Equestrian “ F
effort from 1939-45 and its reinstatement has given it an unusual, resilient soil structure which is loved by the players
No 1 Ground was dug up to support the war
When the ground dries up, it crumbles rather than cracking, which means that it retains its give. The horses love it and go so well on it - it’s one of the best polo surfaces in the country
Head Groundsman Mike Moss has worked at Kirtlington Park for forty-three years
Presenting the best pitches possible and accommodating growing numbers of players on a limited income is the challenge for groundsmen at low goal polo clubs, the sport’s entry level. Fortunately, for Kirtlington Park Polo Club, their Head Groundsman ‘Magic’ Mike Moss is adept at providing the princely sport on a tight budget. Jane Carley report
or Mike Moss - known to the members of Kirtlington Park Polo Club as ‘Magic Mike’ - providing playing and practice facilities for what can be up to 200 polo players
over a weekend, playing up to twenty-five matches, requires an intimate knowledge of the seven fields at the club’s home near Bicester in Oxfordshire, plus clever juggling of the resources available. “Matches have to take place for the teams
to pay for the use of the pitches, which goes towards their upkeep, but if the ground gets too hard, they won’t play on those fields,” he explains. Just two of the seven pitches can be
irrigated, but the Number One and Two grounds have an unusual soil structure that means they rarely become too firm. Kirtlington Park Polo Club was founded by Hugh Budgett in 1926, who built a polo field in the grounds of his family home. During the war, the field was ploughed up to grow
potatoes and, when it was reinstated, the Land Army carefully de-stoned the soil and dressed it with ash from the factories before re-turfing. Mike believes that this has helped to give
the present day pitches their unique quality: “When the ground dries up, it crumbles rather than cracking, which means that it retains its give. The horses love it and go so well on it - it’s one of the best polo surfaces in the country.” Hugh Budgett’s son Alan carried on the
polo tradition in the post-war period, adding further pitches, and his nephew James now owns this part of the estate, which has seen a change of direction in recent years. “In the late 1990s, changes to grain
storage legislation meant that the farming operation was no longer viable,” explains Mike. “Some of the buildings have been redeveloped as business units, and the emphasis on polo has increased. There are now seven fields with five full size pitches,
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