Park Place won the final of the USPA Gold Cup on Sunday 23rd March, winning 10-9 in overtime against Coca-Cola at the National Polo Center in Wellington, Florida.
An exciting final to watch, both teams played hard and fast polo, showcasing their team’s different dynamics through strategic team combination plays. Coca Cola, who reached the final of the CV Whitney only to lose out by 1 goal to La Dolfina/ Tamera, started hard, piling the pressure on early, but Park Place are well known to keep a cool head and their second chukka proved this as they outscored Coca Cola 4-1 to double Coke’s score going into the 3rd.
Chukka Breakdown:
Hilario showed his stamina as he continued to push through all 6 chukkas, winning every battle while Peke Gonzalez’s superior horsepower was evident in his agile plays and tough ride offs. Louis Hine, who was brought in at the beginning of the season, complemented the team’s style well.
Polito and Julian de Lusarreta scored all 9 goals for the red side between them, playing to their strengths of solid positioning and man to man marking. There was seemingly always a red stick to pass to with Gillian Johnston and Lorenzo Chavanne working hard up front, picking their men and stretching the Park Place defence. Despite the consistent change in possession, the team in blue managed to hold their hard fought advantage until the final chukka when Coca Cola’s determined attacking advances saw them equalise at 9-9 after a converted penalty 2 from Polito pushed the match into overtime.
Score Progression:
After a shot to goal from Hilario went wide it looked like possession would switch back to Coca Cola but a quick intercept from Louis Hine followed by a give and go with Hilario allowed Louis time to run up to goal to receive the pass. A line infringement just in front of goal by Coca Cola saw the game end with a spot penalty from Hilario Ulloa to secure the win and Park Place raised the USPA Gold Cup high.
It may not have been a straight win of the Gauntlet of Polo presented by TruBar, but it did give Park Place the trio of titles that make up the series.“It’s our first ever Gold Cup win,” said Park Place Manager, Ash Price.“We’ve won the C.V. Whitney twice (2021, 2022) and the U.S. Open (2023), so to win the Gold Cup is incredible!”
In the subsidiary Final, BTA defeat Globalport 10-8 after a nother extremely close match where the lead changed throughout.
Stats provided by International Polo Academy