As 2016 winds down, it's always a great time to look at the most popular articles and pages on the Croquet Network site. The trends always present an interesting look back at the year in our wonderful sport and the popularity of specific pages or articles makes me appreciate the loyal audience that has been cultivated over a near-decade of work. The past year was particularly enjoyable because, we kicked off a small but targeted effort to invest in and produce more original content. It's nice to see some of those pieces in the top 10 for 2016.
Read MoreGame Five of the 2016 British Opens Singles final between Samir Patel and Ben Rothman.
Read MoreIt’s Rothman! Ben Rothman is the 2016 British Open Singles Champion. In the final he beat Samir Patel (England) -26tp, +19, -20tp, +25tp, +26tp. Rothman (USA) is the first North American player to win a British Open championship title.
Read MoreThe singles semifinals were all-day affairs, averaging around two hours per game (including lunch and tea breaks). Between the two matches there were nine games played, each with a successful peeling turn (eight triples and one quad).
Read MoreThe main event of the day was the singles quarterfinals, played as best-of-fives. Paddy Chapman showed impressive focus and control and was nearly error-free in dispatching the ever-entertaining James Death 3-1. Samir Patel was nearly as impressive in a 3-1 win over top seed Reg Bamford.
Read MoreIn the much-anticipated Bamford vs. Essick match, Essick hit only one of five long shots, and Bamford won with two sextuple peels. All eight seeds advanced to the quarterfinals, some needing to play two matches to get there. While the conditions are fairly easy, it is nonetheless impressive that 28 of 34 games today included a successful peeling turn of three or more peels, including three sextuples and three quads.
Read MoreThe British Opens Singles qualifying is in the Burridge Swiss format; players need five wins out of ten games to reach the knockout. The first six rounds are pre-drawn to ensure a balanced draw. The final four rounds match players by record. Paddy Chapman (NZ, resident in England) and Ben Rothman (USA) lead the pack at 6/6.
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