It's Raining Mallets

Forecasters called for a 70% chance of rain Sunday, but the weather gods held the rain off so we could see the storm on the polo field. It was Casa Azul/C-Spear versus Virginia Beach for the finals of the Aiken Cup presented by the Smoak Family. After winning 14 straight games since last October, VA Beach was defeated by Casa Azul in a nail biter game!

Through the entire game, it seemed the announcer never stopped saying Eddy Martinez's name and Eddy in fact was awarded with the MVP award for the game. Surprisingly, Eddy was fairly quiet the entire game until the last chukker. He used his vocals to shout encouragement and help his team pull out a win. The Best Playing Pony was awarded to Gringa, owned by VA Beach's Omar Cepeda.

A large and lively crowd came out to the field and all were surprised the weather turned out so nice! Some decided to use their umbrellas for the sun since the rain was nowhere in sight. Others decided to take their shoes off and rub their feet through the cool green grass...which feels amazing by the way!



Also, enjoying a roll in the grass was our Dog(s) of the Day - Beaufort and Beulah, a pair of American basset hounds who belong to Mr. Francois Verglas. When presented with their yummy treats from Bone-i-Fide Bakery, Mr. Verglas thanked us and said, "This is 'vunderful'!"



Owner of Equine Divine, Taryn Eicher, was present to help us choose our Best Dressed recipient, Ms. Penny Ertelt. Ms. Ertelt donned a pink and white knee length skirt with a white sleeveless top, a hot pink sweater draped across her shoulders and cute gold thong sandals. She received a gift certificate to Equine Divine. "I shop there all the time!" she exclaimed.



We learned from little Miss Jordan Archer Cline that divot stomping is not about hats [even if you're wearing a fancy white one] With help from her brother Buddy, the two children of photographer Brent Cline won the Best Divot Stomper awards for the day and an APC hat for each of them.



The Smoak family was also in attendence to present the Aiken Cup to the winning team of the day. The Aiken Cup trophy dates all the way back to 1913. It was the Smoak family who found it at an auction and contacted Aiken Polo Club regarding its history. We are glad the Smoak family shares that wonderful piece of history with APC and all of us polo fans!



See everyone next Sunday at Whitney Field! We will be giving out a polo pooch of the day award, best tailgating spot, and a new surprise award! All you skilled divot stoppers be sure to show your moves next week because the Best Divot Stopper hats from APC are back! Don't forget there are still social memberships available for purchase that include a tailgating spot and much much more. Click the link below for the application and more info.

Until next Sunday, Marco...

POLO!