By Eric Sawyer
Today was the end of the show. It was again cold in the early morning and late evening, with sun during the mid-day.
In the Championship Doubles, Danny Huneycutt and Rich Lamm beat Ron Hendry and I two-games to none to advance into the Finals. It's never fun to lose, but losing to great players and true gentlemen like Danny and Rich sure softens the blow. They were met in the Finals by Ben Rothman and Leo Nikora, who advanced by defeating Paul Bennett and Art Bagby. In the Finals, Ben and Leo won the first game decisively 7-2. But Danny and Rich came back to win the next two games and take the Championship Flight Doubles Championship.
In the Championship Singles, Rich Lamm beat me 7-6 and 7-5 to advance into the Finals. The better player certainly won this game. Rich was able to put his balls in great wired positions and constantly clear mine from scoring. As an example, in game #1, after I tied the game 6-6, Rich shot his first ball about three feet in front of hoop #13 and perfectly wired from both of my balls. He did that shooting from about 60 feet or so. Yikes. Nothing I could do to stop it. That's the sign of a world class player. Rich was incredibly gracious in victory, the sign of a world class gentleman. Rich faced his doubles partner Danny Huneycutt in the Finals. Danny had defeated Mohammad Kamal two games to one. This was a much closer match than mine. In the Finals, which was played as the sun and temperature dropped, Rich beat Danny two games to one to become the Singles Champion. So Rich Lamm is the Championship Flight Singles and Doubles GC champion. Quite a feet. Bravo to Rich. I was happy for Rich and for myself. I can now tell people that the only person who beat me in singles this entire tournament was the guy who won the whole damn thing.
In the First Flight, Mission Hills club member Mary Rodeberg beat fellow Mission Hills member Nick Gray two games to one to take the Singles title. Bravo to Mary. I think it's now time for her to move up to the Championship flight. There were no women in the C-Flight this year, which is a shame and hopefully should be corrected next year.
Cameron Evans and his grandmother Louann Evans won the First Flight Doubles championship. It's the first time anyone can remember that a grandson-grandmother combination has won a GC national championship.
A few final notes. 1) I was amazed at how collaborative the play was. I can't remember hearing a whisper of a single dispute or argument. Everybody was incredibly nice and collegial, self-enforcing off-sides, calling faults on themselves, avoiding arguments, etc. GC seems to bring out the civil side in folks, unlike American Rules events, where I have personally witnessed (and been involved in) many disputes and arguments. Some sports can be a bit catty, especially at the upper levels. I was welcomed by the top tier players readily, kind of like a little brother who was trying to tag along. 2) As I noted above, I was disappointed about the lack of women in the Championship flight. If this sport is going to be successful, it must appeal to everyone. We shouldn't have a caste system of men in the C-Flight and women in the F-Flight. Women in Egypt and New Zealand and England are very competitive in championship level croquet. And I know of many American women who play American Rules and Association Rules croquet at the highest levels. So why not GC? 3) The GC Nationals have attracted small crowds in the Carolinas and Florida, but huge turn-outs in the desert. Why? Is it bad scheduling? Is it lack of interest? Until the East Coast can get their act together, perhaps the GC Nationals should stay out in the desert and keep drawing record crowds. 4) I was shocked to find out that the top players do not practice golf croquet shots. If these amazing players simply devoted 30 minutes a week to GC-specific shots, like cannons, stuns, long jumps, etc. I think the US would be the top GC power in the world, even better than Egypt.
Thanks for reading these posts. Until next year, or the next time I play in the GC Nationals, it has been a pleasure to try depict what has happened.