Basic rules of Polo | 
Polo is a team sport played on horseback in which the objective is to score goals against an opposing team. There are usually four players per team, or three for arena polo, and two teams play against each other.
Like many other equestrian sports Polo is seen as a noble and worthy sport which has a long and illustrious history. In the UK it is considered to be the favoured sport of the Royal family. Prince Charles and his sons Prince William and Harry have all been pictured playing polo many times. In other countries too, Polo is played by royals and the aristocracy.
There are two main types of polo – indoor or arena polo and outdoor polo. The outdoor version tends to be more expensive, the indoor version is cheaper, but is much more popular in the USA than elsewhere
Players are all mounted on Polo ponies as many people say that ponies account for much of the talent and skill in the game rather than fully grown horses. Like many other team sports, points are scored by getting a goal, however, in polo, this occurs while the player is on horseback.
Time & Format:
Polo matches are divided into periods which are called chukkas. Each chukka usually lasts seven minutes. Games can have either four, six or eight chukkas although six is the most common number. There are four minutes between chukkas.
Based on their past performance, polo players have handicaps and the handicap of a team is worked out by adding together all of the players’ handicap. The team with the larger handicap sometimes will get free points to compensate for this.
The object of the game:
The object is simply to score goals to win. A goal is scored by hitting the ball with the mallet. However, the ball can cross the line in numerous ways, including if it’s knocked through by the pony.
Polo can be a contact sport although this is limited – players can only push each other at a 45 degree angle. There are also a number of fouls, although, as a general rule, polo is a gentle sport. Unlike for other games, there are judges and referees to intervene with the rules of the game and penalties are awarded in case of breach.
Topics: Polo
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