(News release)
(SCOTTSDALE, Ariz.) — Ever watch a live sporting event while stretched out on a Zzz-inducing bed? No, not in your bedroom. We mean at the actual event…
Well, here’s your chance and it may become the most unusual seat in sports. Several lucky and lazy polo party goers will get the chance to watch the action at America’s most-attended polo event while supine in the Sleep America Bedroom at the Third Annual Scottsdale Ferrari-Maserati Polo Championships on Nov. 1-2 at WestWorld. You could be steps away from the polo field and some of the world’s best polo talent, all from the comfort of your own mattress (if you want to purchase it afterwards), courtesy of Valley-based Sleep America.
Watching the Sport of Kings from a king-size… it’s like taking in a Diamondbacks game or the 16th hole at the Waste Management Open from the comfort of a giant Sleep America mattress!
The Sleep America Bedroom will feature several beds for polo fans. Sleep America, one of Arizona’s great corporate citizens, has a huge selection of brands, styles and types of mattresses. It’s only fitting that Arizona’s (and America’s) largest polo event features a tent from Arizona’s largest mattress retailer. Event organizers haven’t yet decided if the tent will be reserved tickets, general admission or both, like for Fenway Park’s Green Monster, for example.
“This opportunity was one of the more unusual we have ever been approached with,” said Sleep America’s founder Debbie Gaby. “But the event is what we’re all about: elegance, comfort, and support for the local community.”
Last October the Scottsdale Polo Championships drew the biggest crowd in the country for a one-day polo event with approximately 9,180 fans enjoying the three-match showdown at the annual Polo Party.
This year, with an expanded event schedule and an amped-up polo lineup including the sport’s top players and more vendors, more sponsors and the 2013 Arizona Porsche Concours d’Elegance car show, the Polo Party is expected to draw up to 15,000 polo fans and revelers to WestWorld of Scottsdale.
With the breathtaking backdrop of the McDowell Mountains and beautiful white tents lining the field, the Polo Party will again be a weekend destination for both local residents and tourists.
It all gets started on Friday, November 1st, when gates open at 3 p.m. for a sneak preview of the Championships and a fashion show. There will be an All-Star match at 4 p.m. and then a 5:30 p.m. Introduction of Players. It will culminate with a 6 p.m. Sunset Equestrian Fashion Show presented by Phoenix Fashion Week.
On Saturday, November 2nd, gates open at 10 a.m. for the Scottsdale Ferrari-Maserati Polo Championships: Horses & Horsepower. The first match on the docket will pit America’s high school champions, Work to Ride, against the country’s 2012 college champions, the University of Virginia. The Work to Ride team has been featured on ESPN and “60 Minutes” and is repeat National Interscholastic Polo Champions. The University of Virginia team (sponsored by Scottsdale Maserati) were 2012 NCAA Champions and Winner of 10 Men’s National Championships, with 22 total trips to the finals. The team is the winner of 10 Men’s National Championships, with 22 total trips to the finals.
The next match, at 1 p.m., will feature a Battle of the Sexes with a Women’s All-Star Team vs. the Arizona Polo Club (men). Leading the women’s team will be Sunny Hale, currently ranked #1 female polo player in the United States. She was the first woman in U.S. history to win the prestigious U.S. Open Polo Championships and she attained the highest rating ever given to a woman after winning the U.S. Open Polo Championship with Outback Steakhouse Polo Team in 2000.
At 3 p.m., the U.S. Military Polo Team will square off against the Clogau Wales Polo Team (United Kingdom). Jeff Hall, one of the best polo players in the world, and one of just a few top-rated Americans, will be captaining the U.S. Military team. Hall has played every major tournament in the U.S. and Argentina and is a six-time winner of the USPA Silver Cup (2005, 2004, 2003, 2000, 1999, 1997) and a 2003 winner of the U.S. Open. The Clogau Wales Polo Team, sponsored by Scottsdale Ferrari, is captained by Ricky Cooper, who has been the team’s captain since inception. The team is a member of the Hurlingham Polo Association, the prestigious governing body for polo in the U.K. and other European countries. Prince Charles is the Patron of the team and the Association. The Wales team finished runner up in the 2012 British Beach Polo Championships and boasts an overall record of 14 wins against 4 losses and a draw.
But heart-stopping polo action isn’t the only feature at WestWorld on Nov. 2. Attendees will also enjoy a sneak preview of the 2014 Scottsdale Arabian Horse Show and see some serious horsepower with a preview of the world-famous Barrett-Jackson 2014 Collector Car Auction along with local car clubs lining the field. This year will also feature the 2013 Arizona Porsche Concours d’Elegance car show.
Tickets are now on sale for the 2013 event. Go to www.thepoloparty.com to purchase tickets including for the Volvo of Phoenix Lounge: Presented by Phoenix Fashion Week, Neiman Marcus VIP Tent, Molina Fine Jewelers Drivers & Players VIP Lounge, Olive & Ivy Champagne Lounge, tailgating tickets and more. Limited tables are available for reservation on a first-come, first-serve basis. Information about corporate sponsorship opportunities is also available.
