Feedback Requested on 2014 MCA Championship Date

As we prepare for the 2014 MCA Tour, I would like to get member feedback on the concept of setting the annual MCA Championship tournament for the second weekend after Labor Day going forward. For 2014, that would be the weekend of September 13. The idea with this concept is that the tournament would fall on that weekend each year and all members could plan well ahead for the date.

This will be an agenda item at the 2014 AGM, so if you are unable to attend and you want to voice your opinion, please let me know in advance by e-mailing me at kccroquetclub@gmail.com.

Thank you,

Dylan Goodwin | MCA President

Update on 2014-01-19 00:48 by MCA Website Admin

With the announcement of USCA Nine-Wicket Nationals coming back to Kansas City September 19-21, the MCA Championship will likely need to move forward. A proposed date at this is Saturday, August 16.

Update on 2014-01-28 19:19 by MCA Website Admin

All feedback to date has been that we should stick with the September 13 target. If you have an opinion, please get your feedback to Dylan Goodwin (kccroquetclub@gmail.com) soon as we would like to go ahead and secure a venue.

MCA Members at Seniors Masters

WEST PALM BEACH, FL -- MCA members Deborah and Ron Millican made the big trip to Florida in December to play in the USCA's Seniors Masters tournament held at the National Croquet Center in West Palm Beach, Florida. The couple tied for fifth in second flight singles for the Senior Division and tied for third in second flight doubles. Full standings are posted on Croquet Network:

http://croquet.ning.com/forum/topics/2013-seniors-masters-results

MCA Players in Tulsa

TULSA, OK -- Earlier this year several MCA players participated in the Indian Territory Open in Tulsa, Oklahoma. The event was held in August 31-September 2 and the MCA's Deborah Millican took a win over fellow MCA player Jodi Adams to claim the second flight singles title.

Millican and Adams also teamed up to win the second flight doubles title. Matt Smith, Greg Adams and Ron Millican from the MCA also played in the event.

Kactus Creek Croquet Club's Matt Griffith won the Championship Flight singles.

Full Results:

Championship Singles: 1. Matt Griffith 2. Matt Baird 3. Jeff Caldwell 3. Dan Bennett 5. Matt Smith 5. Joe Franz 5. Art Parsells 5. Dan Campbell

First Flight Singles: 1. Aaron McIntosh 2. Harold Menzel 3. Kevin McQuigg 4. F.P. Tad Cassidy 5. Pat Garner 5. Greg Adams 5. Scott Spradling 5. Ron Millican 9. Howard Holdsclaw 9. Andrée Bothe

Second Flight Singles: 1. Deborah Millican 2. Jodi Adams 3. Joshua Reed 4. Suzanne Spradling 5. Richard Hardin 5. Alan McIntosh

Championship Doubles: 1. Matt Baird/Jeff Caldwell 2. Matt Smith/Matt Griffith 3. Dan Bennett/Dan Campbell 4. Art Parsells/Joe Franz

First Flight Doubles: 1. Kevin McQuigg/Scott Spradling 2. F.P. Tad Cassidy/Harold Menzel 3. Howard Holdsclaw/Aaron McIntosh 4. Greg Adams/Ron Millican 5. Pat Garner/Andrée Bothe

Second Flight Doubles: 1. Jodi Adams/Deborah Millican 2. Suzanne Spradling/Alan McIntosh 3. Joshua Reed/Richard Hardin 4. Lois Holdsclaw/Gene Melton

Jodi Adams Wins the 2013 Pumpkin Open

PARKVILLE, MO -- MCA member Jodi Adams continued her recent tear with a win at the Pumpkin Open held in October in Parkville. The event is six-ball style croquet and she had to hold off fellow MCA member and husband Greg Adams who took second place. 

Final Standings:
1. Jodi Adams
2. Greg Adams
3. Art Hachey
4. Don Brooks
5. Bob Cook
6. Dennis Hood

MCA Members at Selections Eights

WEST PALM BEACH, FL -- Two MCA members participated in the 2013 US Selection Eights event held October 24-27 at the National Croquet Center in West Palm Beach, FL. 

Billy Bob Breeden competed in the fourth eight and took third place with a 9-5 record. You can see the standings and full game results for his group on croquetscores.com.

Dylan Goodwin played in the fifth eight and tied for third place with an 8-6 record. You can see standings and full game results for his group on croquetscores.com

Selection Eights is an Association Croquet event utilized to both develop and evaluate US association players for international events and team play. Players are grouped by "eights" according to their international grade. So, the top eight ranked players available will play in the first eight. Players ranked nine through 16 play in the second eight and so on.

A player will play each player in their group twice, so it ends up being 14 games played over four days. And that pretty much means starting at 8:00 a.m. each day and playing until dark.

"Since I figured out the landscape of croquet," said Goodwin. "This is the national event I've always dreamed of playing in. And it definitely didn't disappoint. I would have liked to have finished stronger, but I learned a lot in just a few days."

2013 Final Gold Division Standings

Rank	First	Last	GP	Wins	Losses	Total Wickets	Wicket Average
1	Jason	Johnson	8	6	2	170	21.25
2	Bill	Berg	10	5	5	163	16.30
3	Deborah	Millican	9	6	3	161	17.89
4	Keith	Berg	7	2	5	114	16.29
5	Jodi	Adams	3	3	0	96	32.00
6	Justin	Marciniak	5	0	5	75	15.00
7	S. Jason	Cole	2	1	1	37	18.50
8	Carl	Distefano	2	0	2	22	11.00

2013 Final Pro Division Standings

Rank	First	Last	GP	Wins	Losses	Total Wickets	Wicket Average
1	Paul	Miller	17	13	4	385	22.65
2	Dylan	Goodwin	17	11	6	328	19.29
3	Greg	Clouse	15	10	5	321	21.40
4	Robert	Fournier	15	8	7	289	19.27
5	Ron	Millican	13	6	7	251	19.31
6	Greg	Adams	9	3	6	140	15.56
7	Debbie	Millican	6	3	3	110	18.33
8	Matt	Smith	4	4	0	103	25.75
9	Jason	Johnson	5	1	4	91	18.20
10	Jodi	Adams	5	0	5	90	18.00
11	Carl	Distefano	5	0	5	77	15.40
12	Bill	Berg	5	1	4	55	11.00
13	Keith	Berg	3	0	3	41	13.67
14	S. Jason	Cole	3	1	2	40	13.33

Pro Division points are earned from Pro Division playoff games and open/Pro Division block games. Due to open block games, it is possible for Gold Division players to earn points in both the Pro Division and the Gold Division. It is also possible for a Gold Division player to qualify for the MCA Championship in both or all divisions.

The tiebreaker for qualifying is wins, head-to-head record, average wickets per game, average net per game, playoff.

Updated 9.16.2013

2013 MCA Championship: Early Report

BELTON, MO -- A full report will be available later this weekend. Today's winners:

MCA Pro Points Race - Paul Miller
MCA Championship - Paul Miller 

MCA Gold Points Race - Jason Johnson
MCA Gold Championship - Jodi Adams

MCA Six-Ball Championship - Dylan Goodwin 

2013 MCA Championship: Pro Division Bracket

The match-ups and times are set for the Pro Division Championship Playoff to be held Saturdary, September 14 at Markey Park in in Belton, MO. The play-off is single-elimination. Lunch is not included, but there will be a gap provided for all players and there plenty of restaurant options near the facility. The event is free for qualified MCA members. Non-members that have qualified will simply need to join the MCA and can do that by paying the membership fee of $20 Saturday morning.

Quarterfinals - 8:30 a.m.
#1 Paul Miller vs #8 Jodi Adams
#4 Robert Fournier vs #5 Ron Millican
#3 Dylan Goodwin vs #6 Greg Adams
#2 Greg Clouse vs #7 Deborah Millican 

Semi-Finals - 9:45 a.m.
1-8 winner vs 4-5 winner
3-6 winner vs 2-7 winner

Pro Division Final - Noon

A six-ball (cut-throat) will run during this event as well. The first match in six ball will start at 10:00 a.m. and will include Bill Berg and Keith Berg. Debbie Millican will also be in this match if she is available. The rest of that match will be filled with losing players from the first round of the pro bracket. The second six ball match will be scheduled as players are available with the six-ball championship taking place at 2:45 p.m.

View Larger Map

2013 MCA Championship: Gold Division Bracket

The match-ups and times are set for the Gold Division Championship Playoff to be held Saturdary, September 14 at Markey Park in in Belton, MO. The play-off is single-elimination. Lunch is not included, but there will be a gap provided for all players and there are plenty of restaurant options near the facility. The event is free for qualified MCA members. Non-members that have qualified will simply need to join the MCA and can do that by paying the membership fee of $20 Saturday morning.

Wildcard - 9:45 a.m.
#4 Justin Marciniak vs #5 Jodi Adams

Semi-Finals - 11:00 a.m.
#1 Bill Berg vs Wildcard Winner
#2 Debbie Millican vs #3 Keith Berg

Gold Division Final - 1:30 p.m.

A six-ball (cut-throat) will run during this event as well. The first match in six ball will start at 10:00 a.m. and will include Bill Berg and Keith Berg. Debbie Millican will also be in this match if she is available. The rest of that match will be filled with losing players from the first round of the pro bracket. The second six ball match will be scheduled as players are available with the six-ball championship taking place at 3:00 p.m.

View Larger Map

MCA To Follow 2007 Edition 9W Rules

MCA players may have noted that the USCA updated the nine-wicket rulebook in mid-season. For consistency, the MCA will continue with the 2007 edition rules as played in the three previous events through the end of the 2013 season.

The new revisions made by the USCA will be evaluated by the board during the winter and a decision will be made as to whether or not we will follow the USCA's update or create a set of MCA Nine-Wicket Rules.

Link to the new USCA Nine-Wicket Rules:
http://www.croquetamerica.com/croquet/rules/backyard/ 

MCA Championship to Belton

The 2013 MCA Championship will be played at Markey Park in Belton, MO on Saturday, September 14. The event will feature a single-elimination tournament for the top eight finishers in the Pro Division and another single elimination bracket for the top finishers in the Gold Division. Seeds will be based on standings in the points race and invitations will sent this week to begin confirming the line-up.'

To ensure more than one game for a all players, the event will also feature a six-ball cut-throat tournament that will begin in the afternoon for players eliminated in the early rounds of each bracket. The initial thought was to run a doubles bracket, but six ball will provide a quicker option and also ties to the roots of the MCA and Kansas City Croquet.

Starting times will be announced once the line-ups have been set.

FREE FOR MEMBERS
The MCA Championship is a free tournament for MCA members. Non-members will simply be asked to join the MCA at the $20 membership rate in order to participate.

Clouse Wins KC Invitational

PARKVILLE, MO -- MCA member Greg Clouse took first place at the 40th Edition of the Kansas City Invitational Tournament held this past Saturday in Parkville, MO. The event was six-ball (cutthroat) croquet. Overall, the MCA had three members in the final as Jodi Adams took fourth place and Ron Millican took sixth. Full results:

1. Greg Clouse 2. Brian Wolkey 3. Sandra Gruefe 4. Jodi Adams 5. Brian Mondt 6. Ron Millican 

Miller Leads the Pro Division

With Saturday's win at the PeakVision Leawood Challenge, Paul Miller moves into the pole position for the MCA Nine-Wicket Series. The top eight for the Pro Division will be invited to the MCA Championship on September 14. The Pro Division singles championship will be a single elimination bracket and seeds are based on the current point rankings.

With her eight place position, Deborah Millican will have the opportunity to play in both the Pro bracket and the Gold Division tournament.

Rank	First	Last	GP	Wins	Losses	Total Wickets	Wicket Average
1	Paul	Miller	14	10	4	309	22.07
2	Greg	Clouse	13	9	4	282	21.69
3	Dylan	Goodwin	14	9	5	272	19.43
4	Robert	Fournier	13	7	6	261	20.08
5	Ron	Millican	12	6	6	235	19.58
6	Greg	Adams	8	3	5	133	16.63
7	Matt	Smith	4	4	0	103	25.75
8	Debbie	Millican	5	3	2	99	19.80
9	Jason	Johnson	5	1	4	91	18.20
10	Carl	Distefano	5	0	5	77	15.40
11	Jodi	Adams	4	0	4	66	16.50
12	Bill	Berg	5	1	4	55	11.00
13	Keith	Berg	3	0	3	41	13.67
14	S. Jason	Cole	3	1	2	40	13.33

Johnson Retains Lead in Gold Division

Jason Johnson held on to his lead in the Gold Division despite missing out on the Gold Final this past Saturday in Leawood, Kansas. Johnson is at 170 points, but that will have to hold as he will be unable to attend the MCA Championship in September. In the meantime, Bill Berg moved up to second place with 148 points, while Deborah Millican maintained third place with 141 points.

Rank	First	Last	GP	Wins	Losses	Total Wickets	Wicket Average
1	Jason	Johnson	8	6	2	170	21.25
2	Bill	Berg	9	5	4	148	16.44
3	Deborah	Millican	8	6	2	141	17.63
4	Keith	Berg	5	1	4	71	14.20
5	Justin	Marciniak	4	0	4	59	14.75
6	S. Jason	Cole	2	1	1	37	18.50
7	Carl	Distefano	2	0	2	22	11.00

PeakVision Leawood Challenge: Miller Begins Streak

Miller and Clouse in the Pro FinalLEAWOOD, KS -- Paul Miller took his second straight MCA tournament with a 28-16 win over Greg Clouse in the Pro Division Final of the PeakVision Leawood Challenge. In the Gold Division, Deborah Millican took the title with a 21-7 win over Bill Berg in the final.

PHOTO GALLERY | OFFICIAL SCORESHEET

In the Pro Division final, Clouse looked to be in good shape as he ran his break through the turn until he croqueted a ball out of bounds near 11PW from the turn stake area with a hand shot. That's right, Clouse got enough power on the nine-wicket style hand stop shot to travel at least 30 feet. Of course, the game was held on court two which was the fastest of the three courts, and in this case it was costly for Clouse.

He did have a chance later in the game, but he roqueted his partner to work on an attack toward blue with his red ball. Unfortunately, he was dead on blue and in an odd twist Miller mentioned it to him before he actually hit the blue ball. Still, it was a damaging error and it helped Miller snatch control of the game.

Not only was it Miller's second straight tourney win, but he's also got a nine-game winning streak going as he was a perfect 6-0 in the event.

Gold FinalistsGold Final Experiences Sequence Issues

The Gold Division Final between Berg and Millican will mainly be remembered for a lengthy delay due to a potential out of sequence play midway through the game. Unfortunately, although something appeared to be out of whack, neither player could piece together the actual sequence error.

Play had to continue as the balls lay. It seemed to fire up Millican though as she went on a tear shortly after to roll to a 21-7 win. Berg was the only player to work in six games during the event so fatigue could have also been a factor.

Prize Package

Click to Find Out More About PeakVision's SD7 ModelKansas City Croquet Club member Paul Moore and CEO/Founder of PeakVision Sports came through with a great set of prizes. Finalists in both divisions were each awarded a of pair PeakVision Sunglasses.

Pro Playoff Results

ROUND ONE
#3 Robert Fournier over #6 Greg Adams 27-15
#4 Ron Millican over #5 Dylan Goodwin 21-17 

SEMI-FINALS
#2 Greg Clouse over #3 Robert Fournier 22-21
#1 Paul Miller over #4 Ron Millican 28-14

FINAL
#1 Paul Miller over #2 Greg Clouse 28-16

Gold Playoff Results

ROUND ONE
#4 S. Jason Cole over #5 Keith Berg 23-12
#3 Bill Berg over #6 Carl Distefano 10

SEMI-FINALS
#1 Deborah Millican over #4 S. Jason Cole 22-14
#3 Bill Berg over #2 Jason Johnson 15-11

FINAL
#1 Deborah Millican over #3 Bill Berg 21-7

PeakVision Leawood Challenge Matchups

The PeakVision Leawood Challenge will be run as an open random draw for three rounds. The first round matchups are listed below and feature high vs low players (matchups made via a random number generator - random.org). The concept is that you will play your way to the appropriate bracket. Weaker players will encounter a tough first matchup, but should filter to their appropriate level of play after round one.

Some players are in the Gold Division points chase and if they qualify for the Pro Bracket, they will be allowed to opt out in order to play in the Gold bracket. Points earned in the first three rounds will apply to the Pro Points race.

PeakVision Leawood Challenge
Round One -- 8:30 a.m.

Greg Adams vs Carl Distefano
Ron Millican vs Keith Berg
Greg Clouse vs Bill Berg
Robert Fournier vs S. Jason Cole
Paul Miller vs Jason Johnson
Dylan Goodwin vs Deborah Millican

Round Two -- 9:45 a.m.

Lunch 11:00 a.m.

Round Three -- Noon

Playoffs -- 1:15, 2:30, 3:45

 

PeakVision Sponsorship for Leawood MCA Event

PeakVision Sunglasses has signed on as the official sponsor for Saturday's Leawood Challenge. The company designs sunglasses optimized for golf and that translates perfectly to croquet. PeakVision, which is based in Overland Park, will be covering the prizes for both the Pro Division and Gold Division as part of their sponsorship. You can learn more about PeakVision Sunglasses at peakvisionsports.com, but here's a bit of a primer:

The science behind PeakVision’s hybrid, Dual-Zone lens technology is based on the principal that it is impossible for a solid-tint sunglass lens to optimize your vision for both the bright sky AND the turf.  When light-meter measurements are taken on the golf course, the lighting extremes range from 82,732 LUX for the sky down to only 3,122 LUX for the grass turf.  The lighting for ground-based viewing is less than 4% of the ambient light in the sky.