Great Meadow Polo Club to Host Weekend of National United States Polo Association Arena Tournaments
The Great Meadow Polo Club will host a series of United States Polo Association (USPA) polo tournaments this coming weekend in The Plains, Virginia. All games will take place in the Greenhill Stadium, Great Meadow Foundation’s outdoor polo arena.
The Great Meadow Foundation is a 501(c)3 organization dedicated to preserving open space for community and equestrian use. With 374 acres, Great Meadow has ample space for social distancing in an open-air environment.
Beginning Friday, October 2nd, women from Virginia, Maryland, Pennsylvania and Ohio will play in the fourth annual $2,500 12 to 15 goal USPA Women’s Arena Open and $2,500 7 to 10 goal USPA Women’s Arena Handicap, which represents the highest level of women’s arena polo competition currently played in the United States. The finals of both tournaments will take place on Sunday, October 4th.
“The USPA Women’s Arena Open and Handicap are the most prestigious women’s arena tournaments currently played in the United States. Originally set to be hosted by the University of Virginia (UVA), UVA was forced to cancel due to university COVID-19 restrictions and the tournaments were relocated to Great Meadow Polo Club,” said Kaila Dowd, USPA Tournament Coordinator. “Having only a few weeks to plan, Club Manager John Gobin and Whitney Ross [Delegate] have attracted some of the top female arena players in the country and have a spectacular weekend of competitive arena polo planned. In conjunction with the two women’s tournaments, the final of the $30,000 National Arena Chairman’s Cup will also be played over the weekend. I had the pleasure of watching the Chairman’s Cup semifinals and it was some of the most exhilarating and fast paced arena polo I have seen all year!”
All games of both landmark tournaments (excluding consolation matches) will be livestreamed on Global Polo TV.
On Saturday, October 3rd, $30,000 will be on the line with the final matches of the National Arena Chairman’s Cup during the last evening of Great Meadow’s spectator polo season. Celebrity Cruise Polo and Twilight Polo will vie for the largest prize money purse ever awarded in a USPA arena tournament since the establishment of the USPA’s Prize Money Matching Program. Tickets are sold out for Saturday's polo.
All polo matches will be organized by the Great Meadow Polo Club, headed by former captain of the Budweiser U.S. Polo team, John Gobin. Of the weekend’s lineup, Gobin said “It has been a challenging year and I am so glad we were able to add both Women’s Arena Tournaments into our fall schedule. With the finals of the $30,000 Chairman’s Cup on Saturday as well, it will be an exciting weekend of polo at Great Meadow!”
2020 has been a historic year, with the Great Meadow Polo Club hosting nine tournaments, including the Commander-in-Chief Cup, a leg of the USPA’s National Youth Tournament Series, the Eastern Circuit Masters Cup and more.
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About The Great Meadow Foundation
Great Meadow is a 374-acre equestrian event facility located in the middle of Virginia’s finest horse community. The park was founded in 1982 as a 501(c)(3) non-profit foundation with a mission to open space for public enjoyment, non-profit events, equestrian sports at all levels and community service. Founded by philanthropist Arthur “Nick” Arundel as a permanent home for the prestigious Virginia Gold Cup steeplechase races, Great Meadow today hosts 40 events that draw 200,000 spectators through the gates each year to see steeplechasing, polo, show jumpers, foot races, rocketry, cultural fairs and Independence Day fireworks. The Great Meadow Foundation relies on financial contributions from individuals, foundations, and corporations to provide this programming to the public and upkeep its spectacular grounds. For more information or to make a donation, please visit www.greatmeadow.org, call (540) 253-5000 and ask for Executive Director, Carrie Hull, or email her at chull@greatmeadow.org.
About The Great Meadow Polo Club
The Great Meadow Polo Club was established in 1993 alongside the construction of a top flight polo arena at the Great Meadow Foundation. In addition to the popular Saturday night Twilight Polo, the club hosts both arena and field practices, tournaments and charity matches. The polo club also operates the Great Meadow Polo School, introducing new players to the sport of polo in a safe and fun environment focused on horsemanship. For more information about the Great Meadow Polo Club, please visit https://greatmeadowpoloclub.com/.