LEAWOOD, KS -- The MCA has updated the 2014 Nine Wicket Series Pro Points race standings and Dylan Goodwin's win at the Kansas Challenge has given him a 105-point lead overall. He came into the event with an 83-point lead over Ron Millican, but there was a shake-up in the standings as Greg Adams (260) jumped over Millican (216) for second place in the race.
LEAWOOD, KS -- The MCA returned to Leawood, Kansas on Saturday in a big way as the the 2014 Kansas Challenge set a new record for player entries with 17. That eclipsed 12 entries for the same event in 2013 and shows the steady growth that the MCA is enjoying in the second season of the Nine Wicket Series.
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On the courts though, the big story was the battle against the heat as the temperature reached 92 degrees in the afternoon. The Kansas Challenge had play across three divisions with Dylan Goodwin taking the Pro Division, Ron Millican winning the Gold Division and newcomer Nate Benz going 4-0 to win the Silver Division.
LEAWOOD, KS -- The 2014 Kansas Challenge just finished up and we have winners across three divisions. Dylan Goodwin claimed his third straight tourney win with a 21-20 thriller over Greg Adams in the Pro Division. Ron Millican missed the Pro cut, but battled through the Gold Division bracket and took a 32-25 win over Debbie Breeden. The Silver Division had a five player round-robin and it came down to a big final showdown as projected in the afternoon. Nate Benz took the win with a 16-13 win over Justin Marciniak.
The big report with photos and results will be on the MCA website tomorrow.
LEAWOOD, KS -- The line-ups are set and players are expected to be on hand by 8:05 a.m. on Saturday for an 8:30 a.m. start for the Kansas Challenge at Mission Trail Elementary in Leawood, Kansas (133rd and Mission Road).
Gwyneth Bowen in the Silver Division is the only player with a first round bye. The Pro and Gold Divisions will play a mixed draw in the morning with all points counting toward the Pro Division. The top six players will then make the Pro Playoff, while the bottom six will be slotted in the Gold Division Playoff. The matchups follow.
For the Pro and Gold Divisions, what happens if I roquet a ball I am dead on, but it goes out of bounds?
This is just like hitting a dead ball that stays in bounds. The balls reset to the original positions and the turn ends. This is sometimes confused with not incurring deadness on a ball when you roquet it out of bounds. In that case, there is no deadness if the ball you roqueted goes out of bounds.
Don't miss out on the action as the MCA Nine Wicket Series returns to Leawood, Kansas for the Kansas Challenge on Saturday, July 12 in Leawood, Kansas.
The deadline for entry is Tuesday, July 8 at 10:00 p.m. You have two easy options for entry:
The MCA held a Virtual Press Conference (VPC) today with MCA President Dylan Goodwin as a follow-up to last Saturday’s Oklahoma Open. This is Part 4 of 4 of the Q&A which was geared more toward Goodwin's role as a player:
Now that we have your insight on the Oklahoma Open from your point of view as MCA president, tell us about the event from a player's perspective. We had touched on the "true croquet court" playing surface. How did the players fare in the nine-wicket game on the fast turf? What sort of adjustments did players make? Were there trade-offs?
So, this is a really interesting question. I've never really seen much of a standard opening strategy develop in 9W on long grass. Chernobyls are effective because you can make hoop 1 and 2 in one stroke to get two shots. I will say with the faster grass, red and yellow were opting for corner 1 a lot, but people were also rolling past wicket 2 quite bit after scoring #1.
The MCA held a Virtual Press Conference (VPC) today with MCA President Dylan Goodwin as a follow-up to last Saturday’s Oklahoma Open. This is Part 3 of 4 of the Q&A:
Oklahoma and Kansas see their share of wind. Surely that lesson will be a valuable in the future. Returning closer to the MCA's home base, what can you tell us about the Sunflower Wickets Fundraiser in Olathe, Kan.?
This is an event that the MCA has worked with since it's inception in 2010. We provide the equipment and referee the games. I think it is good fundraiser for the historic Mahaffie Farmstead there in Olathe, and it's always nice to see our MCA group out there in the red shirts. Unfortunately, it doesn't seem to do much for promoting the sport.
The MCA held a Virtual Press Conference (VPC) today with MCA President Dylan Goodwin as a follow-up to last Saturday’s Oklahoma Open. This is Part 2 of 4 of the Q&A:
How did the "true croquet courts" affect nine-wicket play?
At this point, I am very encouraged. We had a little practice on Friday and the set up was a bit undersized and only practice wickets were set up. It was incredibly easy to go around and I was in a state of panic most of Friday night. However, we set standard wickets for pro play and I set them very tight―just a sliver of clearance on about 15 of the 18 pro wickets. That seemed to solve it and I am pleased to report ... we had very inter-active play. The wind may have factored in also, but I really thought the experiment was a success.
The MCA held a Virtual Press Conference (VPC) today with MCA President Dylan Goodwin as a follow-up to last Saturday’s Oklahoma Open. This is Part 1 of 4 of the Q&A:
The second event in the 2014 Midwest Croquet Association season was all the way down in Tulsa, Oklahoma. That is, what, a four-hour drive from the Kansas City area for the group formerly known as the Missouri Croquet Association. What drew the MCA to Oklahoma?
Yes, four hours is about right. I made it in 3.5 hours on the way back with no stops.
The concept behind around adding Oklahoma is both basic and then wildly ambitious. From a basic standpoint, once we modified the name from the Missouri Croquet Association to the Midwest Croquet Association to accommodate players (like myself) on the other side of the state line.
TULSA, OKLAHOMA -- The MCA made a successful trip on Saturday to expand the Nine Wicket Series into Oklahoma as thirteen players across two divisions battled the wickets and wind at LaFortune Park in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Both divisions ended up with repeat winners as Dylan Goodwin defeated Matt Baird 20-9 for the 2014 Oklahoma Open Pro Division title and 16-year-old Taylor Airrington went 3-1 to claim the Gold Division title. Bill Berg also had a 3-1 record in the Gold Division, but the Airrington won the head-to-head match 24-17.
Both Goodwin and Airrington started the MCA season with wins at the Lee's Summit T-Bone Tournament in May and now both players will look for a three-peat on July 12 at the Kansas Challenge to be held at Mission Trail Elementary in Leawood, Kansas.
In nine wicket croquet, if I have roqueted a ball that is just on the other side of the wicket I am for (0.5 inch of clearance to the other side), can I place my ball within nine inches in good scoring position on the proper side of the wicket and score the wicket? Or, when contact is made with the ball on the other side of the wicket, is it a dead ball fault and the balls reset?
You can make this play, but the key is that you must get your ball through that wicket despite contact with the "dead ball." If this shot is attempted and you make contact with the "dead ball" and do not score the wicket, it is a dead ball fault and the balls are reset to their original positions and the turn ends.
What defines an open ball for nine wicket wiring?
An open ball must have at least a full ball width of open space on either side relative to a straight line from the striker ball. This confuses some people as the target ball may be completely visible, but a full shot means a ball could just nick the target ball on a roquet. For example, if a stanchion or dead ball is just an inch a way to the right of the ball the striker is open on, then the shot is not fully open.
If a ball scores the seventh wicket and hits the turning stake in one stroke, is the player awarded two bonus shots?
Yes. We had this come up at the Lee's Summit event on May 17, 2014 and it was called wrong. However, if a ball scores the sixth and seventh wicket in one turn and also hits the stake, it is not three bonus shots. It would simply be two bonus shots. You are never allowed three bonus shots in nine wicket croquet.
05/02-03
Missouri Open (9W)
Lee's Summit, MO
05/23-26
Indian Territory Open (A6)
Tulsa, OK
07/10-12
US Golf Croquet Classic (GC)
Denver, CO
10/16-19
Houston Invitational (A6)
Houston, TX
04/04
2025 MCA AGM
Leawood, KS
05/02-05
USCA Midwest Regional (GC)
Tulsa, OK
08/29-09/01
USCA Midwest Regional (A6)
Tulsa, OK
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