The Polo Shots There are many variants of a polo swing alongside the full-swing offside-forward. The ball can be hit in almost any position to the horse. Depending on nomenclature you can find eight to ten main variants. In the preceding chapters the full-swing offside-forward was considered. A brief summary on it is given below. Afterwards, we will discuss and explain in words and pictures further variants of the swing as well as their characteristics. Forward swings are swings which are struck in the horse’s direction of movement. Backs (backwards) are hit in the opposite direction of the horse’s movement. Straight hit balls are balls which are hit in or directly against the direction of movement of the horse, parallel to the horse’s horizontal axis. Open hit balls are hit at an angle to the horse’s horizontal axis.
Below is an overview of the hitting variants:
1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8.
Offside forward Offside back Offside back open Nearside forward Nearside back Nearside back open Under the neck Tail
With regards to the hitting types and the description of the hits, the following sequence should be observed: 1. Hitting type (full-swing or half-swing) 2. Horse/hitting side (nearside or offside) 3. Hitting direction (forward or back) 4. Orientation (straight or open) Note: If part of the sequence is omitted, one can assume the following: No. 1 not specified → full-swing, No. 4 not specified → straight.
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