Spreckels Cup
Tournament History
After first discovering polo in the late 1800s, sugar magnate John D. Spreckels built a polo facility, The Coronado Polo Club, on Coronado Island (San Diego, California) and its fields hosted many early prestigious polo tournaments including the inaugural Pacific Coast Open. The Spreckels trophy, designed by Brock and Feagus of Los Angeles, was presented in 1909 for the winners of the Polo Challenge. The two foot high silver trophy commissioner was preserved on the original engraving, “Polo Challenge Trophy, presented by John D. Spreckels.” The trophy was competed for every year, with the exception of the years of World War I. In 1921 the trophy was retired, and the final team to raise it was captained by Carleton F. Burke, one of the founders of the California Horse Racing Board, and it became one of his most prized possessions.
As years went by, polo enthusiast Julie Mulvihill-Mayer, in an effort to document the history of polo in Southern California, launched a search for polo memorabilia in San Diego. After some research and assistance from San Diego resident Joseph E. Jessop, the Spreckels Cup was found and returned to San Diego for restoration, ultimately symbolizing a bond between John D. Spreckels and past, present and future polo players. The tournament was reinstated at San Diego Polo Club (now defunct) in 1988 until 2016. The California Thoroughbred Breeders Association secures the historical trophy and generously loans the trophy annually for the Spreckels Cup.
After a three-year hiatus, in an effort to restore the prestige of the Spreckels trophy and its connection to the history of California polo, 2020 marks the first year the tournament will be played at the Eldorado Polo Club in Indio, California. The 10- to 12-goal USPA-sanctioned tournament will field six teams including Ohana Polo Club, Cotterel Farms, Twin Palms, Bush League, Bensoleimani.com and Highwood.
Photo: Spreckels Cup Trophy.
