Polo and the realization of dreams
It took General Roger D. Williams close to two decades to see his dream of setting up a polo club come true. Having tried to set up a club in 1890 in Lexington for the first time and then in 1903, it was in 1911 that he could finally establish a Polo Club under the umbrella of the Iroquois Hunting and Riding Club, with Shelby T. Harbison as president and Roger Williams and Soloman Van Meter as governors of the club. With Polo has become a favorite among army personnel, it was in 1914 that the number of army posts playing polo shot up to 17.
Introduction of different types of Polo – Auto, and Indoor
Apart from the growing popularity of polo during this time, the decade is also famous for the introduction of Auto Polo. After Ralph “Pappy” Hankinson had popularized auto polo in 1911, an auto polo match was organized by a Ford dealer in an alfalfa field in Wichita to promote his business in July 1912 following which matches were held in France, Philippines, England, and later showcased at the Canadian National Exhibition the subsequent year.
While H.L. Herbert continued as the chairman of the USPA through the 1910s, 1915 saw the foundation of the Indoor Polo Association which later became a part of the U.S. Polo association
The growing popularity of international tournaments
During this decade the game witnessed popularity like never before. In 1912-1914, during the Westchester Cup, the stands saw up to 20,000 spectators. The tournament went down in history as the “Big Four”; Harry Payne Whitney, Larry Waterbury, Monty Waterbury and Devereux Milburn took the cup home in 1909, 1911, and 1913. It was a rather lucky decade for polo tournaments around the world. The United States Open resumed being held after a brief lull in 1910, with the exception of 1911, 1915, 1917, 1918, and 1942-1945. The Circuit Cup play began with the first USPA inter-circuit cup held in 1916.
The end of the decade brought greater glory for the game with the height restriction on Polo ponies being abolished in 1919, while Polo came to be featured as an Olympic sport in 1920.
