polo games Archives - Empire Polo Club

La Herradura takes home $45,000 with a Champions Cup final victory

April 1, 2018 by Empire Polo

The Empire Polo Club cashes out the season with a $60,000 money game for the Champions Cup.

Former 10-goaler Memo Gracida had guided his La Herradura (Meghan Gracida, Carlos Hernandez, Memo Gracida and Catlin Dix) through their first three Championship Cup wins but was forced into a coaching position in the tournament final against the imposing Evergreen lineup (Tom Sprung, Carlitos Galindo, Juan Jo Gonzalez and Shane Rice).

La Herradura (L to R) Santi Torres, Carlos Hernandez, Catlin Dix, Meghan Gracida and Memo Gracida celebrate a $45,000 win in teh final of the Champions Cup.

Evergreen had ruled the fields at the Empire Polo Club since the beginning of the year, taking top honors in 4-goal competition in the Stagecoach Challenge, the USPA Circuit Players Cup and the USPA General Patton Cup. The Evergreen lineup changed for the 8-goal USPA Constitution Cup in March as they went undefeated once again, but for the season-ending $60,000 Champions Cup they ran into Memo Gracida’s La Herradura entry.

Both La Herradura and Evergreen bowled over their first three opponents before facing one another in the tournament final. A fall suffered by Memo Gracida on Friday, March 30^th, however, sidelined the Hall of Fame legend, forcing La Herradura to bring in 6-goaler Santi Torres in an effort to fill out the lineup.

A tenuous start saw Evergreen take advantage of a foul by La Herradura, with Shane Rice converting a 30-yard penalty shot for the early lead. Carlos Hernandez, who had been a scoring powerhouse for La Herradura, tied the game with his first goal of the day. Back-to-back goals from Santi Torres ended the first period with La Herradura on top of a 3-1 lead.

Fouls continued to plague the La Herradura lineup with, Rice converting two 40-yard penalty shots. Hernandez scored his second goal of the game, keeping La Herradura in the lead,4-3 as the second chukker ended.

Torres scored the first goal of the third, extending the La Herradura lead to two goals, 5-3. Two goals from Rice (one on a 30-yard penalty shot) leveled the score at 5-5, and Juan Jo

Shane Baum of Leisure Society presents the MVP trophy to La Herradura’s Carlos Hernandez.

Gonzalez scored the go-ahead goal for Evergreen to end the first half with a 6-5 advantage.

Memo Gracida might not have been on the field but he was in the team tent at the end of the field.

“It was more about Santi (Torres) and Carlos (Hernandez) talking to one another and coordinating their play on the field,” he said. “I told the girls (Catlin Dix and his wife, Meghan Gracida) to continue pushing forward and to utilize the horses.”

The direction appeared to take hold. Hernandez tied the game with a goal from the field followed by a penalty goal for a 7-6 lead. Torres scored the final goal of the chukker as a solid defensive effort shut down the talented Evergreen attack and edged La Herradura ahead, 8-6.

Hernandez and Torres traded goals with Galindo and Rice in the fifth, with La Herradura maintaining their two goals lead, 10-8, with one chukker left in regulation play.

Playing as if the score was tied, La Herradura exploded in the sixth. Meghan Gracida took the opening throw-in and raced 150-yards down the field for her first goal of the game and a three-goal, 11-8 lead. Rice responded with a goal for Evergreen that cut the lead back to a manageable two goals, 11-9. The teamwork between Torres and Hernandez continued to pay off. Torres scored twice from the field with the two La Herradura players taking turns passing the ball to one another and blocking out opponents for a 13-9 edge. With time running out, Rice scored on a 60-yard penalty shot but it was too little, too late. Torres scored the last goal of the game on a 40-yard penalty conversion as La Herradura celebrated the 14-10 win and a check for $45,000, the winner’s share of the purse. Evergreen suffered their first loss of the winter season but were comforted with a check for $15,000 for their second-place finish.

Shane Rice with Midget, winner of the Best Playing Pony award.

“It was a tough match“, said Meghan Gracida after the game, “but our team played as a team and pushed hard. Our horses were amazing and so was our coach (Memo Gracida)“, she added, “So happy”.

Torres led all soring with eight goals. Hernandez scored five times and earned MVP honors while Meghan Gracida added a goal for the win. Rice’s six goals (three on penalty conversions) led the Evergreen attack. Galindo added three goals and Gonzalez scored once in the loss.

Rice’s horse, Midget, was named Best Playing Pony.

Buffalo 6, Vancouver/Mother Chukkers 3

La Herradura and Evergreen weren’t the only teams going home with money in their pockets as the Buffalos (Ross Adam, Tim Rudy, Felipe Sordelli and Riley Jordan) took the winners share of an $8,000 purse while the Vancouver/Mother Chukkers (Jay Garnett, Nicolas Maciel, Robert Payne III and Sukey Forbes) settled for $2,000 for a second-place finish in the 4-goal Lions Cup.

The Buffalos won the Lions Cup Final and $6,000. Ross Adam, Riley Jordan, Felipe Sordelli and Tim Rudy.

Robert Payne opened the scoring in the 4-goal Lions Cup final with a goal from the field for the Vancouver/Mother Chukkers. Tim Rudy converted a penalty shot to tie it at 1-1 and teammate Felipe Sordelli added a goal from the field for a 2-1 Buffalo lead.

Shutout defense by the Buffalos in the second period of the four chukker final was nearly all defensive in nature. Riley Jordon scored the only goal of the period, giving the Buffalos a 3-1 halftime lead.

The two teams exchanged goals in the third, matching one another goal-for-goal. A pair of goals from Payne were countered by single goals from Sordelli and Rudy (penalty goal). The lead remained with the Buffalos, 5-3.

For the second time in the match, Vancouver/Mother Chukkers were unable to mount a successful attack. Rudy’s third goal on the day accounted for all of the fourth chukker scoring as the Buffalos left the field celebrating the 6-3 win.

Rudy scored a team high three goals for Buffalo. Sordelli added two goals and Jordan accounted for a single goal in the win. All three Vancouver/Mother Chukkers goals came from Payne (two on penalty shots).

The Lions Cup and the Champions Cup were the final polo tournaments of the season at the Empire Polo Club and signaled the end of a 14-week season that included women’s competitions and Friday night polo under the lights as well as regular Sunday afternoon tournament action.

BPP was Renatta, owned and played by Robert Payne III.

The Empire Polo Club is located at 81-800 Avenue 51 in Indio, CA. For further information go to the club website at http://empirepolo.com or call 760-342-7755. Entrance for Friday night games is on Ave. 50 between Madison Street and Monroe Street.

Mix It Up wins Debii $ Dollar Memorial, Under the Lights

March 10, 2018 by Empire Polo

Mix It Up-winner of the 2018 Debii $ Dollar Memorial Cup at the Empire Polo Club. (Photos courtesy of Lynn Bremner)

The Debii $ Dollar Memorial Ladies Tournament final be held on Friday night, March 9th at 5:30 PM at the Empire Polo club with three teams competing.

Mix It Up (Meghan Gracida, Caroline Anier, Madelyn Cobb and Lynni Hutton/Kit Neacy) won the 2018 Debii $ Dollar Memorial Ladies Tournament under the lights Friday night at the Empire Polo Club despite losing their first mini-match of the competition.

Audry Persano (Mother Bears) earned MVP honors for her efforts.

Earlier in the week Mix It Up recorded wins over Luna Polo (Jenifer Alexi, Malia McCoy, Miranda Luna and Susan Adams) and Mother Bears (Carol

Caroline Anier’s Cheezi was honored as Best Playing Pony.

Farnsworth, Audry Persano, Catlin Dix and Sukey Forbes), setting up Friday night’s three-team round-robin as the final round of play.

Mother Bears received one-half goal by handicap from Mix It Up, but opening goals from Audry Persano and Catlin Dix had them on top, 2½ -2 (Friday night’s goals were added to their Wednesday totals in the evening’s two-chukker mini-match).

Mix It Up stormed back onto the field in the second period of play. Caroline Anier opened the scoring with a 30-yard penalty conversion followed by a goal from the field from teammate Madelyn Cobb, 4-2½. Two more goals from Caroline Anier and shutout defense gave the game to Mix It Up, 6-2½.

Mother Bears 3, Luna Polo 2

With Mix It Up sitting down for the ensuing two chukkers, Mother Bears faced Luna Polo, a team they tied in a 1-1 contest on Wednesday.

A scoreless first chukker was followed by a tightly-contested second and final period. Audry Persano scored back-to-back goals for Mother Bears as

The Mother Bears team finished in 3rd place in the tournament.

Luna Polo fought to get back into the game. Jenifer Alexi finally broke through the Mother Bears defense to score what would end up as the last goal of the game in a 3-2 final (Friday night’s goals were added to Wednesday’s team totals).

Luna Polo 4½, Mix It Up 4

The battle between Mix It Up and Luna Polo turned out to be the match of the night. Mix It Up had edged Luna Polo 2-1½ in Wednesday’s mini-match and was poised to atone for the narrow loss.

Malia McCoy scored the first goal of the final two chukkers of the night followed by Mix It Up goals from Madelyn Cobb and Caroline Anier. Adding the evening’s goals to Wednesday’s totals, Mix It Up had the early lead, 4-2½.

Luna Polo turned the tables on the previously undefeated Mix It Up foursome As Jenifer Alexi added two more goals in the final seven minutes of play (one on a 40-yard penalty conversion). The Luna Polo defense held solid, blanking Mix It Up in the final chukker and lifting them to a 4½-4 victory.

Luna Polo finished in second place in this year’s Debii Dollar tournament.

With each team ending the evening with 1-1 records, Mix It Up claimed the title on the basis of net goals scored.

Audry Persano earned MVP honors for her efforts with Caroline Anier’s Cheezi being honored as Best Playing Pony. Mix It Up’s Kit Neacy received the Dorie Forstmann Sportsmanship.

Kit Neacy (Mix It Up) received the Dorie Forstmann sportsmanship Award.

Polo action will continue on Saturday at the Empire Polo club in the 4-goal USPA Congressional Cup competition, with Empire (Rob Scapa, Erik Wright, Jim Wright and Kiki Hiller) facing Prima Polo (Robert Payne III, Jenny Alter, Toto Socas and Todd Randall) in a noon match.

The 2017-2018 Empire Polo season attracts players from across the country and around the world and offers fourteen weekends of fast-paced polo in the beautiful and relaxed setting of California’s winter playground.

The Empire Polo Club is located at 81-800 Avenue 51 in Indio, CA. For further information go to the club website at http://empirepolo.com or call 760-342-7755.

With seconds on the clock, Spindrift scores for 10-9 win in USPA General Patton 8-goal final

February 26, 2018 by Empire Polo

The 2018 USPA General Patton 8-goal Cup winner (L to R) Leslie Tims, John Bickford, Juan Curbelo and Luis Saracco.

A large and enthusiastic crowd was on hand and it was a back-and-forth battle that put an exclamation mark at the end of an exciting day of polo at the Empire Polo Club Sunday afternoon. In the final game of the day, Spindrift (Leslie Tims, John Bickford, Juan Curbelo and Luis Saracco) rebounded from a last chukker rally by STG (John Ziegler, Tommy Costello, Max Menini and Francisco Guinazu) to win the 2018 USPA General Patton 8-goal Cup.

Juan Curbelo opened the scoring with a goal from the field for the early Spindrift advantage, but fouls proved costly in the early goings. Penalty goals from STG’s Max Menini and Francisco Guinazu closed out the chukker with STG on top, 2-1.

Curbelo tied it at 2-2 with his second goal of the game, but STG countered with a 40-yard penalty goal from Guinazu for a fragile one goal advantage, 3-2. Leslie Tims scored the final goal of the period, leveling the score at three goals apiece, 3-3.

The Spindrift defenders were on their game in the third. Shutout defense coupled with a pair of 40-yard penalty conversions from John Bickford gave the lead to Spindrift, 5-3.

Two more penalty goals from Bickford and a goal from the field from Luis Saracco and a second consecutive scoreless chukker for STG saw Spindrift expand their lead to five goals, 8-3, with just two periods of regulation play remaining.

The STG offense came alive in the fifth with Menini opening with a goal from the field followed by two penalty goals from Guinazu, 8-6. Bickford converted a penalty shot from the 30-yard mark, 9-6, with Menini adding the final goal of the period. Spindrift continued to lead but a storming STG team appeared to have morphed into attack mode, and trailed by just two goals, 9-7.

The momentum remained with STG as the final chukker got underway. Guinazu’s fifth goal of the day had STG within a goal of the lead, 9-8, and Tommy Costello’s first goal of the afternoon had it all even at 9-9. Both teams pressed frantically for the winning goal and with 13 seconds on the clock it was Saracco executing the winning shot for the 10-9 win.

All five of Bickford’s five goals came on penalty shots and earned him MVP honors. Saracco and Curbelo each scored twice and Tims added a goal for the Cup. Guinazu was STG’s top scorer with five goals (four on penalty conversions). Menini scored three times (twice on penalty shots) and Costello was credited with a goal in the loss.

Curbelo’s Curbelo’s Briza was named Best Playing Pony.

Following a weekend off, polo returns to the Empire Polo Club on March 9^th with the 8-goal USPA Constitution Cup and on March 19^th with the USPA Congressional Cup.

General Admission and tailgating are free with a $20 parking fee. VIP is $30 per person with a reservation. Call 760-393-7298 for VIP reservations. Entrance is on Ave. 50 between Madison St. and Monroe St. Visit http://www.EmpirePolo.com for more details

The Empire Polo Club is located at 81-800 Avenue 51 in Indio, CA. For further information go to the club website at http://empirepolo.com or call 760-342-7755.

La Herradura holds on for 2018 General Patton 8-goal Cup win

February 19, 2018 by Empire Polo

Hall of Fame polo player Memo Gracida with his victorious La Herradura polo team at the Empire Polo Club in the 8-goal General George S. Patton Cup.

Former 10-goaler and Polo Hall of Fame legend Memo Gracida took center stage on Sunday afternoon at the Empire Polo Club and led his La Herradura team (Alvaro Fernandez, Rodrigo Fernandez, Isaac Sepulveda and Memo Gracida) to an 8-7 win over Granite Bay (Eric Hammon, Alvaro Tadeo, Marcos Llambias and Rhandy Heredia) in the second round of play in the 2018 General Patton 8-goal Cup.

In a well-orchestrated opening chukker La Herradura scored three straight goals while holding Granite Bay scoreless for the early lead. Isaac Sepulveda scored the first goal of the game followed by a 40-yard penalty conversion from Gracida, 2-0. Rodrigo Fernandez scored the closing goal of the period to move in front, 3-0.

The Las Herradura defense held solid again in the second. Sepulveda scored the only goal of the chukker, however, extending the La Herradura advantage to four goals, 4-0.

Gracida’s second goal of the match came on a 30-yard penalty shot in the third chukker, when the Granite Bay attack stirred. Alvaro Tadeo scored the first goal of the day for Granite Bay, followed by a goal from teammate Eric Hammon. The first half ended with Gracida and company in control of a 5-2 game.

Both defenses stiffened as the second half got underway. Rodrigo Fernandez scored to make it 6-2, with Marco Llambias responding with a goal for Granite Bay. After four periods of play, La Herradura continued to control the game behind a 6-3 advantage.

Goals continued to elude players on both sides in the fifth. Alvaro Fernandez scored for La Herradura with Tadeo countering with a goal from Granite Bay. After five periods of play, La Herradura continued to hold a three-goal advantage over Granite Bay, 7-4.

Gracida’s third goal of the day came from the field in sixth chukker action and put La Herradura up by four goals, 8-4, when the Granite Bay offense rallied. Two goals from Llambias and a goal from Tadeo brought Granite Bay to within a goal of the lead, but that would be as close as they would get as the La Herradura defenders held on to secure the 8-7 victory.

Gracida led the La Herradura attack with three goals (two on penalty conversions). Rodrigo Fernandez and Sepulveda each scored twice, and Alvaro Fernandez added a goal for the win. Tadeo and Llambias each scored three times for Granite Bay. Hammon was credited with a goal in the loss.

The win lifted the La Herradura tournament record to 1-1 while Granite Bay remained winless in two outings (0-2).

Spindrift 9, Cotterel 8

In morning 8-goal Patton Cup action, Spindrift (John Bickford, Luis Saracco, Juan Curbelo and Leslie Tims) won their second game of the tournament with a 9-8 nail-bitter over Cotterel (Jenny Luttrell, Ruben Coscia, Francisco Benardoni and Gaby Saccullo).

The 7-goal Cotterel team received one goal by handicap from Spindrift but watched as they were out-scored from the field in the opening minutes of the match. A goal from John Bickford and a pair of goals from Juan Curbelo gave the early lead to Spindrift, 3-1.

The two teams traded goals in the second with Cotterel getting single goals from Ruben Coscia and Jenny Luttrell. Spindrift matched them goal for goal with Curbelo scoring for the third time and Luis Saracco getting on the scoreboard for the first time on the day. Spindrift continued to lead, 5-3.

Saracco added two more goals in the third while a resolute Spindrift defense held Cotterel to a single penalty goal from Coscia. At the end of the first half, Spindrift had expanded its lead to three goals, 7-4.

Coscia struck first in the fourth, cutting the Spindrift lead back to two goals, 7-5, but the Spindrift attack was pressuring the Cotterel goal. Fouls proved to be costly for the Cotterel defenders as Bickford took advantage of the opportunity to convert two 30-ayrd penalty shots for goals. After four chukkers the Spindrift lead had grown to four goals, 9-5.

A determined Coscia took the field in the fifth and quickly scored two goals for Cotterel. A solid defensive effort shut down the Spindrift attack, cutting the lead to a manageable two goals, 9-7, with one chukker of play remaining in regulation time.

Cotterel continued to press the attack in the sixth, with Coscia converting a 60-yard penalty shot for a goal, when the Spindrift defense held firm. Time expired in the 9-8 Spindrift win with Cotterel pressuring the Spindrift goal.

Bickford, Curbelo and Saracco scored three goals apiece for the win. Coscia was high-scorer of the game with six goals. Luttrell added a goal and the team received one goal by handicap.

The win inflated the Spindrift record to 2-0 while Cotterel fell to 0-2.

STG 16, Lockton 10

In a noon 8-goal Patton Cup battle of the unbeatens, STG (Max Menini, John Ziegler, Tommy Costello and Francisco Guinazu) handed Lockton (Tim Kelly, Bryan Middleton, Jessica Bailey and Alejandro Gonzalez) their first loss of the tournament (1-1) while improving to 2-0 themselves.

Lockton received one goal by handicap from STG and went up, 2-0, with a goal from the field from Alejandro Gonzalez. John Ziegler responded with a 40-yard penalty conversion for STG followed by a 30-yard penalty goal from Max Menini and a goal from the field from Francisco Guinazu for the 3-2 lead. Gonzalez leveled the score at 3-3 with the final goal of the chukker.

A stubborn STG defense shut out Lockton in second chukker play. Single goals from Guinazu, Tommy Costello and Ziegler were supported by shutout defense, sending Lockton off the field at the end of the second period behind by three goals, 6-3.

Ziegler added a 40-goal penalty goal in the third followed by goals from teammates Menini and Costello, 9-3. Gonzalez and Bryan Middleton kept Lockton from getting blanked with goals to end the chukker trailing, 9-5.

Costello and Ziegler added goals in the fourth with Lockton responding with a 30-yard penalty goal from Middleton. The STG lead had grown to five goals, 11-6.

Gonzalez scored twice in the fifth for Lockton, scoring once from the field and once on a penalty shot. STG kept pace with goals from Menini and Guinazu (40-yard penalty goal). The STG lead held at five goals, 13-8.

Two penalty goals from Tim Kelly in the sixth was the extent of Lockton’s attempt to rally with STG adding three more goals to their total. Two goals from Guinazu and a goal from Ziegler had STG galloping off with the win, 16-10.

Guinazu and Ziegler led the STG attack with five goals apiece. Costello and Menini each scored three times for the win. Gonzalez set the offensive pace for Lockton with five goals. Middleton and Kelly each scored twice, and the team received one goal by handicap.

Play continues in 8-goal General Patton Cup tournament on Friday, February 23rd with STG (2-0) facing La Herradura (1-1); Spindrift (2-0) taking on Lockton (1-1) and Granite Bay (0-2) playing Cotterel (0-2). At the end of the day, the two teams with the top records will go to Sunday’s 2pm final.

The Empire Polo Club is located at 81-800 Avenue 51 in Indio, CA. For further information go to the club website at http://empirepolo.com or call 760-342-7755.

STG remains undefeated in Regional USPA Presidents Cup competition

February 4, 2018 by Empire Polo

The winning STG polo team (L to R)-Francisco Guinazu, Max Menini, Tommy Costello and John Ziegler at the Empire Polo Club.

STG (Max Menini, John Ziegler, Tommy Costello and Francisco Guinazu) handed Lockton (Jorg Ferrau/Athena Malin, Jessica Bailey, Bryan Middleton and Alejandro Gonzalez) their first loss of the 2018 Regional USPA Presidents Cup play Sunday afternoon at the Empire Polo Club.

Max Menini converted a 60-yard penalty shot for the first goal of the game and a 1-0 STG lead. Alejandro Gonzalez countered with a 40-yard goal of his own to level the score at 1-1. Consecutive goals from STG’s Tommy Costello ended the second period with STG on top, 4-2.

Goals were scarce in the second. John Ziegler scored on a 30-yard penalty shot for STG while Bryan Middleton was credited with Lockton’s only goal. STG left the field at the end of the first half in front by five goals, 7-2.

Costello added two more goals in the third while a resolute STG defense held Lockton scoreless for the chukker. Francisco Guinazu scored the final goal of the period, giving STG a comfortable 7-2 advantage.

Menini opened the second half with a goal from the field, extending the STG lead to six goals, 8-2, before the Lockton offense stirred. Bryan Middleton scored Lockton’s first fourth chukker goal on a 30-yard penalty shot and added a goal from the field to close out the period trailing STG, 8-4.

Middleton added another penalty goal in the fifth followed by Jessica Bailey’s first score of the day, 8-6. Guinazu kept STG from getting shutout with his second goal of the day. The fourth period ended with STG protecting a three-goal lead, 9-6.

Menini added three more goals from the field in the sixth with Baily scoring a single goal in the 12-7 Lockton loss.

Menini led the STG attack with five goals. Costello accounted for four goals with Guinazu scoring twice and Ziegler adding a penalty goal for the win. Middleton was high scorer for Lockton with four goals. Bailey added two goals and Gonzalez scored once.

The STG win kept them undefeated in Presidents Cup play at 2-0. Lockton suffered their first loss of the tournament and fell to 1-1.

Cotterel 10, Spindrift 9

In earlier President’s Cup action, Cotterel (Jenny Luttrell, Juan Curbelo, Matthew Gonzalez and Gary Saccullo) broke open a 9-9 sixth chukker tie with her fifth goal of the match to carry her team to a 10-9 victory over Spindrift (John Bickford, Luis Saracco, Ruben Coscia and Leslie Timms) in a noon faceoff.

First chukker goals from Jose Rodriguez and Gary Saccullo were countered a single goal from by John Bickford in a hotly-contested opening seven minutes of play. Cotterel emerged with the early 2-1 lead.

Bickford’s second goal of the game tied the score at 2-2, but defense continued to be the focus of both teams in the period. Saccullo scored the only other goal of the chukker, allowing Cotterel to escape by a 3-2 score.

Jenny Luttrell lit it up for Cotterel in the third, scoring twice from the field and adding a 30-yard penalty goal. Spindrift got single goals from Luis Saracco and Bickford, but continued to trail, 6-4 as the first half ended.

Spindrift came alive in the fourth. Goals from Ruben Coscia, Bickford and Saracco were answered by a penalty goal from Luttrell and Juan Curbelo’s first goal of the of the afternoon. Spindrift came within a goal of the lead as Cottrell held a one goal advantage, 8-7.

Play intensified in the fifth with neither team able to score from the field. Bickford converted a 30-yard penalty shot for the only goal of the chukker. With one period left in regulation play, the score was all even at 8-8.

Rodriguez put Cottrell on top, 9-8, with the opening goal of the sixth. Bickford responded with a 40-yard penalty shot, 9-9. Luttrell came through with the final goal of the match for a 10-9 Cotterel victory.

Luttrell led the Cotterel attack with five goals (two on penalty conversions). Saccullo and Rodriguez each scored twice with Curbello adding a goal for the win. Bickford’s six goals led all scoring for Spindrift. Saracco added two goals and Coscia scored once in the loss.

The win boosted Cotterel’s record to 1-1 with Spindrift falling to 0-2.

All four teams will return to action in next weekend’s conclusion of the 2018 Regional Presidents Cup at the Empire Polo Club.