[<<] [>>] by Mike Orgill at Sonoma-Cutrer, California
13-19 May 2007 (International)

1. Jonathan Kirby $3000
2. Leo McBride $1500
3. Stephen Mulliner $1000
4. Brian Cumming $500

Plate Winner: Doug Grimsley $500

Playoff Matches (2 of 3)

Danny Huneycutt beat Paul Bennett +26TP +11TP
Tony Hall beat Ed Roberts +15 +26TP
Rich Lamm beat Doug Grimsley +16, -17TP, +14
Jim Bast beat Mik Mehas +5, -3, +25
Stephen Mulliner beat Danny Huneycutt +20TP +25
Jonathan Kirby beat Tony Hall +17TP +13TPO
Brian Cumming beat Rich Lamm +26TP +16TP
Leo McBride beat Jim Bast +2 +26
Jonathan Kirby beat Stephen Mulliner +18TP +26TP
Leo McBride beat Brian Cumming -26TP, +4, +26TP

Stephen Mulliner beat Brian Cumming +26TP +22TP (for third place)
Jonathan Kirby beat Leo McBride -26TP, +26TP, +12TPO (for first place)

Block Finishes

Ties were broken by head-to-head result, then net points. Six players came out of two ten-player blocks to compete in the playoff. First round of match playoff dropped into plate.

Blue Block

1. Stephen Mulliner 8 wins +137 net
2. Brian Cumming 7, +92
3. Tony Hall 6, +27
4. Jim Bast 5, +14 (beat Huneycutt)
5. Danny Huneycutt 5, +4
6. Rich Lamm 4, -7 (beat Ruby)
7. Britt Ruby 4, -30
8. Martyn Selman 3, -27
9. Jim Butts 2, -81
10. Charlie Smith 1, -129

Red Block

1. Leo McBride 7, +106
2. Jonathan Kirby 6, +74 (beat Bennett, lost to Grimsley)
3. Doug Grimsley 6, +68 (beat Kirby, lost to Bennett)
4. Paul Bennett 6, +29 (lost to Kirby, beat Grimsley)
5. Mik Mehas 5, +42 (beat Jackson, beat Roberts)
6. Ed Roberts 5, -22 (beat Jackson, lost to Mehas)
7. Stewart Jackson 5, +68 (lost to Mehas, lost to Roberts)
8. Johnny Mitchell 3, -85
9. Erv Peterson 2, -91
10. Rob Coleman 0, -189

The Final

Jonathan described the final:

The final lasted 5 1/4 hours, and the exhibition golf croquet match was well underway by the time we finished, so we didn't get round to reporting the scores.

The lawn was medium paced (slow for American players, 9 on the stimpmeter I was told, I'd guess around 10-11 Plummers). Hoops very soft in the ground, clearances about 1/32".

Game 1: A defensive opening by Leo. I made one hoop to get a leave with Leo having a 25 yard shot (he hadn't shot at anything previously). Leo hit, and I missed the lift. Leo finished on the 9th turn. Before he pegged out, Stephen Mulliner pegged out in the second game of his best of three.

Game 2: Fifth turn. Leo got the balls in position for a 4th turn TPO then decided against it.

Game 3: This game was more interesting.

• Leo plays K as a deep supershot ball
• R to 2 yards E of peg
• U trickles at R from near corner 1, missing
• Y misses double from B baulk
• K to 4b, diagonal spread, with boundary ball U wired from the end of A baulk by hoop 4, Y at the peg.
• R hits K from the end of A baulk. [Leo made exactly the same leave in all three games, and I took the same shot in all three.] Tidy TPO with peels done by 3b but no peels on other balls. Leave with Y in corner II, R on East boundary 1 yard N of hoop 4 (with hoop 4 wiring the roll to 2-3 yard position at hoop 1.
• Leo takes contact from R and mis-hits roll to 1, with R ending 6 yards too far and U 5 yards short. Takes 5 foot straight position at 1, leaving R (the peg ball) a 12-13 yard shot.
• R to corner IV.
• U runs 1, hits R. Takes off to Y in corner II, but under-hits and ends up wired from Y by hoop 2. Attempts to jump over the hoop, but hits the crown and ends up on W boundary level with hoop 2.
• Y rushes U along the yard line to level with hoop 1. Croquets U near the middle of the North boundary, going to R in IV. Rolls to guard corner 1, wiring boundary ball at the expense of having a rush to 1.
• U to about 5 yards out of IV, on the South boundary.
• Y approaches 1 sending R 4 yards straight in front, for a forward rush to 2. Runs hoop and just trickles into R. Looks at wiring lines and then decides to roll to 2. Ends up 6" to the side of 2, with R a yard off the N boundary, 5 yards E of 2. Retreats to corner II which is wired from U.
• U declines shot at R, which would have given him a good chance and me a 12 yard shot with Y (or 1 yard with R), and goes to the West boundary about 12 yards S of Y. Y hits safe shot at U, rolls U to 3 going to R, approaches 2 and has a break. Pioneer for 3 is very close to the hoop, and trickles into it running the hoop. At this point my mind was not very composed, half thinking about Tony Hall's commentary on the exhibition match, and a little bit thinking about this being a winning break. The roll to 4 and 5 was not really hampered, except that hoop 3 was where I wanted to put my left foot. Somehow, I didn't get balanced properly and hit the roll with the corner of the mallet face - each ball travelling about 3 feet. It hadn't really occurred to me that I should call a referee, since the stroke was trivially easy, so I called Leo over and declared the fault on myself. [Rather embarrassingly, that's the second tournament in a row where I have had to call a fault on myself on the last day, although the previous time was in a croquet stroke in the middle of the lawn, where there was no reason to have a referee at all.]
• Leo was then incredibly obliging as he played a terrible take off from 3 to the ball at 4, failing to get a rush to 2. He attempted to roll to 2, but sent the front ball off the lawn, ending well short.
• R hits 13 yarder at U, croquets it to near corner II going to Y, and rolling to guard corner IV.
• U closely misses Y.
• Y hits 6 yard pick up into corner IV and finishes.

Block Play

Stephen Mulliner beat Charlie Smith TP
Danny Huneycutt beat Martyn Selman TP
Jim Bast beat Rich Lamm
Brian Cumming beat Britt Ruby
Jim Butts beat Tony Hall
Stephen Mulliner beat Martyn Selman
Jim Bast beat Charlie Smith
Danny Huneycutt beat Britt Ruby TP
Jim Butts beat Rich Lamm
Tony Hall beat Brian Cumming
Jonathan Kirby beat Rob Coleman TP
Leo McBride beat Erv Peterson
Paul Bennett beat Johnny Mitchell
Mik Mehas beat Stewart Jackson
Doug Grimsley beat Ed Roberts TP
Jonathan Kirby beat Erv Peterson
Johnny Mitchell beat Rob Coleman
Leo McBride beat Mik Mehas TP
Paul Bennett beat Ed Roberts
Doug Grimsley beat Stewart Jackson TP
Leo McBride beat Rob Coleman TP
Doug Grimsley beat Jonathan Kirby
Ed Roberts beat Stewart Jackson
Paul Bennett beat Mik Mehas
Leo McBride beat Johnny Mitchell
Erv Peterson beat Rob Coleman TP
Jonathan Kirby beat Stewart Jackson
Paul Bennett beat Doug Grimsley
Leo McBride beat Ed Roberts
Mik Mehas beat Rob Coleman
Stephen Mulliner beat Jim Bast
Britt Ruby beat Martyn Selman
Charlie Smith beat Jim Butts
Danny Huneycutt beat Tony Hall TP
Brian Cumming beat Rich Lamm
Stephen Mulliner beat Britt Ruby TP
Jim Bast beat Jim Butts
Tony Hall beat Martyn Selman
Brian Cumming beat Charlie Smith
Rich Lamm beat Danny Huneycutt
Stephen Mulliner beat Jim Butts
Tony Hall beat Britt Ruby TP
Brian Cumming beat Jim Bast
Rich Lamm beat Martyn Selman TP
Danny Huneycutt beat Charlie Smith
Stephen Mulliner beat Tony Hall TP
Brian Cumming vs. Jim Butts
Rich Lamm beat Britt Ruby
Jim Bast beat Danny Huneycutt TP
Martyn Selman beat Charlie Smith
Brian Cumming beat Stephen Mulliner TP
Tony Hall beat Rich Lamm
Danny Huneycutt beat Jim Butts TP
Britt Ruby beat Charlie Smith
Jonathan Kirby beat Johnny Mitchell TP
Erv Peterson beat Mik Mehas
Ed Roberts beat Rob Coleman
Doug Grimsley beat Leo McBride TP
Stewart Jackson beat Paul Bennett
Jonathan Kirby beat Mik Mehas TP
Ed Roberts beat Johnny Mitchell
Doug Grimsley beat Erv Peterson TP
Stewart Jackson beat Rob Coleman
Leo McBride beat Paul Bennett TP
Ed Roberts beat Jonathan Kirby
Mik Mehas beat Doug Grimsley TP
Stewart Jackson beat Johnny Mitchell TP
Paul Bennett beat Erv Peterson TP
Jim Bast beat Martyn Selman TP
Stephen Mulliner beat Rich Lamm TP
Brian Cumming beat Danny Huneycutt TP
Tony Hall beat Charlie Smith TP
Martyn Selman beat Jim Butts
Britt Ruby beat Jim Bast TP
Stephen Mulliner beat Danny Huneycutt OTP (Huneycutt TPOed Mulliner)
Rich Lamm beat Charlie Smith TP
Martyn Selman beat Brian Cumming
Tony Hall beat Jim Bast
Britt Ruby beat Jim Butts
Johnny Mitchell beat Erv Peterson
Jonathan Kirby beat Paul Bennett TP
Stewart Jackson beat Leo McBride TP
Doug Grimsley beat Rob Coleman
Ed Roberts beat Erv Peterson
Mik Mehas beat Johnny Mitchell TP
Leo McBride beat Jonathan Kirby TP
Paul Bennett beat Rob Coleman
Stewart Jackson beat Erv Peterson
Johnny Mitchell beat Doug Grimsley
Mik Mehas beat Ed Roberts