March, 2008, Edition
Copyright © 2001, 2002, 2008 The Croquet Association on behalf of itself and the Australian Croquet Association, Croquet New Zealand and the United States Croquet Association All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means; electronic, electrostatic, magnetic tape, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior permission of the Croquet Association.
This document may be reproduced by individuals for their own use.
CONTENTS
Introduction, revision timetable and changes
Summary of principal changes to the 6th (2000) Edition of the Laws
Official Rulings
Commentary
1.1 The principal function of the Official Rulings on the Laws of Croquet ('ORLC') is to act as the official repository of rulings made by the International Laws Committee ('ILC') with the approval and on behalf of the governing bodies of croquet in Australia, England, New Zealand and the United States of America ('the Four Governing Bodies' or '4GB').
1.2 The ILC consists of four individuals each of whom is nominated by one of the 4GB. At the time of writing, the 4GB have joint responsibility for the administration of the laws of Association Croquet. While it is contemplated that at some point in the future that responsibility might pass to the World Croquet Federation, that step has not yet occurred and would require the unanimous agreement of the 4GB before it could occur.
1.3 The individuals nominated to the ILC are currently:
Max Hooper(Australian Croquet Association)
Graeme Roberts (Croquet New Zealand)
Martyn Selman (United States Croquet Association)
Ian Vincent (Croquet Association)
They are indebted to Stephen Mulliner, who edited the 2000 Edition of the laws and wrote the initial draft of this document, and to Yvonne Yeates and Ashton Hulme for proof-reading this revised edition
2.1 Official Rulings first appeared in 1990 as a result of a decision of an International Laws Meeting held in 1990 in Christchurch, New Zealand. It was agreed that some recent changes made to the Laws had proved to cause as many problems of interpretation as they aimed to solve. It was recognised that questions of laws interpretation would sometimes give rise to differences of opinion. It was therefore desirable that the official interpretation in such cases should be made known.
2.2 Following prompting from members of the Australian Laws Committee in the mid-1990s, it was agreed to produce a new edition of the Laws. The main goals of the 6th Edition were:
2.2.1 to improve the organisation and transparency of the Laws;
2.2.2 to deal with situations not covered by the 5th Edition;
2.2.3 to simplify the treatment of errors and interference with play; and
2.2.4 to provide a comprehensive Index.
2.3 The 6th Edition was published in August 2000 and came into force from 1 September 2000. Although a key goal has been to make the Laws more transparent so that one reading of the relevant law(s) should be sufficient to answer any given query, it is inevitable that from time to time players and referees will encounter situations for which the Laws do not appear to provide a clear-cut answer. It is hoped that most such cases, when communicated through national laws committees to the ILC, will be shown to be capable of easy resolution and will merit inclusion in ORLC only as examples of how a particular law operates in the relevant circumstances.
2.4 However, it is possible that more serious differences of interpretation will arise which will demand an authoritative ruling on which interpretation is to be followed in future. Such decisions will have the status of Official Rulings and will appear in ORLC. It is for this reason that ORLC is made a mandatory source of reference by Law 55(a).
2.5 In January, 2008, the ILC proposed a set of amendments to the 6th Edition, to consolidate the rulings that had been made since the 6th Edition came into force, clarify the wording where it was felt to be unclear and introduce some minor changes, mainly simplifications, in the way the game is played.
3.1 A further useful function of ORLC is to act as a commentary on the Laws. Croquet players and referees have been familiar with Prichard's Commentary on the Laws of Croquet (revised in 1988 by Bill Lamb) and with Graeme Roberts' Referees Handbook. Both would have required extensive updating to accommodate the 6th Edition and it makes good sense to use ORLC instead which might otherwise be a rather slim volume in its early months and years.
3.2 The 6th Edition does not need as much commentary as the earlier editions because it has been designed to be more transparent and more has been spelt out. As suggested above, in the great majority of cases the solution to an issue should be apparent from one reading of the Laws, aided by reference to the comprehensive Index. Nonetheless, there are areas, such as the error laws (Laws 22 to 28), which have already generated debate.
Although the provision of an index should make it easier to find the law on a particular matter, the contents pages still repay study as they reveal the structure of the laws. They are divided into four numbered parts, which are in turn sub-divided into lettered sections.
Part 1 provides an outline of the game, followed by the laws relating to the court and equipment and a set of definitions of terms used throughout the laws.
Part 2 is the core of the laws, giving the laws of ordinary single play. Section 2A describes the game as it should be played; Section 2B deals with errors and Section 2C deals with other forms of interference with play.
Part 3 deals with other forms of play: Advanced, Handicap, Doubles and Shortened games.
Part 4 specifies the conduct of the players and ends with the overriding law, which governs interpretation.
It is intended to revise this document as required
in the light of comments received and to deal with any further issues
arising from play under the amended
Laws.
Comments should be sent to
one of the representatives named above, or can be e-mailed to the
discussion list croquet-laws#nottingham-lists.org.uk.
This section gives a log of significant
changes since the June 2002 Edition of this document. The ILC
is grateful to those who took the trouble to submit comments.
March 2008
Revised to take account of the 2008 Amendments to 6th Edition.
The amendments proposed in January, 2008, make no major change to the way Croquet has been played since 1961. The minor changes that they make can be summarised as follows:
In court cannons (Law 6(h)). The restriction that one of the balls in a cannon must be a yard-line ball has been dropped.
Foot sliding (Law 28(a)(1)). It is now a fault to deliberately use the foot or leg to guide the mallet.
Causing Damage (28(a)(15)). Liability to being faulted for causing substantial damage to the court with the mallet is now restricted to certain types of stroke, rather than the manner in which the stroke was played.
Interference by Outside Agencies (Laws 31 and 33). Strokes that suffer interference will only be replayed in strictly defined circumstances, and not if the interference could have been anticipated. There is now a right to a replay if misled by the position of a ball that has suffered interference.
Optional replacement of balls after a fault in handicap games (Law 37(h)). The exception for handicap games that was introduced when replacement of balls after a fault was made optional has been removed.
Balls larger than hoops (Laws 35(b), 53(b)). An alternative to Law 35(b), to allow a replay if a ball is found to touch both uprights of a hoop on some axis, has been provided in Law 53(b) for tournament organisers who wish to adopt it.
Restoration of Bisques (Law 39(a)(3)). An anomaly in the restoration of bisques after errors has been corrected.
Standard of proof for faults (Law 48(d)). The degree of certainty needed before a fault can be given is now defined.
Impasses (Law 53(f)). Although no change to the Laws has been made, advice has been given about changes to regulations to resolve impasses.
Doubles (Law 40(b)). It has been clarified that a doubles match can start in the absence of one of the players.
Playing when not Entitled (Law 25). The limit of claims for starting a turn prematurely has been increased and better provision made for interleaved turns.
[The changes made by the 6th Edition can be found at the Introduction to the 6th Edition of the Laws.]
Corrections to cross-references The following cross references should be corrected:
In Law 17(c), replace “16(c)(2)(C)” by “16(c)”.
In Law 44(d) insert “44(b)(2),” after “Laws”, and delete “, 44(b)(4)”.
There are currently no draft rulings, as those previously issued have been incorporated into the Laws by amendments.
The following changes are proposed when the laws are next amended:
a) change Law 28(a)(6) to bring the definition of a hampered stroke in line with that in 28(a)(15).
b) To clarify the intended meaning (as indicated in the commentary):
In Law 38, first sentence, replace “became” by “becomes” and “has been” by “is”.
The following issues have been identified for future consideration by the ILC:
Metrication
Specification of hoop width as gap between ball and hoop
Extension of striking period to include casting
Elimination of the term “Ball in hand”
Re-drafting of Law 14.
Elimination of the term “Deemed Roquet”
Limits of Claims
Penalties for errors
Playing with balls not in play, including those from other sets
Interaction between Errors and Interferences
Unauthorised advice, particularly when about to commit an error
l) Redrafting of Law 6(b)(1), to remove the tautology “stationary position”
m) Rush or jump peels of hoop 1 in 1 and 3-Back games.
n) Limit of claim for errors when bisque taken quickly.
o) Wiring when swing impeded by a ball.
p) Include playing a bisque with the SB in the yard-line area under 27(g).
The Commentary on any Law should be read with the text of the relevant Law to hand as the text is not repeated in full within the Commentary. The purpose of a Commentary is not to restate the Law in different words. Instead, it is to explain its purpose and underlying principle, using examples when helpful, and to draw attention to any less obvious points.
List of abbreviations
|
B, R, K
and Y: |
Blue, Red, Black and Yellow |
1.1 This law is strictly introductory and its provisions are wholly subject to the detailed laws that follow it. It is therefore never correct to justify anything by reference to Law 1 alone if the matter is covered elsewhere. This law does, however, define (in 1(b)) which balls belong to the game and partner each other (balls belonging to a double banked game are outside agencies, under Law 7) and (in 1(d)) the Striker, as the player whose turn it is. The other player is referred to as the Adversary, though this is only implicitly defined in Law 4(e). Law 1(e) also presents a succinct summary of the structure of the game and the striker's entitlements at the start of every turn.
1.2 Note that extra strokes are earned one at a time (see Law 1(e)). Making a roquet earns the striker the right only to play a croquet stroke. If he does that successfully, then he earns the right to play a continuation stroke. The statement that making a roquet earns the right to two extra strokes is strictly incorrect.
2.1 This is straightforward. Law 2(a) deals with the standard court and Law 2(b) with variations and imperfections. The final sentence of Law 2(b)(1) states that the actual boundary is an abstraction defined by the physical marking on the court. It is a compromise between the obvious, but impractical, definitions of being a straight line between the corners or of being the ragged edge of the actual marking. "Vicinity" is left to the judgement of the referee, but will typically be taken as the length of the straight edge used to test whether a ball is on or off the court; the definition is intended to regularise the use of such a test and requires that small areas where the marking material has missed or spilled should be ignored. If mallets are placed either side of the ball, it is better to place them on the inner side of the boundary and look to see if the ball protrudes between them, rather than place them over the white line and look for a gap.
2.2 Law 2(b)(2) deals with cord (string) boundaries and invokes Law 35(d) if such a boundary is disturbed. The situation envisaged in Law 2(b)(3) is where three balls have been replaced at different points on the yard-line and the striker, intending to roquet the middle one, finds that the one behind it is visible. Once adjusted, balls moved into court are not replaced, so to avoid anomalies it is better to move either the striker's ball or one that needs to be moved towards the boundary instead.
2.3 Players should check that they are happy with the locations of the hoops and the peg and the boundaries before they start a game because Law 2(b)(5) deems that they will have accepted them as correct by starting the game. Only gross errors ('material discrepancies') such as a missing peg or hoop or a location wrong by a substantial amount may then be remedied under Law 55. Contrast this with the treatment of a misaligned peg or hoop (see Law 3(a)(3) and 3(b)(3)).
3.1 The peg (Law 3(a))
3.1.1 The peg extension is not part of the peg for the purposes of scoring a peg point but neither is it an outside agency when attached to the peg (see Law 3(a)(2)).
3.1.2 It is commonplace for a peg in soft ground or in a large peg hole to be knocked away from the vertical by the impact of a ball. This causes a breach of Law 3(a)(1), which requires the peg to be vertical at all times. Accordingly either player may request that a leaning peg be straightened at any time.
3.1.3 However, Law 3(a)(3) directs that the striker is not allowed to gain an advantage from having the peg straightened. Thus, if the striker lays an imperfect cross-peg and notices that straightening the peg would improve the cross-peg, the referee should check how much of each ball can be seen by the other before straightening the peg. He must then adjust the position of either (or both) balls to ensure that they have the same size of target as before. The referee should also be aware of the positions of the uninvolved balls and should ensure that adjusting either of the cross-pegged balls does not inadvertently create or destroy a wired position.
3.1.4 The reference to the striker is deliberate. The adversary is able to require that the peg be straightened to his advantage provided that he does so when he is still the adversary. In practice, this will occur only when he sees the striker has laid a cross-peg when the peg is leaning. However, if he delays calling attention to the leaning peg until he has become the striker, he will still be able the have the peg straightened but the balls will be adjusted as necessary to ensure that he gains no advantage thereby. Thus he will not be able to engineer a larger target or a wired position that did not exist before the peg was straightened. If a wiring lift is claimed, the test must be carried out before the peg is straightened.
3.1.5 The reference to Law 53(a) and the Regulations for Tournaments allows the regulations to specify that requests to have a peg corrected should not be made in time-limited games unless the correction will be material to the course of the game. This prevents Law 3(a)(3) being abused by an unscrupulous player who wishes to use up time.
3.2 The hoops (Law 3(b))
3.2.1 Note the reference in Law 3(b)(1) to Law 53(b) for tournament and match play to permit the use of hoops narrower than 3¾ inches.
3.2.2 Note the tolerance of +/- 1/2 inch in the height of the hoop, which is to allow hoops to be firmed up by knocking them into the ground as a tournament proceeds. However, a player is entitled to expect that hoops will be set so that their carrots do not protrude significantly above the ground, as otherwise they would not comply with the requirements for the uprights in Law 3(b)(1).
3.2.3 Only the striker is entitled to ask that a misaligned hoop be corrected. Misalignment usually means that it is leaning towards the north or south but may include leaning to the east or west or being twisted in the ground. However, the striker is not allowed to gain any advantage from the option that the law grants. Any wiring test or tests whether a ball has scored a hoop point or is in the jaws must be carried out before a hoop is adjusted. If the striker asks for a hoop to be correctly aligned after playing a hoop approach, the position of the striker's ball should be adjusted to ensure that he faces a hoop stroke of equal difficulty after the hoop has been corrected.
3.2.4 If a hoop is found to be too narrow it must reset (see Laws 35(b) and 53(b) if it was so narrow that a ball could stick in it). Similarly, it must be reset if it is too wide or loose (as the Law requires it to be firmly fixed). Note that players should not adjust, nor stamp or knock in loose hoops themselves, but should at least consult their opponent and preferably (particularly if there is another game on the lawn that might be affected) a referee.
3.3 The balls (Law 3(c))
3.3.1 It is important that the balls in a set should have effectively identical rebound characteristics and the Tournament Referee should, if possible, check that this is so before a tournament starts, at least to the extent of ensuring that sets with different characteristics have not got mixed up.
3.3.2 Temporary removal of a ball between strokes is permitted and does not constitute interference (under Law 33) provided that the striker is informed if someone else is removing the ball, the position of the ball is accurately marked beforehand and the ball is carefully replaced.
3.3.3 Reasonable pressure may be used to hold a ball in position, but not to the extent that a depression is formed that might affect a stroke played out of it. To ensure that balls are touching for a croquet stroke, it may be better to rub up a nap on the grass. If necessary, grass clippings or other loose material may be used to hold a ball in position on bad ground for any stroke, not just croquet strokes, but they should be cleared away afterwards.
3.3.4 Note that the striker may gain no advantage by temporary removal when preparing for a peel because he must ensure that the rotational alignment of the intended peelee is preserved. In practice, the striker should avoid temporary removal of the peelee unless really necessary. There is no need to place a mark on the peelee to indicate its rotational alignment (although its position must obviously be carefully marked before it is lifted as stated in 3.3.2 above). It should just be lifted carefully and not rotated while it is being held or wiped.
3.4 The mallet (Law 3(e))
3.4.1 The basic requirements are that a mallet must have essentially identical playing characteristics irrespective of which end of the head is used, must not offer a significant playing advantage over a traditional all-wood mallet and must not carry artificial aids (see Law 3(e)(1) to (4)). This rules out mallets with different materials or weightings in the construction of each end of the head, off-centre shafts, shafts that are not vertical below the top grip or mallets adorned with laser gun-sights, mirrors and any other products of fertile imaginations and long winter evenings. It is implicit in the definition that the head has only one pair of end-faces, thus use of the sides, or a hexagonal head, is not permitted. Heads with an I-shaped cross-section are permitted under the current law.
3.4.2 Croquet has followed golf in banning grips or shafts that are moulded to the shape of the player's hands (see Law 3(e)(2)). This is an area that is being monitored as some players are using shafts or grips with protrusions that are designed to improve the stability of the hands on the shaft while not strictly being moulded to every last contour of the hand or hands. While this is uncontroversial in respect of the bottom grip (used to assist the playing of roll strokes), there is an argument that shooting should not be helped by what amounts to an artificial aid. This requirement is relaxed for the benefit of bona fide disabled players provided that they gain no advantage over a player without the relevant disability using a normal shaft (see Law 3(e)(5)).
3.4.3 Mallets may be changed between turns but not within a turn unless the original mallet has suffered damage affecting use. The governing principle is that the striker should not gain any advantage. Law 55 may occasionally be needed. An adversary suddenly realised that his mallet was being used, accidentally and without permission, by the striker who was in the middle of a promising break. He was indignant and demanded the return of his property forthwith. Common sense, via Law 55, indicated that the mallet should immediately be returned, but that the striker should be permitted to continue with his own mallet, as it is clear that the striker would not gain an advantage by the change.
4.1 A game starts when the first stroke is played (see Law 5(e)). In time-limited games, the clock should start when the mallet hits the ball. Note that, in doubles, a player can declare that a stroke has been played by his absent partner.
4.2 A game does not end until the players have both quit the court (or started another game on it) and agreed which side has won. Note that there is no requirement that the agreement be correct. Of course, almost always, the players do agree correctly who has won but time-limited games can occasionally give rise to confusion between players who cannot add up. If the players agree incorrectly that A has won and quit the court, the game has ended with that result. In the even rarer case when each player quits the court in the belief that he has won (or lost) the game, no agreement has been reached and the game has not ended. If the time-limit has expired, no further play will be possible unless the scores were actually level (subject to the possibility of time being restored if an interference has occurred and Law 53(g)(2)(B) applies) but the game will end only when the players have worked out the true result. Reporting the result to the manager will cause the confusion to be discovered.
4.3 Note that one turn starts as soon as the preceding turn ends and that there are two distinct definitions of when that moment occurs.
4.3.1 In the normal course of events (see Law 4(e)(1)), a turn ends when the last stroke of the turn has been played and the balls and clips have then been correctly positioned (e.g. after replacing balls on the yard-line and placing clips on the correct hoops). This definition does not depend on whether the striker has quitted the court.
4.3.2 The second definition (see Law 4(e)(2)) deals with two other cases. The first is where the striker incorrectly thinks that his turn has ended (e.g. he has forgotten that he is entitled to another stroke). This definition of end of turn requires both that the striker quits the court in the belief that his turn has ended (not just to visit the pavilion!) and that the adversary then plays a stroke (see Law 4(e)(2)(A)). The order is important.
Example: Consider a case where Roy takes off with R too hard but makes a glancing roquet on B in the stroke before R leaves the court. Roy assumes wrongly that his turn has ended and replaces R on the yard-line. Before Roy has had time to quit the court, the impatient Bob steps on and roquets Y with K. If Roy now quits the court but realises his mistake before he plays the first stroke of his next turn, Roy can forestall Bob and resume his own turn after replacing all the balls correctly under Law 25(a).
4.3.3 The second case is where the striker volunteers permission for or, having been asked, allows his adversary to get on with the game while he goes to retrieve a ball that must be replaced on the yard-line. The adversary has no grounds for grievance if, having assumed that the striker will not mind rather than having been given permission, he hits a long roquet and is then required by the striker to replay. However, if the players have come to a tacit understanding that permission is implicitly granted then the ex-striker cannot withdraw it retrospectively.
4.3.4 For handicap play, note that Law 4(e) must be modified as specified in Law 37(c)(4). The striker does not need to replace the clips before taking a bisque. He should replace the balls, in particular the striker's ball if it is in the yard-line area, but if he does not the bisque is validly taken, under Law 37(e).
4.3.5 In time limited games, tournament regulations specify that, for the sole purpose of determining who is in play when time expires, a turn ends and the next turn simultaneously begins when the striker plays the last stroke of his turn. This is to give a more precise definition than Law 4(e) (which may depend on when a ball comes to rest) and avoids an undignified scramble to replace balls and clips.
5.1 Although it is normally obvious which ball the striker is intending to hit, a referee should ask him to nominate which he is intending to play if two balls are very close together and fault him if he hits the other. In Law 5(d,e), “the ball” refers to the one the striker is intending to hit, whereas in Law 5(h), “a ball” means any ball, and “the ball” means the one disturbed.
5.2 There are two policy reasons why a "stroke" in which the striker aims to hit a ball that does not belong to his game is regarded as a nullity, rather than a case of playing the wrong ball. The first is that, in the common case where a double-banked ball is being addressed, it is desirable that the adversary should be able to forestall, to prevent disruption to the other game, and the players in the other game cannot reasonably be prevented from drawing attention to the irregularity! The second is that it seems reasonable that colour blind players should not be penalised if they are confused by the presence of additional balls. The legal reason is that only a ball in play may influence the game (Law 6(a)); other balls are outside agencies (Law 7(a)).
5.3 If the striker wants to leave the balls where they are, he can do so by simply declaring that he will do so, which ends his turn. Technically, he should declare that he is playing a specific ball by leaving it where it lies, but the adversary is entitled to take a simple utterance (the word “deem” may well be used for historical reasons) or even a wave of the hand, as an irrevocable declaration (unless the striker can plausibly suggest that he was instead inviting his opponent to join him for tea!). If the striker does not indicate which of his two balls he has played, he becomes responsible for the position of both of them (see Law 13(b)(1)(E)).
5.4 The term “stroke” has a wide meaning. The core of it is the action of hitting a ball, but it also extends to the entitlement to do so, as part of a turn, and the consequences of so doing. The term “striking period” refers to the period during which a fault can be committed. A stroke and striking period start at the same time, but either can end before the other. A declaration is instantaneous and has no striking period.
5.5 It is lawful to play a stroke before the previous stroke has ended unless the outcome of either stroke could be affected. This is most likely to happen when the striker has played a stop shot and plays the continuation stroke before the croqueted ball has come to rest. If the continuation stroke is played as a rush that sends the roqueted ball near to the still-moving croqueted ball, the adversary would strictly be entitled to forestall and demand that the stroke be replayed under Law 55.
5.6 Note that accidentally hitting the striker's ball during casting over the ball does not constitute a stroke. A stroke and the striking period do not begin until the mallet has passed the SB on the final backswing (see Law 5(d)). Such an accidental contact is covered by Law 5(h), which summarises the combined effect of Laws 33(c), 33(d)(3), 27(a) and 27(i).
5.7 A stroke is played if the striker accidentally fails to make contact with the SB (plays an air shot) (see Law 5(e)(2)(C)). The term 'miss' includes cases where the mallet fails to reach the ball, as well as those where it goes past the side or over the top of it. However, a stroke is not played if the striker deliberately checks or diverts the mallet and succeeds in avoiding hitting any ball with it or committing a fault (see Law 5(e)(1)). It is up to the referee to decide which applies.
5.7.1 'Stops or diverts the mallet' should be interpreted as a continuous process, which must start before the striker is aware that he has missed, or will irrevocably miss, the SB, and which ends when he regains control of his mallet and stance at the end of his truncated swing.
5.7.2 After a stroke has been annulled in this way, the striker is not required to repeat the stroke he was attempting, but can change his mind about what stroke to play, including which ball to play if he has not already elected one. It is as though he had never started the annulled stroke.
5.8.1 There are two possible endings for the striking period (but note that the faults covered by Laws 28(a)(1), (2) and (3) (types of illegal contact between body and mallet) cannot be committed if they occur after the end of the swing used to play the stroke).
5.8.2 Should the striker play a second stroke without quitting the stance he used to play the previous stroke, perhaps when approaching and running a hoop from very close range, the striking period for the first stroke ends when the first stroke ends or when the second stroke starts, whichever is the earlier.
5.8.3 In all other cases, the traditional rule applies that the striking period ends when the striker 'quits his stance under control'. This is a matter for the referee to decide and is intended to penalise a striker who plays a stroke in such a way that a ball is likely to rebound onto his mallet or clothing and, to avoid this, jumps out of the way and lands or falls on yet another ball, whilst not penalising accidental disturbance of a ball that is irrelevant to the stroke. There are three cases where the striker is not "under control":
jumping to avoid a moving ball;
playing in an off balance position and falling out of the stance;
disturbing a ball he was trying to avoid when leaving a stance restricted (or changed) because of the presence of another ball.
5.9 Law 5(h) now specifically allows the time honoured practice of “trundling”: using a mallet to move a ball into position for a stroke. This was previously prohibited for croquet strokes but tolerated otherwise.
6.1 Ball in Play (Law 6(a))
6.1.1 The words “prior to being played” are intended as a short-hand for “in order to play it”, with the intention that the law will only apply if the ball is actually played. Thus if RaY puts both Yellow and Red on the court at the start of the 1st turn of the game and plays Red, then only Red becomes a ball in play, even if he did not remove Yellow.
6.2 Ball at rest (Law 6(b))
6.2.1 A ball becomes a ball at rest when it appears to stop moving. Physicists may tell us that all matter is in a state of constant motion but in croquet this test depends on the human eye. Because croquet is mainly played outdoors on grass, it is possible for balls to move apparently spontaneously, sometimes considerable distances, under the influence of gravity, wind or compressed grass blades. However, in most cases, the final position of a ball is not of critical importance and so the test need not be applied with excessive attention to micro-movements. In short, the striker can normally play his next stroke as soon as the SB appears to have stopped moving on fairly casual inspection.
6.2.2 However, there are occasions when more care is needed and they occur when a ball may have come to rest in a 'critical position', as defined in Law 6(d). This is any position to which a minor change could materially affect future play, such as determining if a turn ends or a point is scored or a ball is wired.
6.2.3 In fact, the Laws create two categories of critical position, namely 'critical but not testable' and 'critical and testable'. The latter are listed in Law 48(c)(4) and, in relation to whether a ball has come to rest, are restricted to cases when a ball may or may not:
(1) have scored a hoop point; or
(2) be in position to score a hoop point (or, by analogy, affect whether a hoop and/or roquet may be made); or
(3) be off the court.
(Entitlement to a wiring lift, which is also mentioned in 48(c)(4), is not applicable as the test can only be made at the start of a turn under Law 13(e)(1)).
These testable positions have to be agreed by the players or tested by a referee and the ball is deemed not to come to rest until the test has been carried out. Critical but not testable positions are subject to the less onerous requirement that the position of the relevant ball must appear to remain unchanged for at least 5 seconds. If it moves after that, it is replaced.
To see how this should be applied in practice, consider the following situations:
(a) On a fast lawn with a significant slope, the striker's ball comes up the slope, then rolls straight back down again to end some distance away. Although physics would tell us that its velocity must have instantaneously fallen to zero when it reversed direction, this is not sufficient to satisfy 6(b)(4) so it is not replaced in the higher position.
(b) The striker's ball just staggers through its hoop and appears to stop having clearly run it. However, the striker notices that it almost immediately starts to creep back and does so for 15 seconds, by which time it is back in the jaws. It is not replaced as it had not remained stationary in a critical position for the required 5 seconds.
(c) The striker's ball just staggers though its hoop, apparently stopping in a position where the striker thinks it has run the hoop, but is not certain. He asks his adversary to have a look (as there is no referee in sight), but before he can get there the ball has fallen back into the hoop. It was in a critical position which needed a test which had not yet been conducted, so it is not replaced.
(d) As in (c), but this time the striker is more confident and, out of courtesy, asks the adversary if he wants to look. The adversary is happy to trust the striker's judgement, so resumes reading. While sizing up his next shot, the ball then falls back into the hoop. In this case, the earlier position had been agreed, so it is deemed to have come to rest and is replaced there under Law 33(c).
(e) The striker's ball just staggers through its hoop, apparently stopping in a position in which it has clearly run it, but leaving an awkward hampered shot. The striker starts to examine his options, but the ball rolls back into the jaws. A referee should ask him whether the ball had stopped moving and, if so, whether 5 seconds had elapsed since then. The ball should only be replaced in the position where it had run the hoop if the striker is confident of both.
(f) The striker's ball just staggers through its hoop, apparently stopping in a position in which it has clearly run it, but leaving an awkward hampered shot. The striker summons a referee to watch the shot, but before the referee arrives the ball rolls back into the jaws. Although the ball was in a critical position, as a small change to its position would affect the difficulty of the hampered shot, it had been stationary for long enough. Furthermore, it did not need to be tested, as it had clearly run the hoop, so it is replaced in the position it was in before the referee was called.
(g) After a poor hoop stroke, Roy replays his swing, then replaces his clip on the hoop and walks off the court. Bob comes on and looks to see whether the ball can run the hoop next time, only to find that it is now through. After checking with Roy that it had moved since he last saw it, the ball is replaced where Roy believed it had stopped, and Bob plays the first stroke of his turn, as the situation is the same as (e): the ball was in a position that was critical but did not need to be tested. Law 4(e)(1) had therefore been satisfied and Roy's turn had ended.
6.3 Ball in hand (see Law 6(c))
6.3.1 Note that a ball in hand is also an outside agency, but also that the striker's ball only becomes in hand when it comes to rest after making a roquet, so it can validly move or even peel another ball before doing so. Contrast that with going off the lawn, when it immediately becomes in hand and an outside agency.
6.3.2 Law 6(c)(4) was amended in 2008 to ensure that failing to take croquet when required to do is covered, as intended, by Law 27(f), rather than being treated as a case of striking an outside agency!
6.4 Live and dead balls (see Law 6(e))
6.4.1 It is lawful to cause the SB to hit a dead ball but that does not constitute a roquet and no further stroke is earned as a result, however the SB can go on to roquet a live ball or score a point. Obviously, if the SB makes a roquet on a live ball and, in the same stroke, hits a dead ball, the contact with the dead ball does not deprive the striker of the croquet stroke he earned by roqueting the live ball.
6.4.2 If the SB comes to rest in contact with a dead ball after a croquet stroke, the striker is entitled to play the SB as it lies in the continuation stroke. This includes playing away from the dead ball or playing into it so that the stroke has the appearance of a croquet stroke. What the striker must not do is to adjust the SB around the dead ball before playing the stroke. This would constitute the error of purporting to take croquet from a dead ball (see Law 27(d)) and would end the turn. This fate does not preclude the striker from temporarily removing either under Law 3(c)(2) to wipe it, but he would be well advised to have a good reason for doing so (such as a large blob of mud on the ball) and to inform the adversary first.
6.4.3 Note that, because of the wording of 6(e) and Law 27(c)(3), if a player roquets red but then purports to take croquet from blue, blue becomes dead and he remains alive on red.
6.5 Groups of balls (Law 6(h))
6.5.1 A cannon (see Law 19(b)) depends on the existence of a group of balls anywhere on the court. Usually, at least one of them will be on the yard-line, but this is no longer a requirement.
6.5.2 Note also that the SB cannot be used to bridge a gap between two balls that are one ball diameter or less apart. This is because Law 19(a) requires the SB to be placed in contact with the roqueted ball and no other.
6.5.3 Nor can the moveable cannon ball be used to bridge a gap to create a 4-ball cannon where there is a 3-ball group with a fourth ball close, but not in contact with it. The cannon ball can legally be placed in contact with the 4th ball when constructing the 3-ball cannon, but a 4-ball group does not result because Law 19(b) only refers to placing the SB before determining the size of the group, and thus the fourth ball may not be moved.
7.1 Weather is not an outside agency in croquet in order to prevent claims for replays of missed roquets due to gusts of wind or squalls of rain. Weather should not be confused with its results. Flash floods and dollops of snow falling onto the court (admittedly rare in a summer game but not unknown to hardy croquet players in Scotland) would constitute outside agencies. However, it is possible for a ball at rest to be moved by gravity, wind or a combination of the two. Such a ball must be replaced (see Law 33(b)).
7.2 Loose impediments are also not outside agencies in croquet to prevent claims for replays of missed roquets due to deflections caused by pebbles, twigs or acorns on the court surface. The exceptional circumstances referred to in Law 7(b) would cover a case where a handful of pebbles is thrown onto the court, perhaps hitting the striker after he has started the stroke or interfering with the path of the striker's ball during the stroke.
7.3 Note that Law 7(c) imposes a duty on the striker to remove an outside agency if it might affect play. If he does not, he will be prevented from replaying the stroke under Law 33(a)(1) if a collision does occur and must defer to his opponent if there is a disagreement as to where the balls should be placed. The reasoning is that by leaving the object in place the striker is acknowledging that it was not on his intended line or that a collision dealt with under Law 33(a)(2) would not have a material effect on the game.
8.1 Choices of lead or colours may not be revoked once made.
8.2 Bisques may be played before all the balls have been played into the game (see Law 37(c)(2)) although it will only seldom be tactically wise to do so.
8.3 In the first four ordinary (i.e. non-bisque) turns, the balls must be played into the game from the baulk-lines. The only exception relates to advanced play when the player of the second or third turn scores 4-back and so concedes a contact. The contact may be taken from any ball that has been played into the game and not pegged out (see Law 36(d)).
8.4 See Law 26(b) for the situation when a player cannot play the correct ball and the game must be re-started. Note this does not occur if the balls are played into the game in the order R (wrong), B (wrong), Y (wrong), because the limit of claims for the error in the 1st turn has not been reached, whether or not K is wrongly played. If the errors are discovered before a correct ball is played, the error in the 1st turn is rectified by removing all the balls and placing B or K in baulk, then Roy plays the 2nd turn.
9.1 There are only two ways of electing the SB, namely lifting it (under Laws 13 or 36) or playing a stroke with it. Likewise, no election of the RB takes place until a stroke is played (see Laws 16(d) and 19(c)).
9.2 Lifting a ball only serves to elect it as the SB if three conditions are met, namely:
9.2.1 that it is a ball of the striker's side; and
9.2.2 it is not in contact with another ball (this applies to Law 36 only; no wiring lift would be available under Law 13(a)); and
9.2.3 that the striker is entitled to a lift under either Laws 13 or 36 (see Law 9(b)(1)).
Lifting an enemy ball or lifting a ball of one's own side in the absence of a lift is an interference and Law 33 applies. If the mistake is not noticed before a stroke is played, it will result in an error being committed under either Law 26 (wrong ball) or Law 27(h) (lifting a ball when not entitled to do so).
9.3 A ball may be 'lifted' by moving it in any way that differs from playing a stroke. Trundling using the side of the mallet is lawful (but may not do the varnish much good!). So is trundling using the face of the mallet but it is only safe to do if the action is obviously different from that used to play a stroke.
10.1 The boundary should be imagined as an invisible vertical wall that touches the inside of the boundary marking. It does not matter if the lawn surface is not flat at the relevant point.
10.2 A ball goes off the court as soon as it touches the imaginary wall and it does not matter if it then rolls back inside the boundary. In rare cases, the adversary may claim that a ball approached the boundary, either perpendicularly or at a shallow angle, and then fell back or curved back into court before coming to rest. If the ball is found to be only just in court when tested, this claim may have merit. However, it should only be granted if the same effect can be demonstrated repeatedly in tests conducted by the referee.
10.3 It should be noted that a ball that hits a corner peg should not necessarily be placed on the corner spot. If the ball hits the corner peg a glancing blow, it should be withdrawn back along its line of travel to find the point at which it first touched the inner edge of the boundary marking. The extreme case would occur when a ball on the Corner 1 spot is struck towards Corner 2 and just touches the out-court side of the southern corner peg. This ball should be placed 13 feet south of Corner 2!
10.4 The striker should always take care to observe precisely where balls go off the court. If there is a possibility of a cannon, such as shooting from B-baulk at two East boundary balls, the striker should have the outcome watched, usually by asking the adversary to stand near the target balls.
If the SB comes to rest in the yard-line area, it only becomes a ball in hand at the end of the last stroke of the turn. This can lead to confusion in handicap play where some players are unsure whether the SB has to be placed on the yard-line before playing the first stroke of the bisque turn. The answer is that the bisque turn is a separate turn and the SB must be placed on the yard-line before the new turn can be started.
12.1 Law 12(b) refers to direct and indirect interference with replacement. Direct interference occurs when a ball (X) that has gone off the court (or come to rest in the yard-line area) cannot be placed on the point on the yard-line closest to where it went off the court (or lay inside the yard-line area) because of the presence of another ball (Y) on or close to the yard-line. X must therefore be placed in contact with Y on either side as the striker chooses.
12.2 Indirect interference occurs when a third ball (Z) lies sufficiently close to Y to prevent the striker replacing X on that side of Y. He is now entitled to place X on the yard-line in contact with either Y or Z.
12.3 There are no special provisions for replacing balls in or near corners. Hence, if Roy shoots with R from the end of A-baulk at B in C4 and misses, he will normally place R on the W side of B to minimise the target for Bob. If Bob now likewise shoots with K at R and misses, he is entitled to place K in contact with either B or R. Bob may be expected to place K in contact with R so that he only gives a single-ball target for Y.
13.1 A ball that is in contact with another ball at the start of a turn is not entitled to a lift as, if the striker chooses to play with it, he not only can but must take croquet. (See Laws 13(a), 16(c) and 18(b)).
13.2 Although a ball lifted must usually be played from baulk, the striker can take croquet immediately from a ball that it could touch if placed on a baulk-line, in which case he can place his ball anywhere in contact with it to take croquet.
13.3 Note that 13(b)(1)(E) ensures that the striker is always responsible for the position of at least one of his balls after playing a turn. Note also that a player is always responsible for the position of a ball replaced following rectification of an error committed by him (see Law 13(b)(1)(D)). However, he does not become responsible for the position of a ball replaced following the correction of an interference (Law 13(b)(2)). The reason is that the striker is often an innocent victim of interference and/or correction of the interference involves deeming play not to have occurred.
13.4 A ball is wired if it has to pass through a hoop to hit the target ball, no matter how close to the hoop it is. It does not matter that it might be able to miss the target ball on either side without touching a wire (see the reference to 'including the jaws' in Law 13(c)(1)).
13.5 However, the swing of the mallet is not impeded simply because part of the head would enter the jaws of a hoop before contacting the relevant ball in order to drive it freely towards the target ball (see the reference to 'excluding the jaws' in Law 13(c)(2)).
13.6 If the striker claims that a ball is wired by virtue of an impeded swing, the referee must ensure that the position is tested with the mallet the claimant was using in the turn before the turn in which the allegedly wired ball was positioned by the claimant's adversary (see Law 13(d)). This removes the temptation to carry a second, wide-faced mallet for use only in these situations.
13.7 Note that in the marginal case where the referee can detect no curvature in the line joining the relevant ball and the two test balls, the striker is entitled to a lift (see Law 13(e)(2)).
13.8 Law 13(f) provides explicit guidance as to the three consequences of lifting a ball in accordance with Law 13(a)(2), namely that:
13.8.1 such lifting constitutes a valid and irrevocable election of the SB for that turn under Law 9(b)(1);
13.8.2 the striker is obliged to play the ball from an unoccupied point on either baulk-line (or take croquet from a ball it could touch when on a baulk-line) and may not play it from where it originally lay (unless that happened to be on a baulk-line); and
13.8.3 the striker remains free to change the position from which he wishes to play the SB until he actually plays a stroke.
14.1 Ball in a hoop
14.1.1 Note that a ball halfway through its hoop in order does not always lose the right to complete the running in a subsequent stroke simply because it becomes a ball in hand. Laws 6(c)(1) to (3) list all the instances in which a ball can become a ball in hand but only five are relevant to the situation of a ball half-way through a hoop (Laws 6(c)(1)(A), (C) and (D) and Laws 6(c)(2)(A) and (B)).
14.1.2 Only Law 6(c)(1)(C) (placing the ball for a croquet stroke as specified in Law 14(d)(4)(A)) and Law 6(c)(2)(A) (lifting the ball under Law 13 or 36 as specified in Law 14(d)(4)(B)) cause it to lose its right to complete the running. Note that 14(d)(4)(A) carefully prevents the striker trying to keep position to run the hoop with the striker's ball (or third or fourth ball in a cannon) by playing a croquet stroke from where the balls lie.
14.1.3 The prohibition on completing the running, after becoming in hand for one of these reasons, is lifted if the ball starts to run the hoop again (otherwise the ball could never run the hoop!).
14.1.4 If a ball in a hoop becomes in hand for the other reasons, namely temporary removal under Law 3(c)(2) (see Law 6(c)(1)(A)) or replacement following rectification of an error or correction of an interference (see Law 6(c)(1)(D)), then it can complete the running from the position in which it is replaced.
14.2 Ball entering back of hoop
14.2.1 If a ball enters a hoop in order from the non-playing side, it cannot score the hoop point in that stroke, even if it reaches a point on the playing side where it is visibly clear of the jaws before returning through the hoop and finally coming to rest at a point where it has apparently scored the hoop. The governing principles are that dynamic situations are too difficult to judge reliably and that all such situations should be treated alike.
14.2.2 If a ball enters its hoop in order from the non-playing side and comes to rest within the jaws but in a position where it does not break the plane of the non-playing side (see the first illustration in Diagram 3 in the Laws) then it can score the hoop point in a subsequent stroke. This is analogous to the situation where the striker roquets a ball into the jaws of the hoop and the SB, when placed for the croquet stroke, is within the jaws but does not break the plane of the non-playing side so that the SB can score the hoop point in the croquet stroke or a subsequent stroke.
14.3 Law 14(e) refers to a ball being peeled as a consequence of a stroke. This means that if the striker accidentally kicks a ball through a hoop while taking up his stance and this was noticed before the ball was subsequently affected by play, the point is not scored and the ball must be replaced under Law 33(c). If this was not noticed before the ball was affected by play, it is treated under Law 27(i) as though the position to which it had been kicked was lawful, but this change of lawful position was not a consequence of a stroke, so the ball must begin to run the hoop again.
15.1 If the SB is a rover, it may cause another rover to be pegged out through the agency of another ball (see Law 15(a)(2)). The same principle applies in Law 15(b)(4). However, if the SB is not a rover and causes a rover to hit the peg or to hit another rover ball onto the peg, that ball is not pegged out in either situation.
15.2 A ball that is pegged out does not disappear at the moment of pegging out. It remains a ball in play until the end of that stroke (see Laws 6(a) and 15(c)). It is therefore able to cause other balls to move and score points as a consequence of that stroke.
15.3 It is now lawful to delay removing a pegged out ball from the court if the striker is about to peg out the striker's ball in the following stroke and the pegged out ball is unlikely to interfere. This legitimises a common practice.
16.1 All hoop and roquet situations are now dealt with in Law 17. Hence Law 16(b) is now concerned solely with actual roquet situations which do not involve the SB passing through its hoop in order.
16.2 Law 16(b) is phrased deliberately widely to encompass all forms of contact between the SB and a live ball. Thus a roquet is made if:
16.2.1 the SB croquets a ball into a live ball which then rebounds off a hoop and hits the SB; or
16.2.2 the SB croquets a ball onto the peg so that a ball resting against the peg is propelled into the path of the SB.
16.3 Law 16(c) There are five situations in which a roquet may be deemed to be made :
16.3.1 the most obvious is when the striker starts a turn by electing a ball that is already in contact with another ball (and does not choose to lift it if he is entitled to do so under Law 36). Note that he has no choice but to take croquet if he does so elect, and that Laws 18(b) and 19(a,d) give him power to arrange the balls in anticipation of doing so, but that 19(c) does not commit him until the stroke is played.
16.3.2 almost as obvious is when the striker starts a turn by lifting a ball and lawfully placing it in contact with another ball. In the start of game and Law 13 and Law 36 lift situations, the other ball must either be on a baulk-line or so close to it that a ball placed on the baulk-line can touch it. In practice, it is usually tactically better to create a rush rather than taking croquet immediately. In the Law 36 contact situation, the other ball can be anywhere on the lawn.
16.3.3 the next most common situation is when the SB runs a hoop off the boundary so that it must therefore be placed on the yard-line under Law 12. If the hoop has been run at an angle, it is possible for the SB to have left the court directly behind a yard-line (or near yard-line) ball and must therefore be placed in contact with it.
16.3.4 the fourth situation is a fairly rare bird and occurs when the striker plays an Irish peel (a croquet stroke in which both the SB and the CB pass through a hoop) or a half-jump through a hoop and the SB comes to rest in contact with the CB or the ball that was half-jumped.
16.3.5 the fifth and last situation is a much rarer bird and occurs when the striker plays a croquet stroke which, either accidentally or by design, causes the croqueted ball to hit a third ball (X) so that X leaves the court or enters the yard-line area and must be placed on the yard-line under Law 12. If the SB has come to rest, almost certainly unintentionally, on or near the yard-line, it is possible that X will have to be placed in contact with it.
16.4 Law 16(d) is the law that makes a group of balls important.
16.4.1 Once a group has been formed and a roquet may be deemed to be made on one ball in the group, it may instead be deemed to be made on any other live ball in the group. This can provide the striker with valuable tactical flexibility, particularly in setting up a peeling break. The striker must proceed by playing a cannon (see Law 19(b)).
Example: B is on the corner spot of Corner 1 and K is in contact with it on the West boundary. Roy has a lift and places R in contact with B to create a 3-ball group. He may now treat K as the RB if he wishes.
16.4.2 Note that this right does not apply in the case of an actual roquet, when the striker rushes a live ball behind another live ball on the yard-line. Although a 3-ball group will be formed when the RB is placed on the yard-line in contact with the other ball and the SB is placed in contact with the RB, the striker cannot change the identity of the RB. However, he must proceed by playing a cannon (see Law 19(b)) and will gain the usual tactical advantages that accrue therefrom.
17.1 This law provides a comprehensive treatment of all cases where the SB hits a ball in the same stroke as it completes the running of a hoop in order. Completing the running is defined in Law 14(c), which requires that the ball not only leaves the playing side of the hoop but does not re-enter it and remain there when it comes to rest. Thus Law 17 does not cover a case in which the SB passes through its hoop, hits a ball, and then rolls back into a position where it has not run it. If so and the ball it hit was live, a roquet will have been made but the hoop will not have been scored.
Providing that the SB does complete the running, there are five situations (assuming that there is only one OB):
17.2 OB well behind the hoop
17.2.1 If the SB completes the running of a hoop and then hits a ball, it is a simple case of hoop followed by actual roquet (see Law 17(a)). It obviously does not matter whether the RB was 6 inches beyond the hoop or 25 yards beyond.
17.3 OB just behind the hoop
17.3.1 If the SB starts to run the hoop, then hits a ball which was clear of the non-playing side before the start of the stroke, and then completes the running, strict logic would demand that a roquet was made, but no hoop was scored, if the OB was live before the stroke started.
17.3.2 However, the physical situation described above conceals a difficult marginal case, namely where the OB is only just less than a ball diameter beyond the plane of the playing side and the hoop stroke is played with jump. How can a referee be certain that the back of the SB did not clear the plane of the playing side (and thus complete the running) before the front of the SB made its first contact with the OB?
17.3.3 In order to avoid presenting referees with such a difficult dynamic question, the policy of the law is to simplify matters in favour of the striker. Hence, provided that the OB is clear of the plane of the non-playing side before the stroke starts (which is a static question that a referee can determine before the stroke is played) and the SB finally completes the running (which is a static question that a referee can determine after the stroke has ended), the contact between SB and OB is deemed to occur after the hoop point has been scored. Hence, the analysis is deemed to be identical to 17.2 above.
17.4 Live OB in a hoop
17.4.1 If the OB is in the jaws of the hoop, i.e. not clear of the plane of the non-playing side, when the stroke starts, the striker may wish to jump it in order to score the hoop point. This can present the same dynamic question as detailed in 17.3.2, namely whether the first contact between SB and OB occurred before or after the SB completed the running.
17.4.2 If the first contact occurs before the SB completes the running and the OB was live, the analysis would be roquet and no hoop. If the first contact occurred afterwards, the analysis would be hoop followed by roquet. How is a referee able to tell what goes on between the hoop uprights?
17.4.3 The policy of the law is again to simply matters by deeming that all such contacts with a live ball, irrespective of when they occur, are treated as roquet and no hoop (see Law 17(b)(1)).
17.5 Dead OB in a hoop
17.5.1 If the OB is dead in the situation discussed in 17.4, a similar issue arises. The policy adopted is again to simplify matters by deeming that all contacts during the stroke with a dead ball in the jaws are ignored so that the analysis is hoop and no roquet (see Law 17(b)(2)).
17.5.2 This gives the striker a tactical bonus when trying to complete a straight rover peel. If the peelee sticks in rover, the striker can half-jump it in the knowledge that any subsequent contacts between SB and peelee, which happen quite often, do not count as roquets and hence will not impede his chances of pegging out the peelee.
17.5.3 The only exception is when the SB and OB come to rest in contact with each other when a roquet is deemed to have been made (see Law 16(c) referred to by Law 17(c)).
17.6 Irish peel
17.6.1 The last situation is the Irish peel position. Here the striker plays a croquet stroke (usually but not always a roll) in which both SB and CB are sent through the hoop in the same stroke. The CB is treated in the same way as a dead OB (see 17.5 above) and no later contacts between SB and CB in the stroke count as a roquet (see Law 17(b)(3)).
17.6.2 The same exception applies if the SB and CB come to rest in contact (see Law 16(c) referred to by Law 17(c)).
17.6.3 The same analysis applies in the infrequent case of a continuation stroke played with the SB and OB in contact. This usually occurs after a failed Irish peel when the striker has had the good fortune to have the SB end up in contact with the CB and with the centres of the balls lined up so that another Irish peel can be played which will send the SB through the hoop. In such cases the striker must not make the fatal error of adjusting the SB in contact with the CB before playing the continuation stroke as this is penalized by end of turn under Law 27(d).
17.7 Multiple OBs
17.7.1 If the SB hits more than one OB in the stroke and 17(b)(1) applies to one and 17(a) to the other, then the former overrides the latter and the hoop is not scored. If only one of 17(a) or 17(b) apply, then the ball roqueted is determined by laws Law 16(b)(1) and (2).
This law is declaratory and needs no comment, other than to note that 18(b) applies in anticipation of the stroke being played in the case of roquets deemed at the start of a turn under Law 16(c), where the striker is not committed to his election of the SB and RB until he actually plays the stroke.
19.1 Note the requirement in Law 19(a) and (b) that balls must be placed on the ground. This was introduced many years ago. A leading Australian player had rushed a ball into hoop 1 when the only remaining live ball was near hoop 2. Nothing daunted, he carefully balanced the SB on top of the RB and played it from there. The authorities obviously took a dim view of such ingenuity.
19.2 Law 19(b) sets out the correct procedure for playing a cannon. The position of the RB is sacred and it should not be moved. If it is moved, it must be replaced. Note that the SB and the 3rd ball ('cannon ball') must not touch. If they do, the striker commits the error of purporting to take croquet from the 3rd ball. Usually it will be live, Law 27(e) will apply and the striker will be required to replay correctly. But should it happen to be dead, the turn ends under Law 27(d). The same applies in a 4-ball cannon, although there is nothing to stop the striker placing the 4th ball in contact with both the RB and the 3rd ball if he wishes. Normally, the 4th ball is placed in contact with the 3rd ball so that it will travel towards the next hoop when the stroke is played. Note that the striker cannot create a cannon, or include a 4th ball, by placing balls to “bridge the gap” (see 6.5.2,3).
19.3 If the striker creates a cannon in which the third ball is dead, the stroke should be watched by a referee. With most arrangements of the balls, the striker may hit the striker's ball a second time, or maintain contact with it, after it has hit the dead ball. That would be a fault, since the contact with the dead ball would not be a roquet (see the discussion at 28.11). With some arrangements, such a fault would be unavoidable. If the striker does not call a referee, the adversary should exercise his right to do so.
19.4 Law 19(c) restates the principle shared with Law 9(b) and Law 16(d), namely that there is no election of any ball until a stroke is played. The only exception relates to the possibility of the election of the SB by lifting a ball under Law 9(b)(1).
19.5 Law 19(d) is required to make sense of Laws 19(a) and (b) in situations where the first stroke of a turn is a croquet stroke or a cannon. This is a consequence of the principle referred to in 19.3 because, before the first stroke of the turn is played, no election of any ball has occurred.
19.6 Note the requirement in Law 3(c)(4) that, when attempting a peel, the rotational alignment of the RB must be preserved. This prevents the striker from minimising pull when using balls with noticeable unmilled spots on the surface. However, it is lawful for the striker to seek to minimise pull by aligning the SB so that its least milled spot is in contact with the RB.
19.7 Law 3(c)(3) allows for the use of reasonable pressure on the balls to get them to stay in contact for the croquet stroke, but this does not extend to creating depressions that will affect the subsequent motion of the balls. A mallet may now be used to assist in placing the SB; prior to 2008 this was banned, but it was felt this discriminated against infirm players. Raising a nap on the turf to apply the necessary lateral force, or making a slight depression at a point between where the two balls are to be placed, is usually more effective than treading on the balls in their intended position. On difficult ground, the Law 3(c)(3) permits the use of grass clippings or similar material to ensure that SB and RB remain in contact while the croquet stroke is played. Similar material is that which will hold the balls in position without affecting the course of either ball.
This law needs no comment, save to draw attention to Law 20(a) which clarifies the correct usage of the expression 'taking croquet'. It is correct to refer to the SB taking croquet from a particular ball or to refer to the striker taking croquet. It is incorrect to refer to the SB taking croquet without specifying the identity of the croqueted ball. It is acceptable to refer to the striker taking croquet with [X] from [Y].
This law gives separate treatment to two different concepts, namely the requirement to take croquet immediately, if a roquet is made in either a hoop stroke or a croquet stroke, and the non-cumulative nature of continuation strokes.
22.1 The distinction between errors and interferences should be understood. Errors are mistakes that involve playing a stroke incorrectly in some way; a fault is a specific type of error. Interferences are irregularities or mistakes of a different nature (see 29 for a fuller analysis of interferences).
22.2 If an error is discovered within its limit of claims, the consequence is that it is 'rectified'. This means that the game is restored to its state immediately before the first stroke in error was played. This entails replacing the balls and the clips. Whether the striker remains in play or his turn ends depends on the nature of the error. Note the exception in relation to faults, but not other errors, where the adversary can elect to have the balls left as they lay after the fault was committed (see 28.19 below).
22.3 When replacing balls to rectify an error, note the distinction in Law 22(d)(1) between faults, which require exact replacement, and other errors, which may leave the offender with a choice. Note also that the lawful position may be some distance from where the ball was actually played, e.g. if the striker sends the croqueted ball off in a cannon, but does not notice until after playing a croquet stroke which he was not entitled to, the SB must be placed where it came to rest after the cannon, rather than in contact with the ball it roqueted (because of the exceptions cited in Laws 18(a)(3,4)). The striker can choose any position that a ball could have been at the start of the stroke, not just the turn, thus if he plays an adversary's ball when entitled to a lift he can place what should have been the striker's ball in baulk.
22.4 The limit of claims for fatal errors is generally the first stroke of the adversary's next turn and that for less serious ones is the next stroke but one of the striker's turn, or first stroke of the next (bisque or adversary's) turn if the striker's turn doesn't last that long! The exceptions are faults, which though fatal are treated like minor errors in this respect, and miscellaneous cases of misplacement, which must be forestalled before they occur.
22.5 Law 22(f)(1) lays down the principle that, if an error is not discovered until after its limit of claims, it is ignored and the balls and clips are not replaced. There are two important exceptions:
22.5.1 The reference to Law 40(d) expresses a fundamental principle of doubles play that each player should play his own ball and that a strong player should not be able to mask his partner's weaknesses by scoring points directly for his ball. In handicap doubles play, the same principle operates to limit the number of peels to four. Accordingly, if he should play his partner's ball in error and thereby appear to score a point in order for that ball or to score a fifth peel in handicap play, these apparent points are ignored if the error is discovered at any time before the end of the game.
22.5.2 Law 22(f)(2) states that a peg point may not be scored for any ball when striking an enemy ball. This prevents Bob, when playing R, a rover, from pegging it out by hitting it onto the peg or from pegging out B, also a rover, in what he thinks is a croquet stroke. If this form of wrong ball is committed and is discovered at any time before the end of the game, Law 30 applies and the game is restored to its position before the unlawful peg out occurred. This will also allow rectification of the wrong ball error that led to the peg-out.
22.6 Law 22(g) confirms the common sense point that the earliest irregularity, error or interference, discovered together, is dealt with. As of 2008, it covers all interferences.
23.1 Definition
23.1.1 Law 23(a) provides a definition designed to provide an objective test of whether or not the adversary has been successful in forestalling. The definition contains three significant elements:
23.1.2 The adversary must be acting in the discharge of his duties as a referee, usually to inform the striker that he has committed an error or interference or that he is about to play a questionable stroke without having it watched. If he merely wishes to draw the striker's attention to the physical attractions of the local scenery, human or otherwise, he is not forestalling and the striker will not offend Law 32 if he ignores him.
23.1.3 The request need not begin with the words 'Please stop play' and it is more usual to begin with the striker's name. The striker should get short shrift from a referee if he argues that he was entitled to ignore the calling of his name because that in itself was not a request to cease play.
23.1.4 The request must be made loudly enough to be heard by a striker with normal hearing. It will therefore depend on the physical circumstances but not on the abilities of the striker. More volume will be required in a gale or under the flight-path of a low-flying jet but not because the striker is hard of hearing. It may still be necessary to run onto the court and stand in front of a stone-deaf player to get him to stop play but the adversary is entitled to ask that play be taken back to where he would have been able to forestall an unhandicapped striker by normal means.
23.2 When not to forestall (1)
Law 23(b) sets out the fatal errors that policy demands should NOT be forestalled in advance. Purporting to take croquet from a dead ball (Law 27(d)) has been added to attempting to run a wrong hoop (which is likely to lead to a breach of Law 25) and playing a wrong ball (Law 26). The reason for the policy is to avoid bad blood because, if the adversary was under the normal duty to forestall in advance but failed to do so, the reason could either be genuine failure to notice or deliberate blindness so as not to warn the striker and thus gain the innings. Human nature being what it is, some strikers would assume the less honourable reason and relationships would be strained. The prohibition on forestalling when a fatal error may be imminent exists even if a minor error has occurred. It applies only to these unconditionally fatal errors, not to other errors, even if the striker's turn may end for some other reason if they are left unforestalled.
23.3 When not to forestall (2)
Law 23(d) governs the timing of the forestalling request. The policy is that the adversary should interrupt the striker between strokes so that there is no danger of putting him off. In particular, there should be no profit to the adversary in forestalling half-way through a stroke for trivial reasons, such as a ball unconnected with the stroke being misplaced by 1 mm. In such circumstances, if the striker is so affected by the interruption that he sticks in a hoop, he is likely to get a replay under Law 34(a). However, Law 23(d) does admit of emergencies, such as realising that an important limit of claims will expire if the mallet hits the ball or that the striker is about to be hit from another game. Then you can bellow 'X, stop!' fortissimo without reservations.
23.4 When to forestall
Law 23(c) sets out when the adversary is obliged to forestall, subject of course to Law 23(b) (see 23.2 above) and, as to timing, to Law 23(d) (see 23.3 above):
(a) in order to have a questionable stroke watched by a referee;
(b) to warn the striker that an interference or non-fatal error is about to occur;
(c) to warn the striker that he has not played all the strokes to which he is entitled, typically when he appears to be unaware that he has made a roquet or that he is entitled to a continuation stroke; and
(d) to ensure that the clips are properly placed.
23.5 Why forestall
The policy reason for requiring the adversary to forestall in other circumstances, notwithstanding that it may be to his disadvantage (see Law 48(b)), is that both players have a duty to ensure that the game is played according to the Laws and it is generally easier, and less likely to cause disputes, to sort out problems before, or as soon as possible after, they arise, rather than some time later.
24.1 Law 24(a) sets out the rules of priority for applying the error laws. Law 24(a)(1) means that faults in strokes played when not entitled (Law 25) or with the wrong ball (Law 26) are ignored, but note that Law 27(e-i) specifically require consideration of other errors, thus both Law 27 and Law 28 can apply to a single stroke.
24.2 Note that if any part of Law 27 is the first applicable law, it contains, in Law 27(a), its own statement of how its sub-laws should be applied.
24.3 Law 24(b) modifies the effect of Law 24(a)(2), which would otherwise mean that the earlier error was dealt with even though it was discovered after its limit of claims.
25.1 Law 25(a). This law was amended in 2008 to avoid the use of the terms “striker” and “adversary”, as these can be very confusing when someone is playing when not entitled. Playing when not entitled means playing when it is the other side's turn to play (as opposed to playing with the wrong ball or taking croquet without previously making a roquet, which are dealt with by Laws 26 and 27).
25.2 There are two common cases. The first is that a player plays too many strokes in a turn, usually because they carry on after running a hoop out of order, but possibly because they have failed to notice that they sent a ball off in a croquet stroke. In this case, providing the error is noticed before the first stroke to be played by the other side, any points scored in the excess strokes are cancelled and the balls are replaced in their lawful position before the last valid stroke. The opponent then starts his turn (unless the offender takes a bisque).
25.3 The second case is that a player starts playing before his opponent has finished tidying up the balls and clips at the end of his turn (and no permission has been granted under Law 4(e)(2)(B)). In this case, the balls are again replaced and points cancelled, but it will be the offender who plays once the non-offender has tidied up (unless the non-offender takes a bisque), and the limit of claims is the start of the non-offender's next turn.
25.4 Things get more complex in the rarer cases of interleaved “turns”. These are usually the result of one player being called away, but can occur if a player fails to notice that their opponent has made a roquet. It is to cover these cases that Law 25(a)(2) specifies that only some balls should be replaced.
25.5 Playing after the opponent has forestalled play is not treated as an error. Instead it is a form of interference with the game by the striker and is dealt with under Law 32. Note that it is quite possible that, once the matter has been settled, the striker will be able to resume his innings and replay the stroke or strokes that he played after he was forestalled. There is no limit of claims specified for this interference, but a referee acting under Law 55 would be likely to rule by analogy with that for Law 25.
25.6 Note that running a hoop out of order is not itself an error. The stroke stands, but does not score a point or earn a continuation stroke. It is the continuation stroke and any subsequent strokes in the break that are in error.
25.7 If the error is not discovered until after the limit of claims, it is ignored and any points made in order for any ball during the strokes in error are counted (as specified in Law 22(f)). The reason for this is to avoid serious disruption to the game if the error comes to light (possibly because of some unguarded comment by a spectator) many turns later.
25.8 However, this does not extend to points claimed out of order, which are cancelled if the error is discovered at any time before the end of the game. Thus if a break, apparently from 1-Back to Peg, was made with Red, which included a straight peel of Yellow through Penultimate, but it was later found that Red had missed out 3-Back, the peel on Yellow stands, but the Red clip goes back to 3-Back. The opponent may be entitled to a replay under Law 31(a)(1) if he was misled by Red's clip being on Peg rather than 3-Back.
25.9 Where a Striker re-runs a hoop he has already run and the error is not noticed until after the start of his opponent’s next turn, any such re-run hoops are ignored, and all hoops that are in sequence under Law 1(c) with properly run hoops are validly run. Thus if, in a 22pt game starting at hoop 3, Blue ran hoops 3, 4, 1, 2, 3,4,5 and 6, and then realised the error when Red went round in the correct order, Blue's clip remains on 1-Back, as 5 was in order after he first ran 4.
26.1 Law 26(a)(1) deals with the basic error. The limit of claims is the first stroke of the adversary's next turn in all cases where the adversary plays a correct ball. The additional wording 'before the first stroke of the next turn to be started by playing a correct ball' is designed to cover cases when both players get confused and play an enemy ball for a number of turns. Then, discovery of such a sequence within the limit of claims of the last such error results in the game being taken back to its last lawful position. The situation is analogous to the treatment of compound errors under Law 24, though that law was clearly not drafted with this situation in mind.
26.2 Law 26(b) covers a sequence of play (wrong-correct-correct) to which Law 26(a)(1) does not apply yet which leaves the player of the fourth turn unable to play a lawful stroke because both balls of his side have already been played into the game. The only remedy is to restart the game and restore any bisques that may have been played (see Law 39(a)(2)). See 8.4 for a related example where 26(b) does not apply.
26.3 Law 26(c) provides a pragmatic solution when the players accidentally exchange colours from the start of the game and do not realise their error until after the first stroke of the fifth turn - perhaps not until one is about to win. It makes more sense to endorse the swap and let the players carry on.
26.4 Note the point made at 5.2 above, that striking a ball that is not in play does not count as a stroke, and thus is not an error under Law 26. The laws currently do not deal with this explicitly (other than as interference under Law 33(c)), but this is one of the items scheduled for consideration in the next revision. The ruling used for the 2008 World Championship was:
“If the striker’s ball goes off the lawn and the striker retrieves a ball from another game and plays that, this is not playing a wrong ball under the terms of Law 26. It does not matter what colour the retrieved ball may be. If the striker does not retrieve the correct ball, he or she is playing an outside agency. Strokes following this mistake are null and void once the mistake is discovered. Play must therefore revert to the point when the outside agency was first played, and the striker must resume the turn from there with the correct ball.”
27.1 General
27.1.1 Unlike errors under the previous law, playing a wrong ball, or the faults in the next law, these errors are not (with the exception of 27(d)) in themselves fatal.
27.1.2 No error can be committed under this law unless the striker actually plays a stroke with a ball misplaced. A ball can become misplaced either as the result of uncorrected interference, or by a player failing to place it in a lawful position when required to do so, or moving it when not entitled to do so. Law 27(a) requires the adversary to forestall (unless the striker is about to commit a fatal error, see Law 23(b)) if he observes that the striker is about to commit such an error, as it is easier to sort things out before rather than afterwards, then goes on to state how the remaining sub-laws should be applied if the error is not prevented.
27.1.3 Note that Law 27 only applies to misplacement that occurred before the start of a stroke. If interference occurs during a stroke, Law 33 applies to that stroke (but Law 27 will apply to subsequent strokes if the interference is not noticed and the affected balls have not been moved in the course of play).
27.1.4 Note also that Law 31(a)(2) may entitle the striker to replay a stroke which would otherwise be an error under Law 27, if the striker was misled by the position of a ball that had suffered interference, or been moved to avoid it.
27.1.5 However, in the case where the incoming striker finds two, typically yard-line, balls in a different position (touching or just apart) than his adversary thought he had left them in, and takes croquet or a rush accordingly, the interaction between Laws 27 and 31 leads to uncertainty. It might be impossible to tell whether the adversary misplaced them, interfered with them after placing them correctly, or they subsequently moved apart. Problems will be avoided if the player whose turn has ended tells the incoming striker whether or not the balls should be in contact or, failing which, the incoming striker queries the position, but, if not, Law 55 should be invoked to ensure that neither player is seriously disadvantaged by the breakdown in communication.
27.2 Law 27(b) tackles situations where balls accidentally fall into contact or fall apart just before a stroke. Now the striker's intent is taken into account to determine the appropriate treatment of the stroke in such circumstances. Thus, if the SB and the CB move apart as the croquet stroke is being played, the nature of the stroke does not change and the laws applicable to croquet strokes still apply, including the requirement that the striker must move or shake the CB. If the balls part sufficiently in a croquet stroke so that the mallet visibly hits the SB more than once, a fault is still committed, but not if the stroke is merely noisy. This may seem harsh if the failure to shake was genuinely the result of the balls falling apart, but if it were not a fault then a striker who committed it could always claim that the balls had fallen apart, and the referee would have no way of knowing. The latest research suggests that a parting of 2 mm or less will NOT lead to a double tap.
27.3 Law 27(c) defines the term, 'purporting to take croquet'. Purporting to do something means giving the appearance of doing something without actually doing it. Taking croquet involves the SB and the RB as required by Law 20. Taking croquet from the wrong ball is a contradiction in terms because, if the RB is not involved, one is not taking croquet. Hence the need for the term as one may 'purport' to take croquet from anything. However, 27(c)(3) dictates that a purported croquet stroke is to be treated like a real one (so, for example, the turn ends if either ball goes off the lawn, and the purportedly croqueted ball becomes dead).
27.4 Law 27(d)
27.4.1 Law 27(d) deals with the first of three mutually exclusive errors (the others are dealt with in Law 27(e) and (f)) and covers the fatal error of purporting to take croquet from a dead ball. The striker can gain a significant advantage if he takes croquet twice from the same ball between hoops, such as being able to rescue a much delayed peeling break. What is worse, the error may well not be noticed until long after the normal two stroke limit of claims. Justice can only be done if the limit of claims is extended to the first stroke of the adversary's next turn. This in turn requires that the error be made fatal as otherwise the unscrupulous would be tempted to 'remember' such an error many strokes ago when confronted with the imminent demise of a break.
27.4.2 Since the error is made only if the stroke is played with the balls misplaced, the striker can recover if he incorrectly moves the SB before playing a continuation stroke when it is in contact with another ball. He should notify the adversary of the problem, replace the SB accurately where it was at the end of the previous stroke and get his adversary's agreement that the replacement is satisfactory. Similarly, in the rare case where a ball in the yard-line area is placed in contact with the SB before a continuation stroke is played, no error is committed (provided that the SB is left in the position where it came to rest), as no ball is misplaced.
27.5 Law 27(e)
27.5.1 Law 27(e) covers both 'taking croquet from the wrong ball' and 'taking croquet when not entitled to' and is limited to live ball situations. It applies whenever the striker has made a roquet and then purported to take croquet from a live ball other than the RB. Note that Law 25 applies if the striker is not entitled to play a stroke at all.
27.5.2 If the error is discovered before the LOC, it is rectified so the balls and clips will be replaced in their lawful positions before the first stroke in error. In addition, the stroke or strokes in error must be analysed to see if a turn-ending event occurred. If it did, the striker's turn ends, leaving the balls in that position, otherwise he is entitled to continue his turn by playing a lawful stroke. Thus if the ball struck in the purported croquet stroke, or the following continuation stroke, was a wrong ball, or the striker had previously run a wrong hoop and was not entitled to play at all, he is not shielded from the consequences of those errors by committing this more minor one.
27.5.2.1 To spell this out, if the error is discovered immediately after the first stroke in error (ES1), the striker's turn will end if, in that stroke:
either ball was sent off the court as specified in Law 20 (Law 4(d)(2)); or
the striker's ball, being already a rover, hit the peg (Law 4(d)(3)) (subject to Law 38 in handicap games); or
the striker's ball, being already a rover, hit another rover which then hit the peg (Law 4(d)(3)); or
a fault was committed including failing to shake the live ball (Law 4(d)(7))
27.5.2.2 If the error is discovered immediately after ES2, the striker's turn will end:
if any of the reasons listed in 27.5.2.1 applied to ES1; or
if the SB made a roquet in ES1 and took croquet in ES2, if any of the reasons listed in 27.5.2.1 applied to ES2; or
if the SB did not make a roquet in ES1, the striker failed to make a roquet or score a hoop point in order for the SB in ES2 (Law 4(d)(1)); or
if the striker's ball, being already a rover, hit the peg in ES2 (Law 4(d)(3)) (subject to Law 38 in handicap games); or
if the striker's ball, being already a rover, hit another rover in ES2 which then hit the peg (Law 4(d)(3)); or
a wrong ball was played , a fault was committed, or the striker purported to take croquet from a dead ball.
27.5.3 Usually, this error is noticed immediately or not at all. However, if the error is noticed after the LOC, it is necessary to consider how liveness and deadness have been affected. The answer is that the definitions in Law 6(e) apply and so the live ball involved in the purported croquet stroke becomes dead and the ball actually roqueted remains live and can be roqueted again before the next hoop point is scored for the SB.
27.5.4 For example, suppose Bob plays B, roquets K, purports to take croquet from Y (ES1) and then, under the misapprehension that he roqueted R in that stroke, purports to take croquet from R (ES2), at which point his errors are discovered.
27.5.4.1 He will be entitled to resume his turn by taking croquet from K after his initial error is rectified. The second error is within the limit of claims of the first one, and hence ignored except for the determining whether he is entitled to continue his turn.
27.5.4.2 When applying this, ES1 is treated as though B roqueted Y, not K, and thus as a valid croquet stroke, entitling Bob to play the continuation stroke ES2. In this stroke, a further error was committed, but this is treated as though he had roqueted R in ES1, and thus, on this analysis, he would be entitled to a continuation stroke and so nothing fatal has happened to end his turn.
27.5.5 Laws 27(d) and 27(e) deal with purporting to take croquet from a dead or live ball, but do not cover the case of purporting to do so from a ball not in play, or one belonging to another game, which can happen if the striker retrieves the wrong ball after rushing one off the lawn, or gets confused by the presence of a double-banked ball. This is scheduled for consideration in the next revision, but in the meantime it would seem reasonable to deal with it by substituting the ball roqueted for the outside agency. It seems generally accepted that the striker gets no relief if he attempts to roquet an outside agency: the collision is just treated as interference under Law 33(a).
27.6 Law 27(f) deals with the case when the striker makes a roquet but fails to appreciate the fact. Instead of taking croquet as required, he plays another stroke (e.g. attempts to roquet the same ball again or another ball or attempts to run a hoop). However, note that his turn will end if he misses the attempted roquet or fails the hoop in the stroke in error.
27.6.1 If the error is discovered immediately after ES1, the striker's turn will end if, in that stroke:
neither a roquet was made nor a hoop point was scored in order for the SB (Law 4(d)(1)); or
the striker's ball, being already a rover, hit the peg in ES1 (Law 4(d)(3)) (subject to Law 38 in handicap games); or
the striker's ball, being already a rover, hit another rover which then hit the peg (Law 4(d)(3)); or
he committed a fault or a wrong ball was played (Law 4(d)(7)).
27.6.2 If the error is discovered immediately after ES2, the striker's turn will end if any of the reasons listed in 27.6.1 applied to ES1 or if any of the reasons specified in 27.5.2.2(b-f) applied to ES2.
27.7 Laws 27(g) and (h) provide a more meaningful limit of claims for two related forms of playing with a ball misplaced, namely failing to play a ball from baulk and lifting a ball when not entitled to do so. The adversary has two strokes, like every other significant non-fatal error, in which to react. The same principles about end of turn apply as described in 27.5.2 and 27.6. Note "materially" in Law 27(g) is to prevent (unverifiable) claims from the adversary after a successful lift shot or from the striker after an unsuccessful one, that the lift shot must be replayed because it was taken from a position 1mm off the baulk line.
27.8 Law 27(i) is the sweep-up sub-law which covers all other cases. The game continues as if the misplaced ball lawfully occupied the position it was in.
28.1 An internet survey conducted in 1999 revealed, unsurprisingly, that faults represented the most frequent category of error committed by players and which gave referees the most exercise. Accordingly, in view of the practical importance of faults, each of the 15 faults will be discussed separately.
28.2 Law 28(a) - the definitions of the faults
As a precursor, it is worth noting that, as an aid to memorising them, the faults are organised into four distinct groups.
28.2.1 (1) to (5) deal with unlawful methods of using the mallet.
28.2.2 (6) to (10) deal with unlawful contacts between mallet and the striker's ball.
28.2.3 (11) to (13) deal with unlawful movements of balls, whether by mallet or the striker's body or clothes.
28.2.4 (14) and (15) are the specialised faults- croquet strokes and substantial damage.
28.3 It should always be borne in mind that no fault can be committed outside the striking period (see Law 5(h) and 5.5 above). The period within which a fault can be committed has been shortened in respect of Laws 28(a)(1) to (3) so that it ends at the end of the swing of the mallet and does not depend on the striker quitting his stance under control. The standard of proof required to declare that a fault has been committed was defined in 2008, in Law 48(d).
'touches the head of the mallet with his hand, or slides the mallet along his foot or leg to guide it'
The second clause was added in 2008 and bans the (then increasingly prevalent) practice of using the foot to prevent the mallet hitting an obstacle (such as a hoop upright) instead of the ball in a hampered stroke. “Foot” includes shoe because of 28(c). Accidental contact between mallet and the leg or foot is not a fault, only deliberately using them to guide the mallet.
'rests the shaft of the mallet or a hand or arm on the ground or an outside agency'
The words 'or an outside agency' are to counter any bright ideas of placing the law book (or anything else) under the shaft etc to circumvent the law. Note, however, that a hoop is not an outside agency and thus it is legal to rest the shaft of the mallet on or against a hoop. Note also that a hand brushing along the grass in a horizontal sweep shot is not a fault because it is not 'resting on the ground'.
'rests the shaft of the mallet or a hand or arm di