'Hockey on Horseback': Springfield Polo Club

Local polo enthusiast and attorney Scott Montgomery snorts at the image.

Montgomery says the reality is that polo – what he calls “hockey on horseback” – is a full-contact sport (think rugby), conducted at full gallop over a playing field so vast – 300 yards long by 160 yards wide – that 10 football fields would fit into it. Two teams of four players compete on full-size, well-trained horses, busily swinging polo mallets.

Polo players

Montgomery plays for and is an integral member of the Springfield Polo Club, which was formed in 1993. The club is a member of the United States Polo Association and competes against teams from Tulsa, Okla., St. Louis, Wichita, Kan., and Cape Girardeau. The home turf is located on East Division, about three miles east of Highway 65 near Wild Horse Estates.

Matches, played April through October, are sanctioned by the national organization, which assigns individual players “goal ratings,” similar to golfers’ handicaps.

Dozens of people have passed through the local club’s ranks since its inception, and about 12 players are active. Among active area players are Montgomery’s father-in-law, Ron Stenger, a developer and investor; Robin Melton, owner of Environmental Works; Bolivar attorney Craig Heidemann and his wife, Ann; Todd Ball, of Nixa; Janie Rogers, a professional jockey and polo horse trainer; and Kim Mayer, polo horse trainer and player.

Ron and Lezah Stenger have recently purchased a stable and arena facility called Foxhaven Equestrian Center, located southeast of Highland Springs Country Club, which the club will be able to use for indoor matches.

The club also will be bringing in a professional polo player from Argentina for two months next spring.

Melton says that the best benefits of playing polo come from recreational exercise and in relieving stress. She believes that Springfield Polo Club matches will continue to increase area awareness about polo competition and attract new players and audiences.

The game

Polo is an old team sport, steeped in tradition.

There are similarities in how cricket, another British game, is becoming more popular in the United States – even the Midwest.

Horses move at speeds up to 40 miles per hour, and the best players can hit the ball up to 200 yards, Montgomery says.

“Imagine swinging a golf club in your right hand, handling the reins of your horse in your left hand, while galloping at top speed and being jostled by the other players’ horses,” Montgomery says.

“The horses are anything but ponies. They are full-size thoroughbreds, sometimes bred with racing quarter-horse stock, standing 15 to 16 hands high.”

Trained horses can cost between $2,000 and $10,000.

Players’ mallets for striking the ball are made of bamboo and a unique wood.

“The same material has been used for hundreds of years,” Montgomery says. “The shaft is a type of bamboo, which currently grows only in Thailand. The head of the mallet is a form of wood that grows only in South America.”

He says the only protection the riders have traditionally worn is the helmet, although many riders now wear a protective face mask.

The balls, some plastic and some wooden, are a little larger than baseballs.

Springfield Polo Club

Contact: Scott Montgomery

Founded: 1993; formally organized in 2002

Address: 2262 N. Polo Lane, Springfield, MO 65802

Phone: (417) 889-4766

Web site: www.springfieldpolo.com

E-mail: scott@montgomerylaw.org

Players: 10 regulars, another 10 less frequent players

Polo Facts

• The polo field is the size of 10 football fields.

• There are four players on a team.

• Horses gallop at speeds of up to 40 miles per hour.

• Players hit the ball up to 200 yards.

• Trained horses can cost between $2,000 and $10,000.