Tournament Format

BASIC RULES & TOURNAMENT CONDITIONS

All I/I polo is played in the arena, following USPA Arena Rules. I/I is played using the split string format, in which horses are divided into two strings, each horse playing twice - once for each team. Players should be able and comfortable riding unfamiliar mounts during regular season and tournament games. In addition, all I/I players are required to wear eye protection and if they choose to use spurs, they must have a smooth rolling rowel or be a small Prince of Wales type with a rounded end. Teams who wish to compete in the I/I tournament season must complete an “Intent to Compete” form and pay their entry fee by December 1st. Teams are required to play two official, regular season games following all I/I tournament conditions. Official games are considered such, when both coaches sign the score sheet and submit it to the USPA. These games are required for regional seeding and tournament assignments. Most teams play more than the required two games. At tournaments, teams are required to tack up their own horses, the umpire horses, and spares in addition to having work duties when they are not playing. Teams not playing in the current game are required to hot walk, assist with tack times, untack the horses when they have completed playing, and wash, cool out, and care for the

horses.

Teams playing are required to clean the tack of the string they played and assist with other horse care chores such as

feeding and mucking stalls.

TOURNAMENT FORMAT

• All scores received are published on the USPA website under the I/I Scoreboard. • Teams in each region and division are then seeded; the lower seeded teams play through preliminary tournaments, while higher seeded teams may receive a bye to their regional tournament. • Winners of the preliminary tournaments advance to the regional tournament. The winner of each regional tournament advances to the national tournament. • If a game should end in a tie at the end of regulation, a shootout format is necessary to determine a winner. • Tournament locations are selected based on availability of host site, the proximity of teams and available horses. • Teams entered into a tournament are required to provide a

string (6-9) of horses.

• All horses must meet the published USPA I/I Equine Welfare requirements, including a negative coggins & current health papers. All horses are subject to a pre-tournament horse inspection by the onsite veterinarian, testing for soundness and Body Condition Score. • Tournaments are kept to a maximum of six teams so students are out of school for the least amount of days as possible, keeping in mind necessary rest in-between games for the horses. • Tournaments are played either as a round robin or single elimination format, with consolation games as horses are available. • Awards are presented to the winners of the tournament, and teams vote on 4 All-Stars and 1 Sportsmanship award to be given to their peers. Horsemanship awards are selected by the Host Tournament Committee • In addition, all players score their horses on a scale of 1-10 after playing, and at the end of the tournament, scores are tallied and a Best Playing Pony is awarded, as well as a Best

Playing String.