The Travel Journalist

Polo is known as the “sports of kings”, renowned for its elite image and grandiose pageantry. But, like the modern royal youngster, the sport is uncomfortable with its posh image and wishes to be seen as normal, mainstream and accessible.

People are encouraged to come and watch, but 99 percent will never wield a mallet across the six-hectare turf, much like you can read about Harry and Wills in the tabloids but you’re not going to party with them at Boujis.

 

It’s a grand and absorbing sport, to be sure, and made all the more exciting for its seeming decadence. Grand is a word very well suited to the game: Grand in size (each field is equivalent to five Twickenham rugby pitches and manicured to the same level), grand in history (established around 2000 years ago in the Himalayas) and grand in cost (each polo pony can cost up to ₤20 000 and a player needs at least six at the top level).

After such an introduction, you will be pleased and/or surprised to know that polo is a game rising in popularity in South Africa with every passing year. New estates are popping up in the Western Cape, Kwa-Zulu Natal and the Highveld, and the number of players is increasing.

THE ESTATES

To illustrate the state of the game, let’s have a look at the most famous polo venue in the country, Kurland in Plettenburg Bay, and then contrast it with the newest, Val de Vie in the Paarl valley.

Kurland is spectacular, both as a polo venue and as a hotel. It is expensive, exclusive and booked out till mid-2010. The hotel is fashioned for luxurious comfort, with a book-lined library, plush armchairs and enormous fire places in the common areas. There are 12 suites, allowing for an intimate atmosphere even when the hotel is filled to capacity.

Every year the estate hosts the prestigious Kurland International, where South Africa takes on either England or an invitational team from another top polo nation. Entry is relatively cheap (a tenner) and anyone can arrive and enjoy the atmosphere and stomp a few divots at half time.

South Africa’s captain, veteran goal scorer and the country’s top-ranked player, Buster McKenzie is quick to sing Kurland’s praises. He has played in all seven Internationals to be held thus far, and is based in Plett.

He says, “I play overseas for about six weeks out of the year, but I enjoy Kurland the most because of the amazing facilities and location. Plett is so good for a polo holiday, there is a lot to do away from the field and this area has so much to offer.”

Kurland Hotel general manager Jonathan Lithgow concurs, explaining how visitors to the hotel can experience the game for themselves.

He says, “People can take polo lessons and take advantage of the facilities. Everyone, from beginner to advanced will find some level they can play here.

“You’d start off on what is called a wooden horse, where you are analysed much like a golfer would have their swing measures and scrutinized. Then you’d take an hour’s tuition and make sure you get good enough not to do damage to the poor pony, and then do what is called stick-and-ball.

“You need to be confident on a horse, it’s a very different style of riding to show jumping and dressage so you essentially want to be able to stay on the horse at high speed and at precarious angles.”

As for the visitors, the place has a clear UK-oriented approach, but Lithgow says it is not exclusively so.

“We didn’t say we want exclusively UK guests, but you fish in a pond with the most fish,” he explains. “We have good representation in the UK and it’s just worked out that way.

“We have quite a large number of German and Swiss guests who come for dinner, because they have houses on the local golf estates. We are open for outside diners, but only when the hotel isn’t full.”

As for Royal guests (the “Mink and Manure” set), Lithgow is tight lipped but admits the rumours of Prince Charles having been to stay are false. He does concede to having hosted a few celebrities, but true to five-star form will not divulge names.

“I’ve worked at venues where the famous guest list is advertised, but I don’t think they would be too happy about that,” he says before adding, “But I will tell you there is one celebrity in the film industry who has requested to stay here, and if they can’t come to Kurland then they won’t be coming to South Africa.”

Travelling west to Cape Town, you have the brand new Val de Vie Lifestyle and Wine Estate, located a mere half hour from the Mother City along the N1 highway. This venue is modern chic to Kurland’s old-school luxury, young buck to their seasoned campaigner and more concerned with mass appeal.

Val de Vie brand manager Jean du Plessis (no relation to me) is eager to attract a local client base when the 120-room hotel is complete, saying, “We want to focus on making it accessible to locals, and then international guests.

“You get 10 levels of five-star, so we want to under-promise and over-deliver, instead of over-promise and under-deliver. I’d rather be a deluxe four-star than a crappy five.

“If we can come in at R1200 to R2200 a room, and build up a clientele, then we can ensure return guests. That’s how you build a business.”

The estate has been under construction for the past six years, at a cost of ₤30 million. It is the largest secure residential complex in the country (there are still 50 stands available on the golf course) and will feature a winery, golf course, spa, gym complex and restaurant in addition to the hotel, function venue and polo pavilion.

They have already hosted numerous matches on their two Hurlingham-standard fields, with the official launch to be held on 27 April, and Du Plessis is passionate about bringing a more accessible image to the game.

“I feel surely there could be a space for polo over a period of time in the media,” he says. “There should be stories about the grooms and the ponies, and build awareness for the game. We have a nine-month season!

“I really want to hone in on the fact that this is a beautiful, thrilling, dangerous game. People should know about someone like this, (showing me picture of paraplegic former player Leo Baxter). He’s developed this thing that if you come off the horse, a device inflates like an airbag. People should know about that. They should know about the passion of the grooms and the players.

“I mean, how boring is Formula 1? If it didn’t have the brand associations…it’s so repetitive! Polo is visually appealing.

“What is nice here is that you can come here in your slops and shorts, or dressed up. The combination of the big hats and Pimms is a personal choice, we’re just saying people should come for a day. Get out the city for a day and come sit on the embankment. You don’t have to break the bank and book out a corporate box to have a good time.”

THE GAME

Ok, so now you’re at a polo match, sitting on the embankment with your picnic and Peroni, but you may have no idea what you’re looking at. Any sport is boring if you don’t understand it, so Plettenburg Bay director of polo Clive Peddle is the ideal person to explain some of the basics (many of which show a less than genteel side of the sport).

He says, “All the rules are designed for the safely of the game, mainly the safety of the ponies.

“When you hit the ball you create a line and you’re entitle to that line. You can’t have an opposition player riding at right angles across you, because it will cause a massive collision. All the rules are based on that.

“There are four players on each team, numbered one to four. Number one is the forward, who scores the goals. Two is like a flanker in rugby who does all the hard work, three is the pivot, or fly half, while four is at the back. But anyone can score, there’s no restriction about where you can be on the field.

“There’s no off-side rule, and you can come in at any angle as long as it’s safe. You have to be shoulder to shoulder with the horse though, otherwise it spins the horse. You can also hook a stick, as long as you’re on the same side of the horse, and you can ride a player off the ball.”

As for the various levels, polo is strict about who can play with whom because of safety issues.

Peddle explains, “All players are assigned a handicap according to their ability. When you start, you’re an S (for starter) and you’re not allowed to play in tournaments. You then graduate to minus two, and it goes up to 10, which is the best.

“In theory, that means the player scores 10 goals a game, but that is rare. Then you add all four players’ handicaps together to get the team’s handicap. It becomes high goal polo when a team is at 18, and the maximum is obviously 40.”

To demonstrate the quality of polo around the world, South Africa’s best player, national captain McKenzie, has a handicap of six, while Argentina, World Champions since 1949, have at least eight players on a 10 handicap.

That being said, the quality of play around the country is improving greatly and McKenzie is excited about new players like 23-year-old Gareth Evans and 18-year-old Ignatius du Plessis (again, no relation), both of whom played for South Africa against Argentina in the 2007 Kurland International.

“The new talent in this country is very exciting,” McKenzie says. “There are some real players coming through, and in the next five years we are going to have proper players who can compete on a top international level. They have had wonderful opportunities that the older players did not have, and they are making full use of them.”

Also contributing to the optimism is the fact that South Africa has a horse racing industry full of potential polo ponies just waiting to be retrained. “We have a wonderful raw source of horses,” McKenzie says.

“Once the horses are retired from racing, they can be retrained fairly cheaply and you can build a string for a decent price. Other countries have to breed their ponies, like New Zealand, to get a string and that takes up to five years and a lot more money than here.” Kurland’s Lithgow agrees, having grown up in the racing industry: “You’re looking for agility and speed in the ponies, and racehorses have those qualities.”

So whether you’re a player or a potential fan, South Africa is an ideal place to whet your polo appetite. It’s not yet too established to make you feel unwelcome, but it’s a bit more than amateur in standard.

What could be better than a day in the sun, the smell of grass and horses floating along the embankments and a flute of champers on hand? That’s right, not much. And in case you were wondering, Prince Harry plays off a handicap of three.

© Lindsay du Plessis 2008