August2024 Newsletter

CROQUET NEWS - BRIAN LOZANO

Can you believe that it is August already?! The first half of the season has flown by, and July has been particularly memorable for our croquet program. We celebrated a great social event with our 4th of July Patriots Play Croquet Mixer, where everyone donned red, white, and blue attire and enjoyed friendly games on the lawns and court-side cocktails. Following the Patriots’ Croquet event, we ventured to the Chattooga Club for an Interclub match. Our team showcased skill and teamwork across three tough rounds, emerging victorious amidst beautiful lawns and strong competition. This victory was particularly special because we lost the first round 3 games to 1. Our members re-grouped, and proceeded to then sweep the remaining two rounds to win 8 of the 8 games played, giving us the win! The day concluded with a delightful lunch.

Brian Lozano Croquet Director

July also saw thrilling matches in our Club Championships. In the Ladies’ Doubles Championship, we saw a team of two ladies who were making their competitive croquet debut. Nancy Ferrara and Lisa Butts were the surprise team this year, making it all the way to the final. In the final, they met against Jacquie Harris and Emily Adkins. Experience prevailed in this one, victory going to Jacquie and Emily with a score of 7-3. Next up was the Men’s Doubles Championship, marked by unexpected results early on as our top seeded teams underestimated their competition and dropped their first matches. Dr. Page and Rev. Walker came out of the block stage shooting for the stars, as they qualified to the semi-finals without dropping a game. Steve Earman and Tom Guffey had other plans for them though, taking the game to them and winning by a score of 7-2, setting up the final against Tim Wright and Dennis Fisher. This was another final for the books, a good mix of two teams with both having experience on their side. Dr. Fisher was able to follow up the good performance by his partner, current singles champion Tim Wright, and cruise through to victory. Congratulations to Tim Wright for his repeat in Doubles, and to Dennis Fisher, for his first Club Championship win. Lastly, we closed July with the Ladies Singles Club Championship. A great two days of croquet where 8 ladies battled on the lawn for this coveted title. We had strong contenders looking to make their mark and earn their first Club Championship. Terry Fisher and Barbara Knight had great moments on the lawn. Both of them hitting impressive jump shots at critical moments. The semi-finals were very exciting, one of them went the distance, with a 7-6 score going to Jacquie Harris, setting up a repeat final from last season against 3-time Club Champ, Julie Wright. A beautiful match between two friends and avid competitors. It’s definitely not easy playing finals and semi-finals against a familiar opponent. They know each other’s game well enough that it could make it more challenging to outsmart one another. The match was neck and neck all the way, until hoop 8. A slight loss of concentration from Jacquie, opened the opportunity to Julie, making it 4-4 going into hoop 9. I felt a slight shift in momentum here, and Julie capitalized by staying ahead the rest of the way, finally closing the match 7 to 5. Many congratulation to all players and huge thanks to all of our spectators. Looking ahead, our final Club competition is the Men’s Singles Club Championship. We are looking forward to a fully subscribed roster for this one, so if you haven’t signed up for it already, gents, please do so. Thank you to all of you who make this program special. Looking forward to creating more lasting moments with you all.

Warm regards, Brian Lozano Croquet Director

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