The short answer: The Southeast's polo capital is Aiken, South Carolina, which fills up with players in spring and fall. Around it, there's polo in the Atlanta area, North Carolina's Triangle, Kentucky horse country, and Louisiana, where the New Orleans Polo Club plays across member farms in Folsom. Tennessee and Alabama clubs mostly close for the winter. Here's what I found on my tour of every polo club in America.
These notes come from my 2021 and 2022 tour, when I tried to visit every polo club in America as a playing USPA member. Seasons, contacts, and prices change, so check each club's Instagram or the U.S. Polo Association before you go.
South Carolina: Aiken
Aiken Polo Club
I played four chukkers here on two different occasions, including on a horse named Squirt. In the fall, clubs from Iowa to Ohio told me some version of "everyone is in Aiken now."
New Bridge Polo and Country Club
I watched a game here. New Bridge is a polo community east of town with several fields and a clubhouse, and it hosts spring and fall seasons.
Georgia
Atlanta Polo Club: I met a polo player from Detroit here, a reminder of how small the polo world is.
La Mariposa Polo Club: An arena club in the Atlanta area where the tradition, at least the night I was there, was a glass of wine before getting on the horse.
Union Hill Polo Club: A decent grass field that looks like it will always be dry.
North Carolina: Triangle Area Polo Club
When I visited, this was the only polo club in North Carolina, in Hurdle Mills outside Durham. David gave me a tour on a rainy day, so there was no polo, but I saw the arena and learned about their earn-your-mallet program. They use quarter horses for polo, with special training, and I was told they last longer and age better than thoroughbreds.
Kentucky
Commonwealth Polo Club, near Lexington: A visit in the heart of Bluegrass horse country.
University of Louisville Polo Club: I watched a game on a big, flat field near the freeway. A pretty good level of play and an easygoing crowd.
Louisiana: New Orleans Polo Club, Folsom
An amazing hangout session with Doug, the club manager, and I left with a hat and a jersey. The clubhouses are beautiful, everything is clean and organized, and when I visited there were big, beautiful fields for only about 28 members. The club plays across several member-owned farms north of New Orleans. Stunning.
Tennessee and Alabama
When I reached out in the winter, Nashville and Franklin were both closed until mid-May, and Point Clear Polo Club in Alabama told me its season starts in April. Plan these for spring and summer.
Tips for polo in the Southeast
Aiken in spring and fall. It's the hub.
Summer heat is real. Ask about summer schedules before you go.
See the season calendar and how to play polo when you travel.
More regions: what I learned trying to visit every polo club in America.
Polo, wherever you are. That's PoloFlow, the app I'm building to make games and horses easy to organize. Join the waitlist.
