Golf Croquet Nationals were cancelled. Low turnout took the blame for a last minute tournament change this August. So instead of the sticky heat in North Carolina, Golf Croquet aficionados assembled in Rancho Mirage for a Southern California winter experience. The USCA managed to resurrect the tournament at the same venue of the record breaking 2010 competition.
Read MoreHuneycutt Takes 2011 U.S. Open
The 24th annual U.S. Open was played last week at the Mission Hills Croquet Club in Rancho Mirage, CA. The event was organized and run by Rory Kelly, the current USCA American Rules doubles champion. Rory did an incredible job with this event.
Read MoreCroquet Poll: Your Holiday Wishlist
Morning Coffee: A New U.S. Golf Croquet Champion
Visit the storeJust in time for the holidays, Issue #12 of Croquet Network Magazine has mailed and should have hit most North American mailboxes over the weekend. It's a good one featuring an in-depth interview with new GC World Champion Mark McInerney that you won't want to miss.
USCA GC Nationals: Rich Lamm Wins!
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.
Read MoreUSCA GC Nationals: Playoffs Continue
Thankfully the winds were absent today, but the cold wasn't. Temperatures at the start of the matches were in the 40s. I was tempted to buy a pair of gloves and a white sweater, but I didn't want to break my karma. So I just froze until the sun came up. When it did, it turned out to be a pleasant desert day, which is what I expect when I come out here. But once the sun goes down, our friend the cold comes back. Like I say, expect the unexpected.
USCA GC Nationals: Playoff Time
More clouds, brisk wind and cold in croquet paradise. Hey, isn't this the desert? When is the weather going to get nice. The winds are really bad for people that cast, like myself. My mallet is buffeted so much by the wind that I can see the shaft going back and forth as I follow-through. It is no fluke that I played my best games in the morning and late afternoon, when the wind was calm or light, and my worst games in the height of the gusts. Excuses, excuses.
Read MoreUSCA GC Nationals: It's Show Time
Today the matches started, bright and early. Thank goodness we were spared the winds that made yesterday so unfestive. The sun actually broke out of the clouds a few times. But as the evening fell, so did the temperatures. By day's end, my hands were so cold I could barely feel my mallet.
USCA GC Nationals Day 2: Show and Tell
As nice as yesterday was in croquet paradise, it was nasty, gloomy and windy today. The heavy winds that wreaked havoc in the Los Angeles area yesterday are not as bad, but they are still bad enough to buffet your mallet when you are swinging for a long clear. Paradise lost, if only for a few days. Another example that when playing in a tournament, expect the unexpected.
Read MoreUSCA GC Nationals Day 1: Sneaky Sneak Preview
Well, I'm here at the fabulous Mission Hills. The sky is blue as the sea. The croquet courts are emerald green. The hoops are freshly painted white and smooth as a baby's butt. This is Day No. 1 of my GC Nationals Odyssey, and my maiden voyage in the Championship flight of a USCA sanctioned event.