Croquet Tournaments –
US National Championship International Rules
I am new to the sport of croquet, as a professionally competitive
sport. I have played backyard croquet and poison croquet with
friends and family, but there have never been clubs or
professional competitions in my vicinity. I am therefore
researching various tournaments, where and when they occur, along
with how they are played and how one can enter those tournaments.
This is the first of probably several articles which I will write
on the subject.
This first article will be written on the United States National
Croquet Championships. According to the United States Croquet
Association website, the tournament occurs from May 31 to June 5.
Because the tournament follows international rules, it is also
termed the USCA International Rules National Championships, as
opposed to the USCA AC National Championships American Rules,
which is held annually in November and December. This year (2005)
the tournaments were held in Seattle, the same place they were
held in 2001, and hosted by the Puget Sound Croquet Club.
According to Jeff Soo, who reported on the National Championships
in the Croquet World Online Magazine, (May 25, 2005), eleven of
the top twenty croquet players, as determined by the World
Ranking, competed in the tournament. Because of the small number
of lawns available for the tournament, it is limited to only
twenty players per one flight. Jeff Soo also said that five of
this year’s competitors can claim nine of the last twelve singles
titles in this event – Leo McBride, John Taves, Bob Cherry, and
Mik Mehas. “Paul Scott has won the last three doubles titles with
two different partners.” Also, according to Soo, the games will
be played as “straight knockouts,” meaning that each match is won
by the best out of three games in both singles and doubles. There
will also be a singles Plate match in “flexible Swiss format.”
Danny Huneycutt, Croquet World Online Magazine (6 Jun 2005)
mentioned that for the first time in North America, competitors
were allowed to play “plate game, even prior to being eliminated
from the main event.” The plate games were limited to
two-and-a-half hours while main event matches, doubles and
singles, were limited to seven-and-a-half hours. Time limits and
other technical changes made the tournament run smoothly and
efficiently.
Entry into the tournament was restricted to invitation. Players
entered the tournaments by mail invitations, which posted the
requirements for entry; hence, I do not know all of the
requirements for entry. Since it is the national championships I
would assume that all contestants must have won other
tournaments, which qualified them for the national championship.
The entry deadline was May 16. Jerry Stark and Jeff Soo were
co-tournament directors for this years match.
This years’ tournament ended with a new national champion, Danny
Huneycutt, who beat Paul Scott in a three-game match. Stark won
the Plate knockout over John Taves. The tournament did receive
some media in Washington where it was held, giving publicity to
the sport of croquet and providing an opportunity for croquet
players to explain to locals and visitors about the tournament,
and the sport of croquet itself.
There are many other croquet tournaments in the United States,
Canada, and other countries. I will write articles about the
other croquet tournaments as well. For more information about
croquet or croquet sets, go to
www.playcroquet.com
Peter Jay is a yard game enthusiast with Yard Game Central and a
manager and web administrator with PlayCroquet.com Please visit
PlayCroquet.com for more information about croquet or croquet
sets.
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