After last year’s widely publicized Buffalo Croquet Club Invitational, top croquet players from across the nation and overseas are returning to Delaware Park in August.

The three-day tournament drew widespread acclaim and attention last summer for both its on-court competition and off-court festivities. During the day, players ranging from adolescents to elderly, men and women, competed nonstop from morning to evening. At night, they hosted cocktail parties and galas at local homes and hotels.

“It can sometimes feel like a party-and-play marathon,” said Tournament Manager Ryan Thompson, a 40-year-old attorney who lives in the Elmwood Village. “You wake up at sunrise, play croquet, have lunch at a bar, play more croquet, and then have a different party every night. Sometimes it’s the 80-year-olds who are last to bed.”