ABU DHABI: With the score of 9-8, Ghantoot Polo team won against Bangash while Al Habtoor edged past the UAE Polo team as the H.H. President of the UAE Polo Cup’s 20th edition got off to a perfect start at the only royal polo club in the UAE — Ghantoot Racing and Polo Club.
The Abu Dhabi polo team registered an easy win over Desert Palm by the score of 14-13, in another match.
Desert Palm won the 2019 edition of the H.H. President of the UAE Polo Cup, who defeated the UAE Polo team by the score of 10-8 in a thrilling final match.
The two-week long event held in the name of the President — H.H. Sheikh Khalifa Bin Zayed Al Nahyan and under the patronage of Sheikh Falah Bin Zayed Al Nahyan has attracted some of the leading polo players in the UAE and worldwide.
The prestigious 18-handicap polo tournament offers a lucrative prize purse of AED 500,000, of which 6 teams are in the fray.
The format of the event is a round-robin league with two top teams qualifying for the grand finals in which the competing teams include host Ghantoot Polo, UAE Polo, Abu Dhabi Polo, Desert Palm, Al Habtoor, and last but not the least, Bangdash Polo team.
The Abu Dhabi Sports Council is the governing partner for the H.H. President of the UAE Polo Cup in association with the Emirates Polo Association.
Here are the following sponsors of the event:
YAS International Properties LLC
YAS International Development
YAS International Holding
YAS International Investment and La Roche Pharmacy
Official Tournament Car : Maserati – Premier Motors
Opening Day Polo Match Results:
Abu Dhabi: 8 | Desert Palm: 3
Abu Dhabi: Faris Al Yabhouni 0 (1 goal), Cesar Crespo 4 (1), Alfredo Cappella 9 (2), Martin Donovan 5 (4) — Total: 18
Desert Palm: Yousef Bin Desmal 0, Ramiro Cordero 5 (1 goal), Martín Valent 5 (1), Manuel Toccalino 6. Total: 16
Score (Abu Dhabi): 1-0, 3-1, 7-1, 7-2, 8-3.
Al Habtoor: 14 | UAE Polo: 13
Al Habtoor: Mohammed Al Habtoor 0 (1 goal), Félix Esaín 2 (1), Mín Podestá 7 (1), Facundo Sola 9 (11). Total: 18
UAE Polo: Sheikha Maitha 0, Benjamin Panelo 4 (1 goal), Tomás Panelo 6 (4), Tommy Beresford 6 (8). Total: 16
Score (Al Habtoor): 3-4, 7-5, 9-8, 12-11, 14-13
Ghantoot Polo: 9 | Bangash: 8
Ghantoot Polo: Nasser Al Shamsi 1, Marcos Panelo 4, Pablo Llorente 6, Cacu Araya 7. Total: 18
Bangash: Heider Bangash 0, Federico Von Potobsky 5, Manuel Elizalde 6, Juanchi Ambroggio 6. Total: 17
Score (Ghantoot Polo): 1-1, 2-6, 3-6, 5-7, 9-8
FIXTURES:
March 16: 3:30pm: Habtoor vs. Bangash
March 17: Ghantoot vs. Abu Dhabi: 2:30pm | Desert Palm vs UAE Polo: 4:30pm
March 20: 3:30pm: Ghantoot vs. UAE Polo
March 21: Desert Palm vs. Bangash: 2:30pm | Al Habtoor vs Abu Dhabi: 4:30pm
March 24: Semi-finals
March 27: Match for fifth place: 2:30pm | Final of HH President of UAE Polo Cup: 5pm
