In polo sports each player’s performance is assessed and handicapped annually by a national commission composed of representatives from local clubs and members of national polo associations. In Thailand this is done by the
A handicap can range from -2 to +10 goals, which is the highest handicap and is awarded only to the very best players. The handicap figures refer not to the number of goals a player is expected to score, but to the value to his team.
The handicap of a team is simply the sum of its member’s handicaps. This handicap then becomes the scale by which tournaments are organized, so that matches are played only between teams with nearly the same handicaps. In a "Zero Goal" tournament, all the players on one team must add up to zero. The highest handicap that a team may have is therefore a 40 goal team. Yet, only a handful of such 10 goalers set the standard of excellence in the world, mostly hailing from Argentina. The level of this play is best seen in Palermo, Argentina at the Argentinean Open.
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