UNITED STATES ARENA HANDICAP™
TOURNAMENT HISTORY
First played in 1980, the United States Arena Handicap is a 12- to 16-goal national tournament. This year the competition will be played as a subsidiary to the U.S. Open Arena Polo Championship presented by U.S. Polo Assn.
Held at Aspen Valley Polo Club (Carbondale, Colorado) from 2017-2020, the United States Arena Handicap was most recently hosted by Twilight Polo Club in Middleburg, Virginia, until 2022. In contemporary competition, Flexjet (2017, 2018) and Casablanca (2019, 2020) lead the competition in victories, each claiming back-to-back championships, remaining the only two teams to earn repeat titles throughout the tournament's history.
The 2022 edition of the United States Arena Handicap pitted 2021 finalists Core Real Estate (Andrew Baldwin, Connor Deal, Eden Ormerod) against Liberty Hall (Zak Coleman, Liam Lott, John Gobin). Featuring continuous action and end-to-end plays, Liberty Hall's combination of man-to-man defense and utilization of the boards ultimately earned an 18-13 victory. Read article here.
Moving to the West Coast, this year's edition of the United States Arena Handicap will be hosted by California Polo Club (Los Angeles, California). Following single elimination in the U.S. Open Arena Polo Championship quarterfinals, five teams will compete for the United States Arena Handicap title including Bush League, Denver Polo Club, Equus Hotel Waikiki, Hotels at Sea and Prestonwood/Broken Taco.
Displaying the breadth of exceptional talent and deep roots throughout all levels of polo, the rosters feature many Intercollegiate/Interscholastic (I/I) alumni alongside Team USPA alumnus Devon Dailey (Equus Hotel Waikiki). The Hotels At Sea trio of Tareq Salahi, Jorge "Tolito" Fernandez Ocampo Jr. and Marcos Bignoli will aim to repeat their 2021 victory, Denver Polo Club's Tommy Biddle Jr. will seek his fourth title (2010, 2012, 2016), as the remaining competitors attempt to capture the United States Arena Handicap for the first time.
The United States Arena Handicap will award $15,000 in total prize money as part of the USPA Tournament Prize Money Matching Program. The prize will be split between first ($7,500), second ($5,000) and third ($2,500) place teams.
Photo: 2022 United States Arena Handicap Champions: Liberty Hall - John Gobin, Liam Lott, Zak Coleman. ©Tony Gibson
