The 2023 edition of the USCA Selection Eights kicked off yesterday with three groups. It’s definitely a smaller overall group than expected, with five groups of eight being more of the standard. I suspect the recent AC Worlds and next year’s GC Worlds set for October in the U.S. are having an impact. Top players might be looking to shift more playing time and travel budget to GC to prepare for next fall.
Read More2016 USCA Selection Eights Availability Deadline: July 31
The Selection Eights will be held October 27-30, 2016 at the National Croquet Center in West Palm Beach, Florida. This is an AC Selection Event — players will be selected by the Selection Committee from those who make themselves available to compete.
The availability form is in the members area of the USCA website under Official Forms. The deadline for availability is July 31, 2016. The selections will be made on August 14, 2016.
2015 USCA Croquet News, 2015 Volume 3 Web Edition
The 2015 Volume 3 issue of the Croquet News mailed in December and should be arriving in mailboxes soon. The web edition is also now available to USCA members on the magazine page. A few of the highlights include:
FROM THE AMERICAN RULES NATIONALS COVERAGE
Danny Huneycutt partnered with Randy Cardo to win the doubles title, and then bested Brian Cumming in an entertaining three-game match for the singles title. It was Cardo’s first national title and a notably quick rise to the top ...
FROM KC'S ONE-COURT MODEL
On September 1, 2007, the KCCC became an official USCA club with eight members. Most had been playing six wicket croquet for years and wanted a place to practice and compete locally. With Griffith’s “open night” approach, membership eventually reached 20 full USCA members ...
In addition, you will find coverage on:
In addition, you will find coverage on:
- 2015 USCA Selection Eights
- 2015 USCA Seniors Masters
- Member Profile: Donna Dixon
- Club Profile: Sonoma Croquet Club
- 9 Wicket Nationals
- Western Regional
- Northeast / Mid-Atlantic Regional
- On Tactics: Two for One
- Player's Tip: Performance Thinking
ABOUT THE PDF EDITION: All website and e-mail links should be live in the PDF. If you see an interesting reference, you can click through to dig deeper or reach a contact right away. On computers, the PDF version is best viewed as "two-up" and "show cover page" if you want to see the full spreads (on your Adobe Reader top menu: View/Page Display). The PDF should also be viewable on most tablets.
USCA's Croquet News: 2014 Volume 3 Edition
The USCA's Croquet News Volume 3 for 2014 went to press just prior to the holidays and is hopefully mailing this week. If you would like to enjoy a sneak preview, you can now access a PDF of this issue in the member's section of the USCA website along with back issues all the way back to 2007.
USCA Croquet News 2014, Volume 3This issue is overloaded as we’ve squeezed in features on Nine Wicket Nationals, USCA Nationals, Seniors Masters, GC Nationals and Selection Eights. We are excited to bring back feature level coverage to the Eights, which many players consider to be our premier event. And with Nine Wicket Nationals taking a quantum leap by hosting the 2014 edition at the historic Liberty Memorial in Kansas City, Missouri, we are excited to provide an in-depth report on the growing success of the newest USCA championship series.
We have also launched a new Committee Guest Column and Club Profile department. The guest column this issue is from Cheryl Bromley on the Golf Croquet Committee. Going forward we will rotate the column each issue to include all of the key USCA committees. Our goal is to give members a view into the overall progress of the USCA across all sectors of the organization. Our club profile features the New York Croquet Club in this issue and again, we'll continue to explore new clubs in future editions.
Unfortunately, the sport lost a few key figures this fall. Ted Prentis and Jeff Soo have written wonderful tributes to John Solomon and Mack Penwell that are essential reading for all American croquet players. Beyond just recognizing Solomon and Penwell, both pieces provide valuable insight into the history of croquet in the US.
USCA Expands to a Sixth Eight
After initially launching as a 40-player event, Danny Huneycutt announced yesterday that the USCA's Selection Eights event will add a sixth eight and include 48 players. The current list of players and waiting list follows. Each group is in order by the Selection Committee ranking. If any players opt out, players will be promoted to the next group by rank.
Read MoreMorning Coffee: Selection Eights Round-Up
Ben Rothman in play at the 2013 Eights
WEST PALM BEACH, FL -- The big news to come out of the 2013 U.S. Selection Eights weekend is a line-up change for Team USA for the upcoming MacRobertson Shield. Damon Bidencope has withdrawn due and his spot on the team will be taken by
News Clips: U.S. Selection Eight Results, Croquet News and Nine-Wicket Flash Movies
Selection Eight Reports / Bob Alman has a pretty good rundown on the U.S. Selection Eight results in the Croquet World forum. Here are the top two group placings as reported there (third eight released tomorrow):
FIRST EIGHT FINAL STANDINGS
Place/Player/Wins
1. Ben Rothman (10)
2. Danny Huneycutt (9)
3. Doug Grimsley (8)
4. Rich Lamm (7)
5. Jerry Stark (6)
5. Brian Cumming (6)
7. Jim Bast (5)
7. Paul Billings (5)
SECOND EIGHT FINAL STANDINGS
1. Rick Wilhoite (12)
2. Stuart Lawrence (8)
3. Bob Kroeger (7)
3. John Osborn (7)
3. Brit Ruby (7)
6. Charles Gillmartin (5)
6. Peter Just (5)
6. Johnny Mitchell (5)
Croquet News Fall 2009 Issue / The new issue of Croquet News hit my mail box yesterday. Mik Mehas is on the cover and other highlights include an interesting article on croquet presented at a kids sports conference in Florida and a detailed explanation on the USCA handicap system (I'm a 20). Don't be confused by the Summer 2009 cover date, I'm pretty sure it's the fall issue.
Nine-Wicket Flash Training / Long ago I had noticed videos on the old nine-wicket website about running breaks. It was just recently that I checked out the videos on the new site. I didn't realize they were upgraded to interactive flash videos. They are very well done and I would say they are essential viewing for anyone playing the nine-wicket game. I'd love to see one of these on the association triple and sextuple peels.
Opening Game (October 2009)
Here in the Kansas City area, croquet is starting to wind down a bit as the weather cools down for fall. Behind the scenes though, we've been working feverishly on the November issue of the Croquet Network Online Magazine which will focus on the Nine-Wicket championships and kick off two new departments. The new issue will be out during the second half of the month and is already weighing in at 16 pages (first issue was 11).
In addition, the prep work for future issues is already underway, because even though croquet play here in the midwest may be ending, we all know that the next few months will be busy for the game with Selection 8's later this month and the USCA Championship and Women's Golf Championship in November. December has the USCA Golf Croquet Championship and the Solomon Trophy on deck.
Covering the Nine-Wicket Tourney in KC was a good way to get started, but the next challenge will be providing coverage for the very busy tournament schedule across the country and beyond. As I've been making contacts and requests across the croquet community, I'm already impressed at how willing players are to help out and how supportive they have been of the online magazine concept. That's great news as I'll be counting on the community for access, results and photos as we build this thing up.
Along those lines, I would like to remind everyone to feel free to utilize the forum/message board to talk croquet, pose questions, post tourney results or announce upcoming events. The link is located on the top menu and you can also check it out here:
Also, if you have not yet subscribed to the online magazine, you can do that by entering your name and e-mail address in the form to the upper right of the website. The magazine is still in the "Free Trial" phase right now, so you've got nothing to lose by signing up and checking out the premiere issue. Again, the November issue will be released in the second half of this month.
Enjoy the coverage and hopefully those in the midwest and north can get a few more games in before the really cold weather hits.
Upcoming Tournaments / October-November 2009
OCTOBER 2009
Oct 02-03 / Mallet Mayhem 09 (9-Wicket)
Rockford, IL / www.tinkercottage.com
Oct 08-11 / Country Boys Croquet Tournament
Lexington, NC / Danny Huneycutt - (336-764-4554) huney1322@triad.rr.com
Oct 15-18 / Texas Croquet Classic (US)
Dallas, TX / Bob Knowlton - robertk@baylorhealth.edu (214.750.8722)
Oct 20-25 / Coastal Croquet Clubs Fall Invitational (US)
Hilton Head, SC / Avril Nicholson - avril@sc.rr.com (843.705.2929)
Oct 22-25 / Selection Eights (AC)
West Palm Beach, FL / Rich Lamm - richlamm@comcast.net or Jerry Stark - TPRover@aol.com
Oct 23–25 / Jekyll Island Invitational
Jekyll Island, GA / Dan Lott - lott1965@bellsouth.net (912.506.8744)
Oct 29-Nov 1 / West Indies Croquet Championship (US?)
St. Croix, VI / Les Kelley - lkelley@nnldlaw.com (340.773.9363)
Oct 30- Nov 1 / SCCC Fall Invitational (Singles Only) (US?)
Venice, FL / Jackie Jones - crokpeople@aol.com (941.484.3206)
NOVEMBER 2009
Nov 04–08 / Royal Palm Yacht & Country Club 13th Croquet Invitational
Boca Raton, FL / Norma Truman, TM - (561-368-9291) tntboca@aol.com
Nov 08–14 / USCA National Championships
Rancho Mirage, CA / Erica Sherman - (561-478-0760) tournamentusca@aol.com
Nov 17–21 / USCA Seniors & Masters Championship
West Palm Beach, FL / Erica Sherman - (561-478-0760) tournamentusca@aol.com
Nov 21–28 / WCF Womens Golf Croquet World Championship
Cairnlea, Victoria, Australia
Nov 30-Dec 02 / USCA National Golf Championship
West Palm Beach, FL / Erica Sherman - (561-478-0760) tournamentusca@aol.com
Upcoming Tournaments / September-October 2009
SEPTEMBER 2009
Sep 04-07 / Patuxent Invitational (US)
Paxtuxent, MD / Lee Hanna - Lehanna@aol.com
Sep 04-07 / Tulsa Classic 2009 (US)
Tulsa, OK / Bob Baker - baker111@tulsacoxmail.com (918.747.0214)
Sep 09-13 / Big Lobster Invitational (US)
Mount Desert Island, Maine / Larry Stettner - larryorfran@yahoo.com
Sep 10-13 / NC State Singles Championship (US)
Bald Head Island, NC / Frank Thompson - Frank@AVMetro.com (919.834.3059)
Sep 11-12 / The Third Annual "Great Croquet Caper '09" (9-Wicket)
Greenville, OH / www.bhrc.org
Sep 11-13 / 2009 Quebec Open (AC - US in lower flights)
Montreal, Quebec / Andrew de Courcy-Ireland - andrew_decourcy-ireland@canaccord.com (514.844.5520)
Sep 17–20 / Houston Invitational (US?)
Houston, TX / Johnny Mitchell - johnnym617@yahoo.com (832.725.8814)
Sep 18-20 / Merion Cricket Club Invitational (US)
Haverford, PA / Whitney Thain - wthain@merioncricket.com (610.642.5800)
Sep 19-20 / Greenwich Club Championship (US)
Greenwich, CT / Barbara Leeming - wicketstalker@gmail.com (203.801.4301)
Sep 23–27 / 20th Annual Pinehurst Invitational (US?)
Pinehurst, NC / Horace Hayworth - hhayworth@yahoo.com (910.690.8873)
Sep 23-27 / Autumn Leaves Invitational (US)
Cashiers, NC / Fred Jones - crokpeople@aol.com (941.484.3206)
Sep 24-27 / Osborne Cup (US)
New York, NY / Doug Moore - nycroquetclub@yahoo.com (212.473.2066)
Sep 25–27 / USCA 9-Wicket National Championship (9-Wicket)
Shawnee, KS / Matt Griffith - Kactuscreek@yahoo.com (816.891.6762)
OCTOBER 2009
Oct 02-03 / Mallet Mayhem 09 (9-Wicket)
Rockford, IL / www.tinkercottage.com
Oct 15-18 / Texas Croquet Classic (US)
Dallas, TX / Bob Knowlton - robertk@baylorhealth.edu (214.750.8722)
Oct 20-25 / Coastal Croquet Clubs Fall Invitational (US)
Hilton Head, SC / Avril Nicholson - avril@sc.rr.com (843.705.2929)
Oct 22-25 / Selection Eights (AC)
West Palm Beach, FL / Rich Lamm - richlamm@comcast.net or Jerry Stark - TPRover@aol.com
Oct 23–25 / Jekyll Island Invitational
Jekyll Island, GA / Dan Lott - lott1965@bellsouth.net (912.506.8744)
Oct 29-Nov 1 / West Indies Croquet Championship (US?)
St. Croix, VI / Les Kelley - lkelley@nnldlaw.com (340.773.9363)
Oct 30- Nov 1 / SCCC Fall Invitational (Singles Only) (US?)
Venice, FL / Jackie Jones - crokpeople@aol.com (941.484.3206)