On Friday 2 May Hampstead Heath Croquet Club offered members the chance to develop their skills and tactics in playing Association Croquet.
Informal coaching (and encouragement) was provided by playing Hi-Low doubles, competing for 6 hoops (14 points), by which a more experienced player was able to guide someone less experienced, and, in one case, someone new to the format.
If you are interested in a day like this but you are not a member, please consider attending an upcoming Open Session!
Club members were thrilled to see the progress of club president, Gabrielle Higgins, in the Croquet England open championship. She made the semi-final, losing 2-3 to the eventual winner.
Continue reading Club president’s successes in 2024There are many wonderful things about Hampstead Heath but croquet players have a particular soft spot for their gem, Hampstead Heath Croquet Club. There will be plenty of opportunities to try out this summer – see dates below, and watch for news updates.
Continue reading Play croquet on Hampstead Heath in 2024!Member Sue Kirby explains the basic characteristics and origins of the game of croquet and invites you to join the Hampstead Heath Croquet Club.
Continue reading “Croquet is like playing snooker on a lawn!”Members of the club will now be eagerly looking at the weather forecast! For the moment the second half of this week looks fairly dry so fingers are crossed that play will start on Saturday.
Continue reading Croquet season starts on 13 AprilThanks to the efforts of some dedicated members golf croquet has grown from almost nothing to now play a full role in the club’s activity. Golf croquet is, according to the The Croquet Association, “a game with a long history and a recent resurgence of interest at all levels” and “has simpler rules and is more interactive (each turn is just a single stroke), but it requires a similar level of accuracy and tactical awareness”. The club’s dedicated players had the fullest season to date as summarised below (with thanks to Chris Elliott for the words).
Continue reading Golf croquet is resurgentOur club plays in the southeast region U-league. This involves playing four of the other ten clubs during the summer – two home matches and two away. The results page for 2023 is here. A detailed report of the final match of the season (against Caterham) is below. As Caterham and Hampstead Heath were the only teams remaining unbeaten after three matches, the final match was a winner-takes-all decider for the League title. It turned out to be a most satisfactory end to a most enjoyable season with all players contributing to the final winning scoreline of 4-3. Congratulations to everyone who played a part in this success.
Continue reading HHCC competition successFollowing a nervy start in which his first four bisques yielded but one hoop, Alex was a worthy winner +14 to take the 2023 Club AC Singles Championship. After Phil failed to capitalise on a good early opportunity Alex got to peg and 2 back with eight of his 15 bisques remaining. At this point Phil realised that what the game needed was a futile gesture, so duly hit a 25 yarder and played a break to the peg and pegged Alex out. He could then only sit and watch as Alex finished from 2 back requiring only two of his remaining eight bisques so to do.
So many congratulations to Alex, a truly worthy winner. Hopefully he will find his defence next season a bit more challenging off his new handicap of 10.
It took some time to find a suitable date to present Robin Ferner (left) with the Catherine Weinstein Trophy (for most improved player) for 2022. Congratulations, Robin! The winner for 2023 will be announced at the club’s AGM.
Robin is photographed with Sandy Nairne.
Last Thursday the club held its first full day event. Over 20 members attended at some point through the day enjoying matches (both association and golf) with old friends and new. We look forward to another such opportunity.
