Changes to the Eligibility Criteria for Golf Croquet A-Level and B-Level Series Tournaments

[<<] [>>] by Christopher Roberts
6th November (GC - Tournaments)

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Purpose of the GC Series Tournaments

The Golf Croquet (GC) Series tournaments are designed to provide a clear and progressive pathway for competitive play, supporting players as their technical skills, tactical understanding, and overall experience develop.

Each Series consists of a number of tournaments hosted by clubs nationwide, leading to qualification for a National Final (*the exception is the Open Series, where the overall national winner is determined by accumulated points rather than a final).

In recent years, the GC Series have continued to evolve, reflecting the growing depth of ability across the player base.

This ongoing refinement ensures fair competition and a positive experience for all participants - offering the opportunity to compete against peers of similar ability, within tournaments that follow standardised and approved formats.

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Transition from Handicap to Dynamic Grade

To continue this development, the Golf Croquet Tournaments Committee (GCTC) has agreed to replace the existing handicap-based eligibility criteria for the A-Level (0+) and

B Level (4+) Series tournaments with criteria based on Dynamic Grade (DG).

Dynamic Grades provide a more accurate and reliable measure of a player's current playing strength than handicaps.

Dynamic Grades are already used successfully in the Open Series and Premier (formerly Championship) Series tournaments for precisely this reason.

As the name suggests, Dynamic Grades are dynamic - they respond to a player's current form, being calculated from a holistic assessment of ranked game results.

By contrast, handicaps can be more volatile, are influenced by non-ranked games, and sometimes affected by human error or subjective adjustment.

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Revised Tournament Definitions (Effective from the 2026 Season)

From the 2026 season, the A-Level (0+) Series and B-Level (4+) Series tournaments will be redefined and retitled as follows:

• Golf Croquet A-Level (DG <2000) Series Tournament
• Golf Croquet B-Level (DG <1700) Series Tournament

Eligibility will therefore be defined as:

• "Players with a Dynamic Grade below 2000 points" for the A-Level Series
• "Players with a Dynamic Grade below 1700 points" for the B-Level Series

Allocations for entry will be made using these Dynamic Grade criteria as of the allocation date.

As part of this change, we are removing the handicap reference from the A and B-Level Series titles.

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Looking Ahead

The GCTC hopes that players at all levels will approach the 2026 season with renewed enthusiasm - motivated to develop their game, embrace new challenges, and continue their journey through the GC Series.

These updates are part of our ongoing commitment to fairness, consistency, and progression across the sport.

We look forward to supporting every player in becoming the very best they can be - both on and off the court.

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Chris Roberts

Director of the Golf Croquet A, B, C & D-Level Series

For the Golf Croquet Tournaments Committee

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(A fuller vesrsion of this news item, includes a 'formats and consistency' section, and will appear in the December printed Croquet Gazette)