2013 MCA Championship: Pro Division Bracket

The match-ups and times are set for the Pro Division Championship Playoff to be held Saturdary, September 14 at Markey Park in in Belton, MO. The play-off is single-elimination. Lunch is not included, but there will be a gap provided for all players and there plenty of restaurant options near the facility. The event is free for qualified MCA members. Non-members that have qualified will simply need to join the MCA and can do that by paying the membership fee of $20 Saturday morning.

Quarterfinals - 8:30 a.m.
#1 Paul Miller vs #8 Jodi Adams
#4 Robert Fournier vs #5 Ron Millican
#3 Dylan Goodwin vs #6 Greg Adams
#2 Greg Clouse vs #7 Deborah Millican 

Semi-Finals - 9:45 a.m.
1-8 winner vs 4-5 winner
3-6 winner vs 2-7 winner

Pro Division Final - Noon

A six-ball (cut-throat) will run during this event as well. The first match in six ball will start at 10:00 a.m. and will include Bill Berg and Keith Berg. Debbie Millican will also be in this match if she is available. The rest of that match will be filled with losing players from the first round of the pro bracket. The second six ball match will be scheduled as players are available with the six-ball championship taking place at 2:45 p.m.

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2013 MCA Championship: Gold Division Bracket

The match-ups and times are set for the Gold Division Championship Playoff to be held Saturdary, September 14 at Markey Park in in Belton, MO. The play-off is single-elimination. Lunch is not included, but there will be a gap provided for all players and there are plenty of restaurant options near the facility. The event is free for qualified MCA members. Non-members that have qualified will simply need to join the MCA and can do that by paying the membership fee of $20 Saturday morning.

Wildcard - 9:45 a.m.
#4 Justin Marciniak vs #5 Jodi Adams

Semi-Finals - 11:00 a.m.
#1 Bill Berg vs Wildcard Winner
#2 Debbie Millican vs #3 Keith Berg

Gold Division Final - 1:30 p.m.

A six-ball (cut-throat) will run during this event as well. The first match in six ball will start at 10:00 a.m. and will include Bill Berg and Keith Berg. Debbie Millican will also be in this match if she is available. The rest of that match will be filled with losing players from the first round of the pro bracket. The second six ball match will be scheduled as players are available with the six-ball championship taking place at 3:00 p.m.

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MCA To Follow 2007 Edition 9W Rules

MCA players may have noted that the USCA updated the nine-wicket rulebook in mid-season. For consistency, the MCA will continue with the 2007 edition rules as played in the three previous events through the end of the 2013 season.

The new revisions made by the USCA will be evaluated by the board during the winter and a decision will be made as to whether or not we will follow the USCA's update or create a set of MCA Nine-Wicket Rules.

Link to the new USCA Nine-Wicket Rules:
http://www.croquetamerica.com/croquet/rules/backyard/ 

MCA Championship to Belton

The 2013 MCA Championship will be played at Markey Park in Belton, MO on Saturday, September 14. The event will feature a single-elimination tournament for the top eight finishers in the Pro Division and another single elimination bracket for the top finishers in the Gold Division. Seeds will be based on standings in the points race and invitations will sent this week to begin confirming the line-up.'

To ensure more than one game for a all players, the event will also feature a six-ball cut-throat tournament that will begin in the afternoon for players eliminated in the early rounds of each bracket. The initial thought was to run a doubles bracket, but six ball will provide a quicker option and also ties to the roots of the MCA and Kansas City Croquet.

Starting times will be announced once the line-ups have been set.

FREE FOR MEMBERS
The MCA Championship is a free tournament for MCA members. Non-members will simply be asked to join the MCA at the $20 membership rate in order to participate.

Miller Leads the Pro Division

With Saturday's win at the PeakVision Leawood Challenge, Paul Miller moves into the pole position for the MCA Nine-Wicket Series. The top eight for the Pro Division will be invited to the MCA Championship on September 14. The Pro Division singles championship will be a single elimination bracket and seeds are based on the current point rankings.

With her eight place position, Deborah Millican will have the opportunity to play in both the Pro bracket and the Gold Division tournament.

Rank	First	Last	GP	Wins	Losses	Total Wickets	Wicket Average
1	Paul	Miller	14	10	4	309	22.07
2	Greg	Clouse	13	9	4	282	21.69
3	Dylan	Goodwin	14	9	5	272	19.43
4	Robert	Fournier	13	7	6	261	20.08
5	Ron	Millican	12	6	6	235	19.58
6	Greg	Adams	8	3	5	133	16.63
7	Matt	Smith	4	4	0	103	25.75
8	Debbie	Millican	5	3	2	99	19.80
9	Jason	Johnson	5	1	4	91	18.20
10	Carl	Distefano	5	0	5	77	15.40
11	Jodi	Adams	4	0	4	66	16.50
12	Bill	Berg	5	1	4	55	11.00
13	Keith	Berg	3	0	3	41	13.67
14	S. Jason	Cole	3	1	2	40	13.33

Johnson Retains Lead in Gold Division

Jason Johnson held on to his lead in the Gold Division despite missing out on the Gold Final this past Saturday in Leawood, Kansas. Johnson is at 170 points, but that will have to hold as he will be unable to attend the MCA Championship in September. In the meantime, Bill Berg moved up to second place with 148 points, while Deborah Millican maintained third place with 141 points.

Rank	First	Last	GP	Wins	Losses	Total Wickets	Wicket Average
1	Jason	Johnson	8	6	2	170	21.25
2	Bill	Berg	9	5	4	148	16.44
3	Deborah	Millican	8	6	2	141	17.63
4	Keith	Berg	5	1	4	71	14.20
5	Justin	Marciniak	4	0	4	59	14.75
6	S. Jason	Cole	2	1	1	37	18.50
7	Carl	Distefano	2	0	2	22	11.00

PeakVision Leawood Challenge: Miller Begins Streak

Miller and Clouse in the Pro FinalLEAWOOD, KS -- Paul Miller took his second straight MCA tournament with a 28-16 win over Greg Clouse in the Pro Division Final of the PeakVision Leawood Challenge. In the Gold Division, Deborah Millican took the title with a 21-7 win over Bill Berg in the final.

PHOTO GALLERY | OFFICIAL SCORESHEET

In the Pro Division final, Clouse looked to be in good shape as he ran his break through the turn until he croqueted a ball out of bounds near 11PW from the turn stake area with a hand shot. That's right, Clouse got enough power on the nine-wicket style hand stop shot to travel at least 30 feet. Of course, the game was held on court two which was the fastest of the three courts, and in this case it was costly for Clouse.

He did have a chance later in the game, but he roqueted his partner to work on an attack toward blue with his red ball. Unfortunately, he was dead on blue and in an odd twist Miller mentioned it to him before he actually hit the blue ball. Still, it was a damaging error and it helped Miller snatch control of the game.

Not only was it Miller's second straight tourney win, but he's also got a nine-game winning streak going as he was a perfect 6-0 in the event.

Gold FinalistsGold Final Experiences Sequence Issues

The Gold Division Final between Berg and Millican will mainly be remembered for a lengthy delay due to a potential out of sequence play midway through the game. Unfortunately, although something appeared to be out of whack, neither player could piece together the actual sequence error.

Play had to continue as the balls lay. It seemed to fire up Millican though as she went on a tear shortly after to roll to a 21-7 win. Berg was the only player to work in six games during the event so fatigue could have also been a factor.

Prize Package

Click to Find Out More About PeakVision's SD7 ModelKansas City Croquet Club member Paul Moore and CEO/Founder of PeakVision Sports came through with a great set of prizes. Finalists in both divisions were each awarded a of pair PeakVision Sunglasses.

Pro Playoff Results

ROUND ONE
#3 Robert Fournier over #6 Greg Adams 27-15
#4 Ron Millican over #5 Dylan Goodwin 21-17 

SEMI-FINALS
#2 Greg Clouse over #3 Robert Fournier 22-21
#1 Paul Miller over #4 Ron Millican 28-14

FINAL
#1 Paul Miller over #2 Greg Clouse 28-16

Gold Playoff Results

ROUND ONE
#4 S. Jason Cole over #5 Keith Berg 23-12
#3 Bill Berg over #6 Carl Distefano 10

SEMI-FINALS
#1 Deborah Millican over #4 S. Jason Cole 22-14
#3 Bill Berg over #2 Jason Johnson 15-11

FINAL
#1 Deborah Millican over #3 Bill Berg 21-7

PeakVision Leawood Challenge Matchups

The PeakVision Leawood Challenge will be run as an open random draw for three rounds. The first round matchups are listed below and feature high vs low players (matchups made via a random number generator - random.org). The concept is that you will play your way to the appropriate bracket. Weaker players will encounter a tough first matchup, but should filter to their appropriate level of play after round one.

Some players are in the Gold Division points chase and if they qualify for the Pro Bracket, they will be allowed to opt out in order to play in the Gold bracket. Points earned in the first three rounds will apply to the Pro Points race.

PeakVision Leawood Challenge
Round One -- 8:30 a.m.

Greg Adams vs Carl Distefano
Ron Millican vs Keith Berg
Greg Clouse vs Bill Berg
Robert Fournier vs S. Jason Cole
Paul Miller vs Jason Johnson
Dylan Goodwin vs Deborah Millican

Round Two -- 9:45 a.m.

Lunch 11:00 a.m.

Round Three -- Noon

Playoffs -- 1:15, 2:30, 3:45

 

PeakVision Sponsorship for Leawood MCA Event

PeakVision Sunglasses has signed on as the official sponsor for Saturday's Leawood Challenge. The company designs sunglasses optimized for golf and that translates perfectly to croquet. PeakVision, which is based in Overland Park, will be covering the prizes for both the Pro Division and Gold Division as part of their sponsorship. You can learn more about PeakVision Sunglasses at peakvisionsports.com, but here's a bit of a primer:

The science behind PeakVision’s hybrid, Dual-Zone lens technology is based on the principal that it is impossible for a solid-tint sunglass lens to optimize your vision for both the bright sky AND the turf.  When light-meter measurements are taken on the golf course, the lighting extremes range from 82,732 LUX for the sky down to only 3,122 LUX for the grass turf.  The lighting for ground-based viewing is less than 4% of the ambient light in the sky.

PeakVision Leawood Challenge - Saturday, July 20

Official Sponsor of the Leawood ChallengeLEAWOOD CHALLENGE CONFIRMED - SATURDAY, JULY 20

Hopefully, everyone kept this on their calendar. We have confirmed a location for the next event in the Nine-Wicket Series - The Leawood Challenge. The event will be held at the Mission Trail Elementary Soccer Field at the corner of 133rd St and Mission in Leawood, Kansas. More details:

Start time: 8:30 a.m.

Entry: $20 regular entry or $10 for MCA Members

Format: Singles 9W. Divisions dependent on number of entries.

Lunch: Lunch is not included, but we will give a longer lunch gap and restaurants are located nearby at 133rd and State Line and also on 135th Street.

HOW TO ENTER:  Contact is Dylan at kccroquetclub@gmail.com. Please indicate preferred division.

JOIN THE MCA

MCA members enjoy discounts on entry fees for most of the MCA Nine-WIcket Series events and free entry to the MCA Championship on September 14 for players that qualify. Click here for more details on MCA membership.

Update on 2013-07-13 03:20 by MCA Website Admin

Players committed to date:

PRO
Dylan Goodwin
Ron Millican
Greg Adams
Paul Miller
Greg Clouse 

GOLD
Bill Berg
Carl Distefano
Keith Berg
Debbie Millican 

Update on 2013-07-18 02:17 by MCA Website Admin

PRO
Dylan Goodwin
Ron Millican
Greg Adams
Paul Miller
Greg Clouse
Robert Fournier
Jason Johnson 

GOLD
Bill Berg
Carl Distefano
Keith Berg
Debbie Millican
S. Jason Cole 

Goodwin Jumps Ahead in the Pro Division

With a win over Greg Clouse in the quarterfinals at Lee's Summit, Dylan Goodwin was able to leapfrog Clouse in the standings for the overall lead. Goodwin now has a 199 points in 10 games. Paul Miller stayed in second with 171 points in nine games, but is closer to the top position. Clouse follows closely in third place with 166 points. We now know that 30 or 40 points is easily made up in this race, so that means Robert Fournier (145) and Ron Millican (135) are still in contention. The race is on.

Rank	First	Last	GP	Wins	Losses	Total Wickets	Wicket Average
1	Dylan	Goodwin	10	7	3	199	19.90
2	Paul	Miller	9	5	4	171	19.00
3	Greg	Clouse	8	5	3	166	20.75
4	Robert	Fournier	8	4	4	145	18.13
5	Ron	Millican	7	3	4	135	19.29
6	Matt	Smith	4	4	0	103	25.75
7	Greg	Adams	4	2	2	66	16.50
8	Jodi	Adams	4	0	4	66	16.50
9	Carl	Distefano	2	0	2	33	16.50
10	Debbie	Millican	2	1	1	32	16.00
11	Jason	Johnson	2	0	2	22	11.00
12	Bill	Berg	2	0	2	14	7.00

Update on 2013-07-13 02:29 by MCA Website Admin

The Pro Standings and standings in this post have been updated. For some reason, the 12th place player, Bill Berg, was cut off.

Johnson Extends Lead in the Gold Division

Jason Johnson extended his lead in the Gold Division with his second title of the year at Lee's Summit this past Saturday. Bill Berg utilized his extra game in the championship to move into second place on the list. Full standings:

Rank	First	Last	GP	Wins	Losses	Total Wickets	Wicket Average
1	Jason	Johnson	7	6	1	159	22.71
2	Bill	Berg	6	3	3	103	17.17
3	Deborah	Millican	6	4	2	98	16.33
4	Keith	Berg	4	1	3	59	14.75
5	Justin	Marciniak	4	0	4	59	14.75
6	Carl	Distefano	1	0	1	12	12.00

It's Miller Time

Paul Miller won the Pro Division

Lee's Summit, MO - Paul Miller of El Dorado, Kansas battled through a full day of Pro Division action at the Lee's Summit T-Bone Tournament in Lee's Summit, MO to win the overall title. He beat Dylan Goodwin in 17-15 in the final.

PHOTO GALLERY | OFFICIAL SCORESHEET

The Pro Division had eight players and utilized three rounds of a random draw that matched up players with equal wins in each round. Matt Smith took the top seed out of the draw with a 3-0 record. He defeated Jodi Adams in round one of the playoff then withdrew. Miller was the five seed on that side of the bracket and advanced with an 18-17 win over four seed Greg Adams. The withdrawal of Smith gave Miller a bye to the championship.

On the other side of the bracket, Goodwin was the two seed, based on a 2-1 record with the loss being 22-21 nail-biter against Matt Smith. He played Greg Clouse in round one, after finishing the draw with a narrow 16-15 win over Clouse. The playoff went a little better as Goodwin won 28-9. Robert Fournier was the three seed and defeated six seed Ron Millican 22-17 to advance to the semi-finals against Goodwin.

Click for full photo galleryFournier had a last turns opportunity after going cross court to roquet his own corner ball resting in corner two. He tried a long peel at the 10PW that failed and left himself with a tough hoop shot and Goodwin prevailed 21-18. 

In the final, Miller took early control when he stole an early break from Goodwin by placing his blue ball between red and black near wicket wicket three. Red was dead on blue and it reversed the set up and made a break for Miller.

Goodwin picked his way around the court to get back into the game and during last turns set a break for red near the 11PW that could have been the winner, but he left an opportunity for Miller to hit yellow. He ricocheted off the center wicket but did indeed hit yellow and gave red a tough hit-in on black back near the turning steak. Goodwin missed and Miller celebrated the 17-15 win. 

JOHSON WINS GOLD
In the Gold Division, Jason Johnson now has a two-tourney win streak going as he defeated Bill Berg 18-10 in the final to take the title. The win gave Johnson a chance to avenge a 20-16 loss to Berg earlier in the day.

FINAL ORDER

Pro Division

1. Paul Miller (3-2)
2. Dylan Goodwin (4-2)
3. Matt Smith (4-0)
4. Robert Fournier (3-2)
5. Greg Adams (2-2)
6. Ron Millican (1-3)
7. Greg Clouse (1-3)
8. Jodi Adams (0-4)

Gold Division

1. Jason Johnson (4-1)
2. Bill Berg (3-2)
3. Deborah Millican (3-1)
4. Keith Berg (1-3)
5. Justin Marciniak (0-4) 

Lee's Summit T-Bone Tournament-Pro Division Schedule

The Pro Division has eight players and will be a random draw for three rounds based on matching players to the win level. To help avoid repeat matchups, round one was randomly drawn as hi vs low based subjective rankings. Random.org was used to generate the random numbers to set the first round matchups. A die will be used to set the matchups for rounds two and three. All players will advance to the playoff and will be seeded according to record. Tie-breaker is head-to-head, gross points, net points, stake lag.

ROUND 1 - 9:00 a.m.
Dylan Goodwin vs Jodi Adams
Greg Adams vs Paul Miller
Matt Smith vs Ron Millican
Greg Clouse vs Robert Fournier

Round 2 - 10:15 a.m.

Lunch 11:15-12:00

Round 3 - Noon

Quarterfinals - 1:15 p.m.

Semi-finals - 2:30 p.m.

Championship - 3:45 p.m. 

Lee's Summit T-Bone Tournament-Gold Division Schedule

ROUND 1 - 9:00 a.m.

Keith Berg vs Bill Berg

Jason Johnson vs Deborah Millican

Bye: Justin Marciniak

ROUND 2 - 10:15 a.m.

Jason Johnson vs Bill Berg

Deborah Millican vs Justin Marciniak

Bye: Keith Berg

ROUND 3 - Noon

Justin Marciniak vs Bill Berg

Jason Johnson vs Keith Berg

Bye: Deborah Millican

ROUND 4 - 1:15 p.m.

Justin Marciniak vs Jason Johnson

Deborah Millican vs Keith Berg

Bye: Bill Berg

ROUND 5 - 2:30 p.m.

Justin Marciniak vs Keith Berg

Deborah Millican vs Bill Berg

Bye: Jason Johnson

Gold Championship - 3:45 p.m.

1st and 2nd place play in this game

Gold 3rd Place - 3:45 p.m.

Optional for 3rd and 4th place players (points do not count for the Gold Race)

Lee's Summit Roster Update

As we approach the second leg of the MCA Nine-Wicket Series with the Lee's Summit T-Bone Tournament this Saturday, twelve players have signed up for action. First round matchups will be announced on Thursday night, but here is the current roster with ranking. Check back for updates:

Committed:
1. Matt Smith
2. Greg Clouse
3. Dylan Goodwin
4. Greg Adams
5. Ron Millican
6. Paul Miller
7. Robert Fournier
8. Jodi Adams
9. Jason Johnson
10. Deborah Millican
11. Bill Berg
12. Keith Berg

Interest:
Justin Marciniak

Update on 2013-06-06 02:14 by MCA Website Admin

Justin Marciniak has indicated that he is a strong verbal. He would slot in as number 12 in the rankings.

Bill Berg Photos From Stilwell Open

Find more photos like this on Croquet Network

Commanding Lead for Clouse in the Pro Division

Rank	First	Last	GP	Wins	Losses	Total Wickets	Wicket Average
1	Greg	Clouse	4	4	0	111	27.75
2	Paul	Miller	4	2	2	77	19.25
3	Dylan	Goodwin	4	3	1	75	18.75
4	Ron	Millican	3	2	1	59	19.67
5	Robert	Fournier	3	1	2	54	18.00
6	Carl	Distefano	2	0	2	33	16.50
7	Debbie	Millican	2	1	1	32	16.00
8	Jason	Johnson	2	0	2	22	11.00
9	Bill	Berg	2	0	2	14	7.00

Pro Division points are earned from Pro Division playoff games and open/Pro Division block games. Due to open block games, it is possible for Gold Division players to earn points in both the Pro Division and the Gold Division. It is also possible for a Gold Division player to qualify for the MCA Championship in both or all divisions.

Johnson Leads MCA Gold Division

Rank	First	Last	GP	Wins	Losses	Total Wickets	Wicket Average
1	Jason	Johnson	2	2	0	55	27.50
2	Debbie	Millican	2	1	1	27	13.50
3	Carl	Distefano	1	0	1	12	12.00
4	Bill	Berg	1	0	1	12	12.00

Gold Division points are earned from Gold Division only games in either block or playoff games. Due to open block games, it is possible for Gold Division players to earn points in both the Pro Division and the Gold Division. It is also possible for a Gold Division player to qualify for the MCA Championship in both or all divisions.