SECOND ANNUAL GAUNTLET OF POLO™ KICKS OFF FEBRUARY 1

WELLINGTON, Fla., January 16, 2020 (Newswire.com) - ​The GAUNTLET OF POLO™, an elite three-tournament series featuring 14 of the world’s best polo teams, returns for its second year when the 2020 series begins in February.

The series gets underway with the C.V. Whitney Cup from February 1-23, followed by the USPA Gold Cup® from February 22-March 22. The series concludes March 21-April 19, with the prestigious U.S. Open Polo Championship®. All three events will be contested at the International Polo Club Palm Beach (IPC) on the U.S. Polo Assn. stadium field.

The GAUNTLET OF POLO combines these three top tournaments into a high-stakes tournament series. In addition to the three individual titles at stake, any team that wins all three events will be crowned The GAUNTLET Champion.

The series is hosted by International Polo Club Palm Beach, and is sanctioned by The United States Polo Association (USPA), the parent of USPA Global Licensing (USPAGL) who oversees the U.S. Polo Assn. brand. The Gauntlet offers $500,000 in prize money via the three tournaments and if one team is able to win all three GAUNTLET OF POLO events, they will walk away with a $500,000 bonus, for a grand total of $1,000,000. 

“The GAUNTLET OF POLO is our sport’s ultimate competition with the best teams competing against each other over the course of the three-month competition for the largest purse in USPA history,” said David Cummings, President & CEO of Global Polo Entertainment. “Fans on-site at IPC and those watching the final around the world on CBS Sports will witness the very best our sport has to offer along with the tradition, thrill and glamour of polo.”

Fans can watch all three GAUNTLET OF POLO events in many ways:

• Live on-site at the International Polo Club Palm Beach in Wellington, Florida.
• Livestreamed on Global Polo Network TV and online at globalpolo.com.
• Game highlights will be available on Global Polo Network TV at globalpolo.com.
• CBS Sports will air the U.S. Open Polo Championship final on Sunday, April 26 at 2:00 p.m. EDT. 

History was made during the first GAUNTLET OF POLO in 2019, when Team Pilot captured all three events to win the $500,000 bonus and earn $1 million over the course of the series. “The USPA looks forward to another highly competitive winter season that culminates with 14 teams vying for the three historic trophies in North America,” said Bob Puetz, CEO of the USPA, “Pilot is returning to defend their GAUNTLET Championship against the top teams, players, and horses from around the world.”

Pilot will defend their title against a strong field of contenders, which includes the best players in the world including five 10-goal players, the most elite of all polo players. The 10-goalers competing this year include Sapo Caset, Facundo Pieres, Gonzalo Pieres, Polito Pieres and Pelon Stirling. Facundo Pieres and Gonzalo Pieres were part of Pilot’s winning team last year.

The 14 teams competing for the 2020 GAUNTLET OF POLO are listed below with the team and player handicaps:

• CESSNA (21) – Chip Campbell (2); Felipe Marquez (7); Ezequiel “Gallego” Martinez Ferrario (7); Nicolas “Nico” Saenz (5)
   
• COCA-COLA (22) – Gillian Johnston (1); Julian “Negro” de Lusarreta (8); Nicolas “Nico” Pieres (9); Steve Krueger (4)
   
• DAILY RACING FORM (22) – James “Jared” Zenni (6); Tomas “Tommy” Collingwood (5); Constancio “Costi” Caset (5); Agustin Obregon (6)
   
• DUTTA CORP (22) – Timmy Dutta (3); Mariano “Nino” Obregon (7); Facundo Obregon (6); Lucas Diaz Alberdi (6)
   
• EQUULEUS (22) – Joseph “Joe” DiMenna (0); Mariano Gonzalez (7); Christian “Magoo” Laprida (8); Ignacio “Iñaki” Laprida (7)
   
• LA INDIANA (22) – Michael Bickford (2); Pablo “Polito” Pieres (10); Jeffrey “Jeff” Hall (6); Esteban Panelo Jr. (4) ALT; Santiago Gomez Romero (4) ALT
   
• LAS MONJITAS (22) – Camilo Bautista (0); David “Pelon” Stirling (10); Francisco Elizalde (9); Mackenzie Weisz (3)
   
• OLD HICKORY BOURBON (22) – Stephen “Stevie” Orthwein (4); Miguel Novillo Astrada (9); Victorino “Torito” Ruiz (7); Will Johnston (2)
   
• PARK PLACE (22) – Alfredo Bigatti (8); Andrey Borodin (0); Juan Britos (8); Felipe Viana (6)
   
• PATAGONES (22) – Gonzalo Avendaño (1); Santiago Toccalino (8); Tomas Garcia del Rio (8); Geronimo Obregon (5)
   
• PILOT (22) – Curtis Pilot (0); Facundo Pieres (10); Gonzalo “Gonzalito” Pieres (10); Lucas Escobar (2)
   
• POSTAGE STAMP FARM (22) – Annabelle Gundlach(0); Mariano Aguerre (8); Valerio “Lerin” Zubiaurre (8); Mariano “Peke” Gonzalez (6) 
   
• SANTA CLARA (22) – Luis Escobar (4); Matias Magrini (7); Ignatius “Nachi” Du Plessis (8); Henry Porter (3)
   
• TONKAWA (22) – Jeff Hildebrand (0); Guillermo “Sapo” Caset (10); Ignacio “Cubi” Toccalino (8); Matias “Colo” Gonzalez (4) ALT; Matt Coppola (4) ALT

To learn more about the GAUNTLET OF POLO please visit www.uspolo.org/gauntlet-of-polo. Tickets for all GAUNTLET OF POLO games on the U.S. Polo Assn. Field are available at www.Internationalpoloclub.com/SundayTickets. Tickets can also be purchased on game day at the gate or by phone at 561-282-5334.

ABOUT THE UNITED STATES POLO ASSOCIATION (USPA), USPA GLOBAL LICENSING (USPAGL), AND U.S. POLO ASSN. 

Founded in 1890, the United States Polo Association (USPA) is the national non-profit governing body for the sport of polo, comprised of almost 300 member clubs and thousands of individual members. USPA Global Licensing Inc. (USPAGL) is the for-profit subsidiary of the USPA and the exclusive worldwide licensor for the USPA’s global licensing program which distributes the leading sport-inspired apparel brand, U.S. Polo Assn. U.S. Polo Assn. is the official brand of the USPA. The brand offers apparel, accessories, footwear, travel and home goods and has a global footprint of $1.7 billion with worldwide distribution through 1,100 U.S. Polo Assn. retail stores, department stores, independent retailers and e-commerce with a footprint in 180 counties.

For more on the United States Polo Association, please visit www.uspolo.org.

For more information on U.S. Polo Assn., visit www.uspoloassnglobal.com.

ABOUT GLOBAL POLO ENTERTAINMENT™​

Global Polo Entertainment™​ (GPE) is a subsidiary of USPA Global Licensing, responsible for creating, distributing and monetizing content opportunities across the entire USPA enterprise. Additionally, GPE produces global broadcasts to bring the sport of polo to millions of consumers and sports fans around the world.

ABOUT THE INTERNATIONAL POLO CLUB PALM BEACH

The International Polo Club Palm Beach is the premier polo destination in the world, hosting the largest field of high-goal teams and the most prestigious polo tournaments in the United States. Polo matches are open to the public, with a wide range of hospitality and guest seating that includes elegant grandstand viewing, field tailgating, stadium seating, field-side champagne brunch at The Pavilion, and exclusive sponsor boxes.

MEDIA CONTACT

Shannon Stilson, Senior Director, Marketing, USPA Global Licensing
sstilson@uspagl.com
Cell (904) 466-8492

###

Source: USPA Global Licensing