Chukkers & Chanel

By Lisa Duncan

The Santa Barbara Polo Club launched its 115th season in glittering style this weekend with Polo in Paradise, proving once again that nowhere does sport-meets-society quite like the manicured fields of our Eden by the Sea.

The mood was champagne-fueled and Riviera chic, with the ladies arriving in sweeping Kentucky Derby-worthy hats and enough Chanel double-Cs flashing from handbags, belts, and ballet flats to suggest Coco herself would have approved. If fashion was the unofficial sport of the day, Chanel won by a canter.

On the field, the action was brisk and beautifully bruising, with Henry Walker turning heads for Folded Hills and Justin Klentner shining for Klentner Ranch in a match that kept spectators glued to their rosé.

Adding to the glamour, the grounds were still abuzz from the wedding festivities of Christina Tebbe and Will Busch, son of Kim and Andy Busch of Folded Hills fame. Highlights included a field-side rehearsal dinner, custom-labeled Budweiser bottles nodding to the family’s Anheuser-Busch legacy, and a welcome reception in the new LALO Polo Lounge, styled in a “Polo Chic” palette of crisp whites, creams, and deep British racing green by planner Tyler Speier. Joining the fête were actor Jesse Metcalfe, elite polo stars Nacho and Artemio Figueras, Jesse Bray, trendsetters Nina Takesh, Amanda Masters, Helene Immel, club leaders Kevin Nimmons and Rhys Williams, LALO Tequila’s David Carballido, and Sarah and Cable Magness.

Among the well-heeled set taking in opening day were Ryan and Lola Zinke, Pat and Ursula Nesbitt, Avi and Jenna Reichental, Warren Butler and Candice Cao, Rochelle Mirabello, Mindy Denson, Colleen Graffy, Nigel Gallimore, Dr. Madison Richardson, the Khalil family, and others from the club’s stylish sporting set.

At the Polo Club, the ponies may do the running, but opening day proved the social set is keeping pace splendidly.