Watergate Bay hosts summer's last splash

A Cornish beach famous for its extreme sports is preparing for the arrival of over 20 thoroughbred polo ponies next month, as Veuve Clicquot Polo on the Beach returns to Watergate Bay on Tuesday 9th September.

Two teams, sponsored by property consultancy Knight Frank and construction company Kier Western, will have their mallets at the ready for the four-chukka battle on Tuesday 9th September.

With a mixture of professional and amateur players including a former England international and the polo manager of The Royal Military Academy Sandhurst, spectators will be treated to a fast-paced exhibition of arena polo played at a very high standard - in a stunning location on the sand beneath the cliffs at Watergate Bay.

“We’re more used to hosting top-level surfing and kitesurfing competitions than polo matches, but we enjoyed last year’s event so much that we couldn’t resist putting it on again,” said Will Ashworth of The Hotel & Extreme Academy, Watergate Bay.

“Veuve Clicquot Polo on the Beach is all about making polo accessible. Entry is completely free for spectators, so it really is the perfect opportunity to introduce the sport to a new audience and get away from some of the stuffiness and tradition that often goes with polo, without losing any of the glamour.”

Last year’s event at Watergate Bay was the first ever polo match to be held on a British beach and attracted a crowd of more than 1,000 local spectators, surfers and polo devotees to the Cornish venue.

Organisers are hoping that this year’s event will be even more popular, with visitors to the beach able to get extremely close to the ponies and players while the match is in progress.

Spectators will be able to enjoy the wit and wisdom of two expert commentators: Captain Ben Marshall, officer in charge of polo at Sandhurst; and Constantine Bay resident Richard Eldridge, an experienced polo player from the Cowdray Park club.

The Knight Frank team will be made up of Andrew Burgess and Barbara Zingg, who both work as instructors at The Royal Military Academy Sandhurst Polo Club. They are expected to be joined by Richard Blake-Thomas of Guards Polo Club, who has represented England as a junior.

Players on the Kier Western side all come from the Vaux Park Polo club in Somerset: led by the club’s owner Tim Vaux, a two goal professional player, the team features players of a very high standard.

Playing on the sand at Watergate Bay will see the players face a new set of challenges to the more genteel environment of arena polo.

“None of the ponies will have played on a beach before, so getting them used to the playing surface and surroundings will be the first hurdle,” said Andrew Burgess, from Wadebridge.

“Wet sand will make the ball run quicker than in an arena, but if the sand gets churned up then that won’t be the case, so the players who adapt fastest to the changes in the playing surface as the game progresses will have the upper hand. And the more exposed aspect of the beach makes the weather conditions on the day much more of a factor.”

“From the spectators’ point of view this should be polo at its most exciting. The arena polo pitch is much smaller than in grass polo so it really is end-to-end stuff, and with less room for the ponies to manouevre there will be plenty of jostling and physical contact between the riders.”

For the second year, Veuve Clicquot Polo on the Beach is completely free for spectators at Watergate Bay, who will be able to take advantage of the Veuve Clicquot champagne bar and beach barbeque from 5.30pm, before the teams, Knight Frank and Kier Western, ride out to play the first chukka at 6.30pm.

A limited number of hospitality packages are available at The Hotel, starting at 5.30pm with a champagne and canapé reception with music from the Carrie Mann Jazz Quartet. Guests will be able to watch the match from the elevated position of the hotel’s deck, and the package also includes a barbeque on the pool terrace after the trophy presentation. Ticket holders also gain entry to the post-polo party in the Ocean Room where the Veuve Clicquot will continue to flow, with music from party band Small Wonders.

Hospitality tickets are available from Claire Davies (claire@watergatebay.co.uk) for £90 per person.