NEW ERA OF HIGH-GOAL POLO CONTINUES GROWTH FOR
2005 SEASON AT INTERNATIONAL POLO CLUB PALM BEACH

Oct. 18th, '04: WELLINGTON, Florida – The glamorous rebirth of American high-goal polo continues to gain momentum as International Polo Club Palm Beach begins its second season on Sunday, January 9 at 3 p.m. with the final of the 22-goal Iglehart Cup.

In the club’s successful inaugural season, thousands of spectators flocked to the new stadium every weekend for four months to watch the best polo in the United States, culminating with 6,798 spectators at the championship match of the 100th anniversary of the Stanford Financial Group U.S. Open.

The 2005 season features six high-goal tournaments – three 22-goal tourneys and three 26-goal tournaments. Following the Iglehart Cup will be the Joe Barry Memorial Cup and the Ylvisaker Cup. The 26-goal season opens with the Hall of Fame Cup, followed by the C.V. Whitney Cup and concluding with the Stanford Financial Group U.S. Open.

At least 20 high-goal teams are expected to participate in part of the 2005 season, according to polo manager Jimmy Newman, surpassing last season’s 17 teams.

“This shows that the new era of high-goal polo is continuing,” said John Goodman, International Polo Club Palm Beach owner whose Isla Carroll team won the 2004 U.S. Open title and will defend that crown in 2005. “The club has been accepted by patrons and players internationally and our mission is to make the sport accessible to everyone.”

Most of the world’s top players are expected to play during the 22-goal and 26-goal seasons, including 10-goalers Mariano Aguerre, Javier Novillo Astrada, Miguel Novillo Astrada, Mike Azzaro, Carlos Gracida, Bautista Heguy, Pite Merlos, Sebastian Merlos and Adam Snow as well as 9-goalers Milo Araujo, Eduardo Novillo Astrada, Pancho Bensadon, Lucas Criado, Paco de Narvaez, Memo Gracida, Eduardo Heguy and Agustin Merlos.

Many of the top patrons are returning including Camilio Bautista of Colombia (Las Monjitas), Peter Brant (White Birch), Bob Daniels (Pony Express), Scott Devon (Catamount), John Hall (Old Pueblo), Neil Hirsch (Black Watch), Gillian Johnston (Bendabout), Skeeter Johnston (Everglades), Tommy Lee Jones (San Saba), Michael Price (Texas Polo), Victor Vargas of Venezuela (Lechuza) and Steve Van Andel (Orchard Hill). New patrons include Irvin Abell, Ron Juvonen, Joe Dimenna and Francisco Escobar.

Already acknowledged as the premier high-goal polo club in the United States, International Polo Club Palm Beach spent the off-season preparing for another successful season. The club expanded its stadium capacity, adding 32 boxes of eight seats apiece and four boxes of six seats at midfield to increase the total to 116, and built two new world-class fields. A new, larger marquee will overlook Field 2 where the popular Sunday Brunch will be presented by renowned caterer and restaurateur Barton G. of Miami, New York and Los Angeles.

“We are continuing the resurgence of high-goal polo in South Florida,” said Michael C. Brown, General Manager of International Polo Club Palm Beach. “International Polo Club Palm Beach has been instrumental in creating a foundation for the sport to grow in popularity with fans, sponsors and players.”           

The club’s second high-goal season has numerous polo and special events planned, highlighted by the 40-goal Outback Challenge on Saturday, February 19, which features eight 10-goalers in one game, to benefit the Polo Players Support Group, and the Miami Project to Cure Paralysis benefit on Saturday, March 26, with a night polo match followed by a cocktail reception and dinner. Other special events include the British Forces Foundation exhibition polo match and benefit dinner on Saturday, January 22 and the season-ending Polo Ball gala on Friday, April 22.

The club is also attracting more major sponsors, including Stanford Financial Group, Maybach, Bombardier Aerospace, Ritz-Carlton (Palm Beach), Chopard and Roderer Estates champagne, according to Brown.

Goodman’s International Polo Club Palm Beach has provided a large base for polo to recapture the magical glory days from the late 1970s and 1980s when the sport flourished in the United States, especially in South Florida. International Polo Club Palm Beach is the first new polo club to be built in decades, and it has fulfilled a long-standing void for a facility dedicated solely to high-goal professional polo. Designed in tropical, “Caribbean-Colonial” style, it combines old-world charm and new-world comfort.  

For information about the upcoming 2005 high-goal season, including the Stanford Financial Group U.S. Open, call the club at (561) 204-5687 or visit online at www.internationalpoloclub.com. International Polo Club Palm Beach is located at 3667 120th Avenue South, between Pierson Road and Lake Worth Road, in Wellington.

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