Morning Coffee: Trans-Tasman Update and a Sports Illustrated Find

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The Trans-Tasman Test is tied 1-1 with New Zealand holding a 2-1 lead in the final test. The final game is currently pegged down --
http://www.croquet-australia.com.au/Results/2011/TT/

The Mar-a-Lago Club singles got a nice write-up from the Palm Beach Daily News. John Joseph edged Geraldine McCauley 11-10 for the championship. Article and full tourney standings --
http://www.palmbeachdailynews.com/news/geraldine-mccauley-miss-gives-john-joseph-mar-a-1411523.html?cxtype=rss_columnists_278504

According to Melbourne Weekly, the Elwood Croquet Club in Melbourne, Australia is all about getting people on the court. Excerpt --

Davidson, who has been playing croquet for four years, says although his sport doesn’t get a lot of publicity, it is the “best-kept secret in Melbourne”, with those in the know instantly becoming addicted. “It can be anything you want it to be,” he says. “It can be just a fun, social game in fresh air, or it can get quite aggressive.”

New Zealand's Pakarunga Croquet Club is the champion of Auckland --
http://www.times.co.nz/cms/sport/sports_news/2011/04/hotshots_are_cock_a_hoop.php?page=1

Leo Nikora found this Sports Illustrated article on a 1967 test between the U.S. and Great Britain. You can also view the actual 1967 magazine issue to see the article with photos starting on page 24. Also, Leo tipped off an extensive croquet history page on the Maui Croquet Club website --
http://www.mauicroquetclub.org/history/index.htm

Something doesn't seem quite right about the way the Hazelbrook Croquet Club in Australia received a last minute denial --
http://www.bluemountainsgazette.com.au/news/local/news/general/whitton-park-croquet-plans-crushed/2132745.aspx

Foster's Daily Democrat posted an article on Jim McLaughlin and his artificial turf court in Rye, New Hampshire. Here's an excerpt --

"Croquet is a cross between billiards and chess," McLaughlin said. "There's a lot of strategy. A lot of thinking goes into it. If you're a good bridge player or an engineer, if you have that type of a mind, that's kind of the thinking of the sport. A lot of good croquet players have engineering backgrounds. They can think four plays ahead."

West River Wickets is on a media blitz. The Washington Post picked up the Something Wicket This Way Comes article posted on HometownAnnapolis.com earlier this month. Washington Post = great exposure for croquet. Here's the link in case you want to re-read --
http://www.washingtonpost.com/national/md-croquet-club-attracts-loyal-following-piles-up-wins/2011/04/13/AFmolPWD_story.html

The WCF website is reporting that all eight wildcard slots for the Golf Croquet World Championship have been filled --
http://www.wcfcroquet.org/index.php