Event Reports

USCA Florida Golf Croquet Regional January 9-12, 2020 Venice, Florida

By Cheryl Bromley

The 7 th annual Florida GC Regional was held this year for the first time at the Sarasota County Croquet Club (SCCC) in Venice, Fla., setting a regional record with 50 players participating in singles and doubles. Players traveled from all over Florida as well as from California, Toronto, Atlanta, North Carolina, New Jersey and the Midwest.

Prior to the start of the event, a complimentary strategy and shot-making clinic was held on Wednesday afternoon with 30 local players and event participants. The clinic was taught by Matt Griffith, Macey White, Ellie Griffith and Cheryl Bromley. A total of 250 matches were played during the four-day tournament and the dedicated members of the SCCC volunteered their time to make sure all players were well taken care of by providing daily breakfasts, lunches, refreshments and the popular “attitude adjustment” social time every afternoon. Another hard-working crew of volunteers saw to it that all six courts were ready for play as soon as the sun came up. Day One was all about doubles with matches in Championship and First Flight that included consolation rounds.

Linda Schiesel and Ray Liberti took out Chris and Karen Weihs in a third/fourth playoff match to reach the top three in first flight doubles action. The Championship Flight Doubles Final ran out of daylight after completing just one game on the first day in a two-out-of-three game match and went the distance taking three days to complete. In the end, it was Matt Griffith and Steve Jackson who prevailed with terrific shooting to take out Macey White and Cheryl Bromley 4-7, 7-4, 7-4. Day Two saw the start of the singles block matches in all three flights with players battling to secure a top-four spot in their respective blocks to earn a place in the quarterfinal knockouts. At the end of the day, players headed to a catered BBQ dinner to relax and enjoy more fantastic southern hospitality. Day Three featured impressive matchups in block play and the start of the quarterfinals for Championship Flight. The order of finish in the blocks was based on win/loss records, then by net points and, if necessary, by head

to-head results. (All results can be found on www.croquetscores.com.) Macey White secured his spot as the top seed with an impressive 5-0 record in his block while Jim Teel played stealth-like to get to the top in his block. In the quarterfinals, Teel continued to connect on his clearing shots to take out Bromley 7-4, 7-6 while at the same time, Colin Irwin was able to get past Gil Flowers with identical scores of 7-4, 7-6. At the top of the bracket, White calmly disposed of John Warlick, while Amr Hamdy of Toronto and Matt Griffith of Missouri put on an exhibition of hard-hitting clearing and long-distance hoop shooting. Hamdy prevailed in a career-high victory with 7-4, 5-7, 7-2 to send him into the semifinals. Heading into the last day, early morning block matches still needed to be completed in First Flight and Second Flight, and it was uncertain at that point which players would advance into the knockouts. But, after some impressive play and careful calculations, the stage was set. With a couple of tight 7-6 games in the First Flight quarterfinals, Debbie Davidoff, Rich Dell, Ellie Griffith and Jim Coling all managed to make their way into the semifinals. In Second Flight, Jim Potts, Phil Emond, Jeff Hill and J. Billie Ray also notched quarterfinal wins to advance into their semifinal showdown. Potts and Ray ousted their semifinal rivals to face each other in the Second Flight Finals with Jim Potts claiming the regional title with a 7-2 victory. In First Flight, Dell and E. Griffith got to work taking out their respective opponents to meet in the final. Dell and Griffith are both rising stars with Dell the current First Flight National Doubles title holder and Griffith the current First Flight National Singles Champion. Dell prevailed with a solid 7-4 victory to add the Florida Regional title to his accomplishments. In Championship Flight, Steve Jackson captured the Plate title with a win in the playoffs against Steve Thurston. In the semifinals, Irwin made an impressive comeback to defeat Teel 0-7, 7-4, 7-6. In the other semi, Hamdy got off to a tough start 1-7 and was able to battle to win the second game 7-4, but it was Macey White who shut the door with a 7-4 final game.

Championship Flight: Macey White and Colin Irwin

White continued his patient play to win the Championship singles title with a 7-2, 7-6 victory over Irwin. Overall, the depth of the tournament was quite impressive with many more players

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getting into the tournament scene. After four days of tough competition, everyone seemed to have walked away having left all they had on the courts. A huge “Thank You” to Florida District President Gene Raymond and the SCCC for all the hard work! Championship Singles 01. Macey White 02. Colin Irwin 03. Amr Hamdy 03. James Teel 05. Matthew Griffith 05. Cheryl Bromley 05. Gil Flowers 05. John Warlick 09. Stephen Jackson 10. Steve Thurston 11. Hisham El Zoghby First Flight Singles 01. Richard Dell 02. Ellie Griffith 03. Debbie Davidoff 03. James Coling 05. Priscilla Flowers 05. Robert Clark 05. Clint Dawkins 05. Eugene Raymond 09. Gail (Rubin) Warlick 09. Douglas Ledgett

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11. Russell Rose 11. Webster Bull 13. Kevin Gralton 13. Theodore Thelin 15. Billy Joe Simmons 15. Rick Alderson 17. Virginia Combs 17. Christopf Weihs Second Flight Singles 01. Jim Potts 02. J. Billie Ray 03. Jeff Hill 03. Phillip Emond 05. Ray Liberti 05. Earle Mauldin 05. Tate Russack 05. Dennis Howard 09. Karen Weihs 09. Cami Russack 11. Caryl Firth 11. Linda Schiesel 13. Connie Coling 13. Peter Woolley 15. Kate Foster 15. John Rundell 17. Maria Petrola 17. Luella Rundell Championship Doubles 01. Matthew Griffith - Stephen Jackson 02. Macey White - Cheryl Bromley 03. Amr Hamdy - Hesham Elzoghby 03. Peter Carlin - Robert Clark 05. Gil Flowers - Richard Dell 06. James Teel - Eugene Raymond 07. James Coling - John Warlick 08. Theodore Thelin - Webster Bull First Flight Doubles 01. J. Billie Ray/Don Eastman 02. Clint Dawkins/Dennis Howard 03. Linda Schiesel/Ray Liberti 04. Christopf Weihs/Karen Weihs 05. Ellie Griffith /Gail Warlick 06. Douglas Ledgett/Rick Alderson 07. Priscilla Flowers/Caryl Firth 08. Debbie Davidoff/Earle Mauldin 09. Billy Joe Simmons/Phillip Emond 09. Jeff Hill/Jim Potts 11. Virginia Combs/Maria Petrola 11. Luella Rundell/John Rundell 11. Cami Russack/Tate Russack

2019 USCA GC Club Team Championships December 6-8, 2019 West Palm Beach, Florida By John C. Osborn If you are enthusiastic about great weather and truly competitive Golf Croquet, you would have loved this year’s USCA Club Teams. Forty players, representing six clubs and competing within two flights, found balanced and well-fought matches throughout. Block play led to playoffs, and with four courts and onehour time limits in play, the outcome for the Team Championship went right down to the wire. Within the Championship Flight, Roy Gee and Jimmy Huff (Carroll County Croquet Players) worked hard to make the Finals by sneaking past Cheryl Bromley and Lynda Sudderberg (Milwaukee Croquet Club/ National Croquet Club) in an exciting 6-7, 7-2, 7-4 battle. While Sherif Abdelwahab and Hal Denton (NCC) had an easier time defeating (7-2, 7-4) Dick Brackett and John Warlick (NCC) in the other semifinal, the Finals themselves would let no one take a breath. Every shot might have changed the outcome, but in the end Abdelwahab and Denton handled the pressure best with their 7-6, 7-6 victory. While the National Croquet Club put some nice points on the board trying to capture the Club Championship Title, the real action took place in First Flight. Come the last day, the Plantation Ponte Vedra club found a doubles team in each semifinal, with each facing off against representatives from the Florida Yacht Club. This gave both clubs a chance to guarantee the title if both doubles teams were victorious. As opposed to the Championship Flight, the playoffs for the First Flight consisted of 90-minute long, 19-point games. And time would be of importance. In one semi, Debbie Davidoff and Earle Mauldin (Plantation) had a nail biter against the determined Yacht Club duo of David Walker and Brad Martens, winning the game 8-7 in last turns. On the other side of the draw, Florida Yacht’s Shepard Foster anbd Peggy Fox clung to hope against Plantation’s Billy Joe and Dorthy Simmons. And yet, again in last turns, the Simmons duo prevailed (6-5),

thus securing the team title for Plantation. The Final itself, relaxed in nature, found another game to be decided by one point. Davidoff and Mauldin took away personal honors in a well fought 7-6 victory.

Overall, this year’s tournament probably saw the best caliber of play to date. While the event is billed as a no-frills adventure, the relaxed nature of play did nothing to diminish enthusiasm. The USCA cannot guarantee the wonderful weather found this year, but the feeling is that this tournament will continue to grow each year. Thanks to all who participated this year and congratulations to all the winners! Championship Flight 01. Sherif Abdelwahab/Hal Denton 02. Roy Gee/Jimmy Huff 03. Dick Brackett/John Warlick 03. Cheryl Bromley/Lynda Sudderberg 05. Clint Dawkins/Victor Fransen 05. Johnny Mitchell/Priscilla Flowers 07. Kent Lovvorn/Allen Griffin Dnf: Stephen Morgan/Bea Raymond First Flight 01. Debbie Davidoff/Earle Mauldin 02. Billie Joe Simmons/Dorothy Simmons 03. David Walker/Brad Martens 03. Shepard Foster/Peggy Fox 05. Bartie Cole/Charlie Cole 05. Marion DeGroff/April Wilson 05. George Mason/Pam Wilson 05. Phil Emond/Sue Emond First Flight Plate 09. Bill Harrison/Irving DeGaris 10. Jack Davis/Mike Shad 11. Bob Graham/Mona Long 11. Bob Feind/Mary Feind Team Champion The Plantation Ponte Vedra 7 National Croquet Club 5.5 Carroll County Croquet Players 3 Florida Yacht Club 2 Milwaukee Croquet Club 0.5 The Hillsboro Club 0

2019 USCA Selection Eights October 24–27, 2019 West Palm Beach, Florida

First Eight 01. Matthew Essick 01. Zack Watson 03. Ben Rothman 04. Brian Cumming 05. Stephen Morgan 06. Stuart Lawrence 07. Doug Grimsley 08. Sherif Abdelwahab Second Eight 01. Charles Xavier 02. Randy Cardo 03. Tom Balding 03. Simon Jenkins 05. Macey White 06. Leo McBride 07. George Cochran 07. Peter Bach Third Eight 01. Shane Hettler 02. Chris Barley 02. Rick Sheely 04. Patrick Sweeney 05. Michael Todorovich 06. David Druiett 06. Jay Hughes 08. Erv Peterson

36 | croquetamerica.com Matthew Essick. Photo by Reba Priscilla.

Fourth Group 01. Dawn Jupin 02. Gene Raymond 03. Lynda Sudderberg 04. Ron Eccles 05. Webster Bull 05. Jodie Rugart 07. Loretta Cooper Fifth Group 01. Merle Berkshire 02. Beverly Cardo 02. Jeanne Branthover 04. Jeff Morrison 05. Michael Kukla 05. Mark Ski 07. Matthew Harders DNF: Vickie Johnston

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