Welcome to the Polo Club of
UW-Madison!
We are a nonprofit organization run by students that began in December 2013. The purpose of our club is to promote polo skills, encourage good sportsmanship, and enhance equine education. We offer flexible practice scheduling and various levels of membership to UW students, graduate students, and community members. We also provide equine educational opportunities to the general public and members. Currently, we have three teams: Varsity, JV, and Club.
Interested in joining the
Polo Club of UW-Madison?
Follow @wisconsinpolo on Instagram, for updates on when you can join the team next!
What is Polo?
The closest thing polo can be described to is hockey on horseback. Intercollegiate polo is a game played in an arena with goal marked on each end. The objective is to score by hitting a ball into the marked goal in order to score one point. You can achieve this with strong hits, strategy, and the physicality of both yourself and your horse. Arena teams are made up of three players, each assigned positions. Each position is designated a number worn on their jersey.
Each polo match consists of 4 chukkars (periods) that last seven and a half minutes. There is a warning bell at seven minutes and a final bell thirty seconds later. After each chukkar, the teams change direction (similar to football teams changing sides at the end of each quarter). Two mounted umpires accompany the players and a “third man” sits outside the arena to referee in case of a questionable call between the mounted umpires. The whistle is blown to indicate a foul and stops the clock. At the end of each chukkar, the players switch out horses in their string for fresh ones.