Blame Winston Churchill, who was addicted. Or Prince Charles, not to mention F. Scott Fitzgerald. Polo has a reputation as a gentleman's game, the domain of the wealthy. Kiwi-style, though, the sport is far from a pack of pretty ponies and chortling chaps casually lobbing a ball about.
It's more like equine hockey at 70km/h, including the clashing of beasts ridden by fearless riders - and next week is the big Auckland event for riders and spectators.
On a misty Auckland morning Ross George stands in the centre of a dark stable in Karaka, flanked by magnificent horses being prepped for the BMW New Zealand Polo Open. The Auckland businessman, vice-president of the Auckland Polo Club, is the closest thing to a polo patron within city limits. He's an avid player whose love of the game began when he was introduced to it
as a 10-year-old in Manawatu. Two years later he learned to play, but there was a lull in his adult years.
It wasn't until returning to New Zealand at the age of 32, after living in the concrete jungles of Los Angeles and Hong Kong, that he ended up back on a horse. He's been hooked ever since and is grateful to people who loaned him horses the first few times he played again. "People are remarkably welcoming. If you're interested, people are very willing to help. I took it up at the end of my rugby career. I wanted another team game."
He loves horses and sport, so getting back into polo was natural.
"You either love horses or you don't. There's no grey area. Polo's exhilarating, it's the complexity of a game on a horse, it's fantastic."
There's little doubt polo can be an expensive sport and many players need to be assisted by funding. Mr George isn't keen to discuss the price of a polo horse.
"It's a closely guarded secret," he says, adding that New Zealand horses are sought internationally as polo ponies. He clarifies that the horses the amateurs use aren't quite in that calibre, however.
He says agile horses love the game, too, but tire easily so are changed out throughout the match. His horse, William, is one of 11 he will use in a match.
The horses are protected by wraps on their forelocks, while players have lower leg padding to protect them from being crushed by opposition horses, and of course helmets.
"It's a very fast game, you're playing a ball sport at a horse's pace. I'm surprised how few injuries there are. It's a very hard ball that flies off the mallet and if it hits you it's like a cricket ball being hit into you."
Mr George trains twice a week and on the weekends and is enthusiastic about getting others involved. "My son plays, I taught him and some of his friends. You have to learn to ride a horse. Polo horses are quite snappy, they're not like a trek horse."
Polo promoter Monica Johns says Auckland is fortunate to have someone like Mr George. "We're so lucky to have a smart man who is passionate about the sport. Last year we had about 5000 people come and watch the event, including busloads and 10 corporate marquees."
The season runs from December to April. Outside that time, the horses are sent to nearby farms until October then put back in the hands of the grooms, perhaps the unsung heroes of the game.
They are tasked with getting the animals match-ready, and the horses in the stable we visit sport shiny coats, trimmed manes and plaited tails. Most polo ponies are mares because "they're tougher," says Kathy Pile, a groom for 15 years.
In the lead-up to and during the season she's responsible for getting the horses fit and feeding them. "The horses come in after six months of doing nothing and they're the size of a house."
During the season, it's 4am starts and 10pm finishes, and the horses are involved in three or four games each week. Ms Pile says it's hard work - for her and her charges - but all worth it for the love of the game.
For the organisers of the event it's also about putting on great entertainment.
People who have probably never been on a horse in their lives turn up for the spectacle on finals day ... it's a chance to put on their gladrags for Fashions in the Field, and act like kings and queens for the day.
And it's a jolly good show.
WHAT BMW New Zealand Polo Open
The week's matches feature 28 teams and 450 horses promising to be an impressive day for spectators.
Star players John-Paul Clarkin and Sam Hopkinson will take part.
WHEN February 14 - 19. Dress up for finals day, February 19. Stomping of the divots cocktail party: February 17
WHERE: Clevedon
HOW MUCH: Polo, car: $30. Stomping of the Divots: $62. See iticket.co.nz
www.aucklandpoloclub/event.co.nz
POLO - PLAYING THE GAME
As in hockey, the object of the game is to move the hard ball down the field into the net to score. The difference is, you hit it with a mallet from atop a galloping horse.
Polo teams of four change direction after each goal is scored to account for ground conditions and wind.
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