One of the slightly quirky elements of the Southern Croquet Federation GC league is that where a club fields more than one team, those teams have to play each other as a starting match.  So it was that HW Kestrels hosted the HW Kites on 22 April for an Advantage GC match.  Kestrels were the perfect hosts, managing the day well and keeping everybody fed and watered in an enjoyable atmosphere.  

The Kites took an early lead in the opening round and were able to sustain that through the day, winning 11-5.  Both teams are now ready to take on opponents from other clubs during the rest of the season.

During the day, High Wycombe maintained its reputation for learning and development.  An observer would have seen someone receiving referee coaching from Ian Shore; a player being assessed using the CPA system to help their  development;  and all games being played using the Target Scores method currently being trialled for all SCF AGC matches this summer, with feedback gathered at the end of the day.  There's more to croquet than croquet...

Thanks from the Kites to our Kestrel friends.  Happy hunting for the rest of the season!

Chris Webbley, Kites Captain 

 

Well done to the HWCC 3+ team that got our SCF GC league competitions under way last week.  Despite giving away a 6 handicap difference, and playing away at Phyllis Court, they secured a draw.  

Congratulations to Martin Dock, Kenny Weir,  Richard Coward and captain Michael Bowker.
  

If six out of the eight players at today's final tournament in the autumn and winter series came from other clubs, then High Wycombe must be doing something right!

Everybody enjoyed themselves but no one more than Kay who took home the prize after a well-fought final.  Congratulations to her and thanks to everyone, both HWCC and visitors, who have contributed to these successful events as players, setter-uppers, tournament managers, referees (and providers of cake).   

​Chris Webbley

This year's autumn and winter GC tournaments have suffered far less weather disruption than in previous years.  Which is good for people's ability to keep their skills sharp,  not to mention the benefits to club funds from tournament fees and the enjoyment of High Wycombe members and visitors to our club.

Tuesday 18 March saw the last of the level play events, a one-day competition of five rounds for players with handicaps of 5 or higher.  Three of the eight players were regular visitors from Caversham and Eynsham; one of the HWCC people was playing in only his second tournament; and a late withdrawal meant that the tournament manager became a multi-tasking player for the day!  

Winter may have been the title on the sheet but it was actually a delightful Spring day with clear skies and relatively little wind.  Croquet was made for days like these.

In the end, two HWCC players contested the final, with lucky tournament manager Chris Webbley taking the prize.  Special mentions go to new contestant William Holman who demonstrated some superb clearances and calm  focus throughout, and to Carol Jamieson who won her last game in style with a double hoop run on the 11th and 12th!

One more event to go before the jumping restarts and the summer competitions get going.

Chris Webbley         

For the opening GC tournament of March 2025. players were looking forward to the clear skies and winter sunshine! The lawns were playable, but we had to wait for the sun to be high enough in the sky to clear the white frost from the lawns. The call for a 30 minute delay was made early, and a quick email to the entrants meant that, if they hadn’t yet set off, they had time for another cup of tea! Just before 10.00 the lawns were brushed and play could begin.
 
An enjoyable day of close competition in that winter sunshine followed. As always results were close. In the semi-finals after lunch, one went to the 13th hoop with all the other games of that round going to the 12th.  The final was contested between Rick Lilley and Patricia Mulcahy (where have I read that before…) with Rick prevailing 7-4. Congratulations to Rick!

PS Players from other clubs were very impressed with the quality of our lawns.  Thank you to all who are involved in managing and maintaining the courts.
​
​Kenny Weir

Or Carole, Mathew, Kenny, Ian or Andrew...   But Richards featured, too, at the Annual Dinner and Awards Evening at The Old Queen's Head on 5 March, both in person and as reported by Chairman David Cotton reviewing the year.  

Mark Higgins may have looked VERY relaxed during the (excellent) quiz but for most of us it was more of a nail-biter!  Of course, Mark knew all the answers!

A fine, sociable evening with a notably good menu.  Thank you, everyone who organised.

Chris Webbley     

Congratulations to everybody who braved the sunny but chilly weather on Tuesday 18th February to enter the latest in the autumn & winter GC one-day tournaments.  Three clubs were represented, maintaining the pattern of High Wycombe attracting visitors who come to enjoy our fine lawns and the warm welcome that we extend.

Extenders-in-chief today were Wendy Kingon and Mary Whimster, who effortlessly managed to introduce the new 2024-25 AGC starting scores table at short notice.  They were assisted by Ian Shore who kindly took time to explain the jump mats that some events are using.  

Special congratulations go to Nigel Moore, who won the bottle of bubbly, and Will Hollman, for whom this was his first experience of tournament play.  Will recorded a very creditable 5th place, after which he benefitted from some friendly coaching advice from Roger Booth, one of our welcome regular visitors.  

Well done, everyone.
​
Chris Webbley from information provided by Wendy  

The weather forecast was for it to be cold – it was cold. The weather forecast was for there to be showers in the afternoon and there were a couple of light ones! However this didn’t put off any of our players who enjoyed a full day of croquet.

The block games produced a very tight set of results, and while Gabriel Furse won all his games to top the red block (with Ian Prince in second), in the blue block, three players had tied on wins with two each. On net hoops Richard Coward secured the block win, with second (Chris Barnard) and third (James Gamon ) separated by just one hoop!

The semifinals were very close, nip and tuck games all the way round. Chris made the final, with his opponent decided at a tense 13th hoop where Ian prevailed. The final round of games were composed of players who had not previously played each other, and these games repeated the close results which were a feature of the whole day. In the final, Ian and Chris shared hoops all the way to hoop 12 with Ian then taking an opportunity to run the hoop and take the win 7-5. Congratulations to him.

Kenny Weir