Polo in Sotogrande WHAT IS POLO ABOUT ? Captivating, heart-stopping, thrilling, enthralling - the list of superlatives used to describe the game of kings is almost endless. And yet there is nothing that completely captures the essence of it, the fascination that begins the moment you first glimpse the vast, imposing green of a prime polo field, and that builds as eight riders thunder in your direction, hooves drumming on the turf. Your connection is immediate, almost primal; the experience, unforgettable. GROUND The maximum permitted is 300 yards long and 200 yards wide. Goal posts are 8 yards apart. Play is divided into chukkas of 7 minutes each, with an interval between chukkas of 3 minutes, extended to 5 minutes at half-time. A full match is 8 chukkas, but usually 4 or 6 chukkas are played. BELL Is rung at the end of each 7 minute period. Play continues after the bell until the ball goes out of play, or the umpire stops play for a foul, or the bell is rung for a second time 30 seconds after the first bell; in the last chukka play stops with the first stroke of the bell. In the case of a tie, the last chukka ends in the same way as previous chukkas, and then after an interval of 5 minutes the game goes on with additional chukkas, the goals being widened to 16 yards, until a deciding goal is scored. CHANGING ENDS Ends are changed after EACH GOAL scored, or at half-time if no score by then. SANTA MARIA POLO CLUB Finca Los Pinos. Ctra. A7 (Dirección Málaga) Salida A133 11312 Sotogrande San Roque (Cádiz) Tel: +34 956 610 012 Fax: +34 956 610 132 Email: info@santamariapoloclub.com Web: www.santamariapoloclub.com