The sport of croquet is wonderfully accommodating in that it has variations intended to span casual social play all the way up to an ultra-elite level of play. And from another perspective, there are variations that work on normal household lawns (mowed short please) and then versions intended for true croquet courts that utilize grass similar to golf greens, but ideally able to achieve faster lawns speeds (and flatness).
Read MoreMorning Coffee: WCF World AC Block Draw
The WCF has published the Association Croquet World Championship draw with eight blocks set for the field of 80 players. Seven qualifiers are yet to be named. The number ones include Robert Fletcher, Reg Bamford, David Maugham, Paddy Chapman, Stephen Mulliner, Samir Patel, Jeff Dawson and Ian Dumergue. From the US,
Read MoreWassink Officially Takes Lead in USCA Grand Prix
In last month's look at the USCA Grand Prix Top 25, we gave Stephen Morgan the headline, but officially there was a tie with Derek Wassink at 6,000 points. This month Wassink has established a slight gap with a 200 point lead based on his total of 7,540. Randy Cardo is now chasing Wassink with 7,340 for second place, while Morgan is in third with 7,120.
Read MoreMorning Coffee: USCA Coaching Videos
The USCA posted a helpful new 21-part video series this week on referee instruction produced by Bob Kroeger and Ted Prentis. I skipped ahead to the segment on marking balls, which is quite useful. I am looking forward to viewing the full series. It's definitely a good approach to helping everyone on the court.
2016 USCA AC Nationals Doubles Final
Game footage of the recent 2016 USCA AC Doubles Final between David Maloof/Jim Bast and Stuart Lawrence/Jeff Soo.
Morning Coffee: US Player Poll Results
Congratulations to Sherif Abdelwahab and Ben Rothman for each receiving nine votes to win the 2015 US Croquet Player of the Year Poll. Croquet Network has had pretty good success with online polls and while we had more votes for this year's poll versus the 2014 poll, it was clear that the poll carried the wrong title. Our result would better be characterized as the "Most Popular Player Poll."
Read MoreLightning Round: Andrea Pravettoni
#1 - Why is the Italian Federation wanting to move down to observer status in the WCF membership levels?
We asked to move down to “Observer” status because in 2015 we haven’t reached the number of affiliated players required to be an “Associate Member”, and we are not likely to reach that number in 2016 either.
#2 - How many members does the Italian Federation have and what is the requirement for Associate status?
The Italian Federation had about 15 members in 2015, while the threshold required by WCF Statute 102.1.2.1 is 20 Affiliated Players to obtain the Associate status.
2016 North Florida Cup
On February 13, 2016, near the St. John's River just south of downtown Jacksonville, Florida, 16 representatives of the Hammock Dunes Croquet Association met with 16 representatives of the Florida Yacht Club to compete for the new "North Florida Croquet Cup." It was the first of what the clubs hope will be many inter-club events among several new, and not so new, croquet clubs in North Florida.
Established in 1876, the Florida Yacht Club group is the first of two new groups to establish croquet in the Jacksonville area, with over 80 players active each week on two full-sized lawns with a beautiful setting directly on the river, next to their historic clubhouse.
Morning Coffee: WCF Grant to SCA
It was another busy week in the croquet world as the WCF released it's February PDF Newsletter. Highlights include coaching sessions in England in May and a one-day AC course held prior to the AC World Championship in Florida next month. The WCF also approved a grant to the Scottish Croquet Association for support of the Balgreen Club project in Edinburgh, which involves taking over bowling greens to create a new club.
Read MoreVideo: Drone View at the National Croquet Center
Slick drone video of Sandy Knuth Walsh running the last segment of a break at the National Croquet Center in West Palm Beach, Florida. Shot by Sherif Abdelwahab.