Southside Polo's Mason Wroe talks to fans about the basics of his sport in a short clinic before the Jan. 4 match.
Photo by Jay Heater
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The Meadows' Damian and Debra Ruppert were the first to take their seats in the new Mallet Club at the Sarasota Polo Club, well before the action began Jan. 4.
The Mallet Club is a large, tented pavilion that offers covered seating at midfield.
Sarasota Polo Club owners James and Misdee Wrigley Miller add something new each year, and the Mallet Club appears to be a hit.
"We discovered the Sarasota Polo Club last year and we started coming," Debra Ruppert said. "We went eight to 10 times and we loved it. We sat (at midfield) and they had umbrellas. It was lovely, but this is a beautiful upgrade."
Damian Ruppert said there was another reason they enjoy polo so much.
"Everybody is so nice," he said.
By the time the polo match began at 1 p.m., the Mallet Club was packed.
So were both sidelines. The fans were treated to two four-chukker matches.
Polo continues every Sunday through April 12.
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Southside Polo's Mason Wroe and Marcos Onetto (trailing) slap hands with fans before the start of the match Jan. 4 at the Sarasota Polo Club.
Photo by Jay Heater
Karen Medford isn't scared that Scott Ginn looks ghastly at the Sarasota Polo Club. The theme Jan. 4 was Favorite Literary Character and Ginn chose Jacob Marley of "A Christmas Carol."
Photo by Jay Heater
The Meadows' Damien and Debra Ruppert enjoy their Mallet Club seats at midfield at the Sarasota Polo Club. They love the shade the tented pavilion provides.
Photo by Jay Heater
Sarasota's Joey Owen enjoys polo with his golden retrievers Ben and Banksy. One of the reasons they love polo is that Joey's wife, Liz, is a player.
Photo by Jay Heater
Palmetto's Andrea Lee, Mark Barclay, Betsy Woodman and Bryan Woodman devour the chicken wings they brought for their tailgate at the Sarasota Polo Club.
Photo by Jay Heater
Lakewood Ranch's Don Lippert flips the toasted bread for fried egg sandwiches for his tailgating group. Lippert says he goes to polo every Sunday.
Photo by Jay Heater
Southside Polo's Raymond Guest breaks away to score in the Jan. 4 match at the Sarasota Polo Club. Southside Polo downed Columbus Realty 7-2 in the consolation match of the tournament.
Photo by Jay Heater
Lakewood Ranch's Tom Trew (front) and Joe Schuller measure which team is closer to scoring in their game of Bocce before polo Jan. 4 at the Sarasota Polo Club.
Photo by Jay Heater
A new tented pavilion, called the Mallet Club, makes its debut during the Sarasota Polo Club's new season.
Photo by Jay Heater
Columbus Realty's Francisco Llosa hits the ball backward to stop a Southside Polo drive on Jan. 4 at the Sarasota Polo Club.
Photo by Jay Heater
Southside Polo's Marcus Onetto takes a shot on goal during action Jan. 4 at the Sarasota Polo Club.
Photo by Jay Heater
Southside Polo's Tom Rice gets ready to take a shot on goal.
Photo by Jay Heater
Some of the horses about to compete relax before the first Sunday of polo of 2026 at the Sarasota Polo Club.
Jay Heater is the managing editor of the East County Observer. Overall, he has been in the business more than 41 years, 26 spent at the Contra Costa Times in the San Francisco Bay area as a sportswriter covering college football and basketball, boxing and horse racing.
