After several comings and goings and debates about the best possible way to define the qualification process for the 2020 Triple Crown, the Argentine Association of Polo (AAP) informed the Argentine Association of Polo Players (AAJP) about the way in which both team and individual points will be tallied, taking into account respective performances in the 2019 Argentine Open. 

The rules in relation to the qualification ranking were communicated as follows:

INDIVIDUAL & TEAM RANKING FOR THE 2020 TRIPLE CROWN QUALIFICATION

Ranking by teams (2019):

1)The winner of each match claims 150 points. Another 150 points are given to the teams that qualify for the tournament final.

2)On top of that, 4 points are awarded every time a team scores a goal.

3)The top seven teams of the ranking will automatically qualify for the following year’s Triple Crown championship. Therefore, the four main players of each team will be considered Pre-Qualified Players for the following Triple Crown. 

4)The team that wins the play-off match will also qualify for the Triple Crown. Therefore, the four main players of that team will also be considered Pre-Qualified Players for the following year’s Triple Crown.

5)The bottom two teams of the ranking lose their place in the next Triple Crown, meaning that the players are considered Non Qualified Players.

6)In order to maintain the right to qualify for the Triple Crown, a team must be composed of at least 75% Pre-Qualified Players.

7)Being an individual ranking, the right to qualify lies in the players, not in the club. Therefore, if 75% of a team is composed of Pre-Qualified Players, that team has a right to play, even if they change the club they represent (by changing the name of the team). 

8)If new teams are formed, they will total the sum of points of each of its players, and be ranked from highest to lowest.

9)If it should happen that teams are drawn on points, the zones that the teams go into will be determined by considering what percentage of last year’s line up was maintained. The team with the most similar line up to the previous year will be ranked higher.  

RANKING 2019

La Dolfina – 1244 points.

Ellerstina – 1010 points.

La Dolfina Polo Ranch – 670 points.

Las Monjitas – 666 points.

La Natividad – 476 points.

La Albertina – 326 points.

La Aguada – 322 points.

La Ensenada – 306 points.

La Irenita – 294 points.

Cría Yatay – 168 points.

PLAYER POINTS (main line-up & substitutes):

1)After a match, each main player on the winning team will be awarded 37.5 points, plus 1 additional point for every goal scored by the team.

2)If a team qualifies for a final, the four main players will be awarded 37.5 extra points each.

3)If a complete match was played by a substitute:

a)The substitute will receive 18.75 points if the match was won, and 1 additional point for every goal scored by the team. If the match was lost, the substitute will receive one additional point for every goal scored by the team.

4)If a main player is injured during the tournament and the substitute is asked to play several consecutive matches, the following will be applied:

a)Triple Crown team: If the original player was not able to play at least two Triple Crown matches, that player will lose 50% of the points awarded throughout the championship, and their ranking will be marked with an asterisk. These points will be transferred to the substitute in the case that they played all the Triple Crown matches (or only missed one match).

b)Team from the Qualification tournament: If the player that originally formed part of the Triple Crown team could not play at least two matches of the Qualification tournament or Palermo, they will lose 50% of their points won by the team throughout the series, and their ranking will be marked with an asterisk. These points will be transferred to the substitute in the case that they played all the matches of the Qualification Tournament or Palermo (or if they only missed one match).

c)Pre-Qualification: If the substitute plays 75% or more of the matches that award points for the team ranking, they will be treated as a Pre-Qualified player just like the other main members of the team. If that percentage is not reached, the substitute will be a Non Qualified Player, regardless of the status of the other players on the team.  

*MORE INFORMATION TO COME SHORTLY