Houston Polo Club and Brookshire Polo League to Merge

Houston, Texas (May 26, 2011) – Effective June 1, 2011, Brookshire Polo League (BPL) and the Houston Polo Club (HPC) are pleased to announce the consolidation of their polo operations, creating the largest playing membership under a single U.S. Polo Association (USPA) polo club in North America. The USPA is the governing body for the sport of polo in the United States. The new organization will operate as the Houston Polo Club, under the direction of Executive Director Pam Mudra. As a part of the merger, the HPC welcomes Scott Wood, Tim Kelly, and Carl Price to its Board of Directors. HPC also welcomes 14 new playing members as part of the merger, bringing its playing membership count to close to 60.

“We are very excited to unite with our fellow players at BPL, to further the investments we’ve all made in making Houston a premiere destination for polo players at all levels,” says No Le Hace sponsor and HPC President George Georgiades. “HPC and BPL have been working closely together over the past few years, and this final step will allow us to continue to grow the sport and offer a better experience to players and fans alike, at a reasonable cost.”

Uniting the two organizations is expected to benefit polo in Texas in many ways, providing six or more levels from Polo School through 12+ goal polo for its members, while allowing the two clubs to achieve economies of scale in areas such as club management, umpires, and marketing. The USPA events awarded to both clubs for this year are expected to go forward as planned, including the U.S. Women’s Open, which has been awarded to BPL in 2011 after a 20 year hiatus.

“This change will benefit everyone in the polo community world-wide– the sponsors, the professionals, and others who are involved in the day-to-day workings of our sport. Merging the two clubs reduces scheduling conflicts, allows more opportunities for everyone to play the type of polo that suits their needs from season to season, and keeps our membership growing through polo school, Junior Polo, Intercollegiate and Interscholastic polo, and other teaching levels that we can offer as an integrated organization,” says ERG sponsor and BPL member Scott Wood. “We’re very pleased to have reached an agreement to bring these two groups together, and I believe that this will be a great success story for polo.”

The USPA recently accredited The Houston Polo Club as a Regional Polo Center (RPC) thanks to its program development and the diverse learning opportunities it offers players. The USPA established the RPC program as a network of the most prominent polo centers around the country that train polo players, umpires, managers and others. They also support other clubs nearby and provide resources in an effort to enhance USPA membership.

About Houston Polo Club
The Houston Polo Club was founded in 1928 and remains dedicated to the sport of polo and equestrian activities. Located just minutes from The Galleria and Downtown, the club is situated on 26 beautifully landscaped and wooded acres. Polo tournaments and leagues are played throughout the spring and fall seasons, with final matches played on Sunday afternoons. For more information, please visit www.thehoustonpoloclub.com.

About the U. S. Polo Association
The U.S. Polo Association was organized and exists for the purposes of promoting the game of polo, coordinating the activities of its Member Clubs and Registered Players, arranging and supervising polo tournaments, competitions, and games, and providing rules, handicaps, and conditions for those tournaments, competitions, and games including the safety and welfare of participants and mounts. For more information, please visit, www.uspolo.org.

MEDIA CONTACT: Ryan Boger- French/West/Vaughn- 919-277-1166- rboger@fwv-us.com