Tip 33: You Hit Like a Girl
This is what I would say when I wanted to elevate both the boiling point and the intensity of my daughter’s swing when she played junior polo. I have worked with a lot of children through my career that started at ages before they could even muster up enough strength to get the mallet into a full revolution. In fact, I could easily embarrass a number of present day pros with their earlier swings. The swing consisted of a pendulum type of effort to barely swat at the ball.
Initially, this pendulum exercise is pretty good for teaching control and a feel for swinging parallel to the horse. Eventually though, if the full or half swing, starting from up is not introduced, the proper swing will never develop. I see many an amateur who runs towards the ball, then they drop their mallet down and then bring their mallet back from the down or hanging position and then try to swing forward at the ball with a dribble type of a swing. This is a result from not making the switch from our early pendulum method to starting from up or a full swing which starts down but begins by raising the mallet up, not dragging it back in the down position.
When I help women, sometimes there is a strength issue that has to be addressed. They may have to dedicate some time, just like guys, to developing their wrist or forearm a little more with some weight training.
However, most women are far better dancers than the average guy and that gives them an edge in the body rotation necessary in the swing. Some guys can sit in the saddle and get away with powering the ball with just their arm.
However, in most cases, women are a smaller frame and they have to get up in the saddle, into their legs, and take full advantage of their body rotation to get power into their swings. Rotating both the shoulders and the hips through the swing.
I have played with and against many women in my time. I still hold chairs and open doors, but I was taught long ago not to cut them any slack on the polo field if you want to try to get to the ball. I played with Sunny Hale in one of my US Arena Open Championship efforts some years back. She, as a lot of other talented women in this game, could hit a lot better than the majority of guys in the game.
The secret is two fold. Some additional weight training and getting out of the saddle and using your body in the swing.
When I think of all the wonderfully talented women players in the game today, I think I want to be able to hit like a girl. Happy Polo!!
