow your horse and prepare to turn, but first, yep, field awareness-never check or turn without checking in on the position of all of the players around you. Meeting players at speed can be very dangerous. In most cases, you try to meet a player in possession, you do not get the ball, and then you have left your back to the game and it is almost impossible to get back into position.

Draw Reins and Draw Backs

By Christian Moon

A client asked me to re-tread two of his horses after playing in the 12 goal leagues for the summer. He told me a bit about each horse over by his trailer right after the last game and we agreed that the horses should come to my place and that I would play them, though the likelihood of being able to was somewhat dubious.
After a new set of shoes the horses arrived and were assimilated by the herd and incorporated into the schooling program.

Their owner had not given these horses much accolade other then their original cost which I assumed should reflect their original quality. The owner could care less about that now and was most annoyed that these two horses, his most expensive, were now useless to him after just two years. One was a leaper, and the other a run away. His flowery descriptions of their behavior told the rest of the story. … Continue Reading

Polo Tip #24: Playing Smart — Recognize A Lost Play And Ride To The Next Play

You are running after someone carrying the ball down the field. They are almost at the ball and you are trailing ten or more yards behind. Consider trying to anticipate which direction they will try to hit and plot a better course to that next play as opposed to following the footprints of the player you are pursuing. Be careful to look around in all directions before you take to your new course and be aware of new angles that may come into play as you progress down the field. Once you learn to cut corners so to speak, you may vary some from the existing line of the ball. You may get into better position more often, but you may also be somewhat off the line of the ball, and will have to re-adjust to whatever the current line and associated right of ways.

Polo Tip #23: Under-The-Neck Shots

Ok, you want me to hit the ball in front of my horse’s galloping front legs? I thought you said we weren’t supposed to hit the horse’s legs? Make up your mind, which is it?

Hitting a successful neck shot, or rather hitting the ball as opposed to the legs of your horse requires three things:

1. Preparation & Timing
2. Starting your swing up front from the side of your horse’s head
3. A little more commitment up onto your horse’s neck
4. Sinking deeper into your heels as you move further up the horse’s neck.

You want to be making contact with the ball well forward of the horse’s chest, about underneath or just to the side of the horse’s head. That means you need to prepare early and begin your swing well before you arrive at the ball.

The most common problem players have is they begin their swing like they are taking an off-side forehander, starting the mallet from either behind them or from their hip. You have to force yourself to put your arm to the front of your saddle, just alongside the horse’s head and neck and slightly to the side to whichever side you will be swinging.

You need to get a little help from your horse’s neck with a little shorter rein and lean a little more forward.

However, you need to sink a little deeper in your leg so that you do not lose your balance. This is a swing that you should swing a little easier on until you get more confident for the safety of both you and your horse.

Finally, you need to be careful with your follow-through. You do not want to hit another player or their horse accidentally. This shot is a good one to develop at a walk and trot initially, and then move to your faster speeds.

Polo Tip #22: Playing as a Team

Some define team play as combining individual energy to strengthen the team. Some see it as a chance to get together with friends and build comraderie. Maybe the game offers both. I was gifted with the experience of Intercollegiate Polo and then again the High Goal Professional Arena Leagues in Los Angeles. In both cases, I was able to experience staying with the same team for four years.

It is pretty exciting to work with the same teammates over a period of time to develop team strength. By team strength I mean the extra handicap goals of the team that are in excess of the sum of the individual handicaps. The paper might have shown our three handicaps totaling 23 goals in LA, but we were easily playing as a 26-goal team.

Why? We played together, supported each other, but most importantly, we were very clear on each other’s strengths and weaknesses and had learned to adapt our individual styles to benefit the characteristics of the team. … Continue Reading

Polo Tip #21: Proper Field Terminology – No? I thought you said Go!

How often have we heard that wonderful line after a whistle? One teammate exclaiming to another, “No”?????, I thought you said, “Go”. And vice-versa. These two rhyming words have been the root of countless whistles and missed opportunities.

A polo field is the perfect setting for us polo players to practice our somewhat dysfunctional, yet colorful vocabularies. The terms on the field are supposed to offer direction and clarification. Unfortunately, at times, the direction may be accompanied by some inappropriate references to family heritage. In fact, sometimes the message is absent of any productive content whatsoever.

In the USA, often times it is an advantage for an umpire to not have any comprehension of a foreign language. What you can ‘t understand will never hurt you. But at times, a translation would provide immediate ejection from the remainder of the game. Have you ever noticed that swearing in Spanish or French seems to be absent of the hard edges of the same words pronounced in English? I guess that may be one of the reasons they are called the romance languages. Even swearing in those languages seems to carry a less offensive musical tone. … Continue Reading