Clouse Wins KC Invitational

PARKVILLE, MO -- MCA member Greg Clouse took first place at the 40th Edition of the Kansas City Invitational Tournament held this past Saturday in Parkville, MO. The event was six-ball (cutthroat) croquet. Overall, the MCA had three members in the final as Jodi Adams took fourth place and Ron Millican took sixth. Full results:

1. Greg Clouse 2. Brian Wolkey 3. Sandra Gruefe 4. Jodi Adams 5. Brian Mondt 6. Ron Millican 

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

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.

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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) 

Clouse Racks 'Em Up in Stilwell

Pro Division FinalistsStilwell, KS -- Greg Clouse rolled through the Stilwell Open with relative ease in the early going. Clouse took 32-9 and 32-8 wins in block play to take the number one overall seed in the Pro Division Playoff. In the semi-finals, he knocked out Paul Miller 29-12. In the championship game he survived a late attack by Dylan Goodwin to claim the Stilwell Open title with an 18-16 win. Goodwin as the three seed, had advanced with a tight 18-16 win over two-seed Ron Millican on his side of the bracket. Clouse, Goodwin and Millican were all 2-0 in block play.

PHOTO GALLERY | OFFICIAL SCORESHEET

The final between Goodwin and Clouse came down to last turns. Goodwin was first ball with red and cleared 11PW to pull within two wickets of Clouse. He failed to gain a foward rush on black and then made a key mistake in trying to roll black toward 13PW while taking red toward blue near 14PW. He ended up wired and tried to jump the 15PW for the roquet on blue but missed by a foot.

The easier solution would have been to leave black and go set yellow (dead on red) in front of its wicket (six). Yellow could have then wired black from blue.

In the Gold Division, playoff Debbie Millican started as the number one seed after coming up on the short end of the gross points tiebreaker among the 1-1 block players. Debbie beat newcomer Bill Berg 14-12 in the semi-finals for a berth in the championship game. As the three seed, Jason Johnson caught fire in the semi-final and took a 32-12 win over Carl Distefano who is also brand new to the sport. In the final, Johnson took the win over Debbie with a 23-12.

First and second place in both divisions received white baseball caps with the host Kansas City Croquet Club logo.

Standings in the MCA Nine-Wicket Points Series are being tabulated and will be posted when they are available.

FINAL ORDER

Gold Division FinalistsPro Division
1. Greg Clouse
2. Dylan Goodwin
3. Ron Millican
4. Paul Miller
5. Robert Fournier

Gold Division
1. Jason Johnson
2. Debbie Millican
3. Carl Distefano
4. Bill Berg

BLOCK GAME RESULTS

A Block
Greg Clouse 32-9 over Debbie Millican
Debbie Millican 23-14 over Jason Johnson
Greg Clouse 32-8 over Jason Johnson

B Block
Dylan Goodwin 23-7 over Bill Berg
Robert Fournier 20-7 over Bill Berg
Dylan Goodwin 18-13 over Robert Fournier

C Block
Paul Miller 26-19 over Carl Distefano
Ron Millican 23-14 over Carl Distefano
Ron Millican 20-16 over Paul Miller

PRO DIVISION PLAYOFFS

Wildcard
#4 Paul Miller 23-21 over Robert Fournier

Semi-finals
#1 Greg Clouse 29-12 over #4 Paul Miller
#3 Dylan Goodwin 18-16 over #2 Ron Millican

Finals
#1 Greg Clouse 18-16 over #3 Dylan Goodwin

GOLD DIVISION PLAYOFFS

Semi-finals
#1 Debbie Millican 14-12 over #4 Bill Berg
#3 Jason Johnson 32-12 over #2 Carl Distefano

Finals
#2 Jason Johnson 23-13 over #1 Debbie Millican

Breeden is Kansas City's AC Champion

Parkville, MO -- Billy Bob Breeden came into the final day of the Kansas City Association Championship with a perfect 6-0 record and a three game lead. He finished the event with a 2-2 record on the final day and claimed the first annual KC AC title with an 8-2 record. Matt Smith and Dylan Goodwin finished with 6-4 records and Smith took second place by virtue of a 2-1 head-to-head advantage. Special thanks to Debbie Breeden who provided lunches to the four players for the second and third rounds. Also, thanks to Matt Griffith and the Kactus Creek Croquet Club for providing the venue and court. All indications are that the event will return for 2012.

FINAL STANDINGS
1. Billy Bob Breeden
2. Matt Smith
3. Dylan Goodwin
4. Matt Griffith

RESULTS

August 13

Matt Smith                  beat     Matt Griffith               +24
Billy Bob Breeden      beat     Dylan Goodwin          +9
Dylan  Goodwin         beat     Matt Griffith               +11
Billy Bob Breeden      beat     Matt Smith                  +17
Billy Bob Breeden      beat     Matt Griffith               +7
Dylan Goodwin          beat     Matt Smith                  +7

October 23

 Matt Smith                 beat     Matt Griffith               +5
 Billy Bob Breeden     beat     Dylan Goodwin          +6
 Billy Bob Breeden     beat     Matt Smith                  +3
 Dylan Goodwin         beat     Matt Griffith               +1
 Matt Smith                 beat     Dylan Goodwin          +7
 Billy Bob Breeden     beat     Matt Griffith               +3

November 4

 Billy Bob Breeden     beat     Matt Smith                  +4
 Dylan Goodwin         beat     Matt Griffith               +9
 Dylan Goodwin         beat     Billy Bob Breeden      +12
 Matt Smith                 beat     Matt Griffith               +2
 Billy Bob Breeden     beat     Matt Griffith               +6
 Matt Smith                 beat     Dylan Goodwin          +15
 Dylan Goodwin         beat     Matt Griffith               +1
 Matt Smith                 beat     Billy Bob Breeden      +25

MCA's Matt Smith Takes National Title

PHOTO GALLERY

SHAWNEE, KS -- The final day of playoff action at the Nine Wicket Nationals in Kansas City saw steady rain, but the players battled through. In championship singles, Matt Smith knocked of Billy Bob Breeden to make the final, while Matt Baird took out George Cochran to advance.

In the final match, Baird got the first break but stuffed number five. That let Smith set up his break which he ran all the way out to the penultimate wicket. He then turned it over to his partner and finished with a double peel to claim the 2011 singles national championship.

In doubles championship play, Matt Baird and Jeff Caldwell battled Billy Bob Breeden and Matt Griffith in the final. Baird and Caldwell took a tight match 32-25 to claim the doubles title.

In the first flight singles playoff, #4 seed Jason Cole knocked off #1 Greg Adams in the semifinals. In the other semi-final, #2 Barry Dupuy beat #4 Ron Millican to advance. Cole won the final over Dupuy to claim the first flight national championship.

Video report will be available later today.

UCM Tournament

Sixteen players played at the University of Central Missouri field on a warm April 9.  The format was high-low doubles and partners changed every game.  Evan Taylor and Annie Frisbie, members of the UCM croquet club, played their first tournament and really enjoyed the event and both played well.

Greg Clouse and Jodi Adams played great as partners and ended up winning the tournament.  Greg won in the championship flight and Jodi won in first flight.

I would like to thank eveyone for the support and look forward to hosting more tournaments in Warrensburg.

Matt Smith

Spring fling in Arkadelphia, AR

ARKADELPHIA, AR -- Results of the nine-wicket croquet tournament in Arkadelphia hosted by the Royal Knights Croquet Club of Arkadelphia, Arkansas are now in:

Championship: George Cochran 1st, Matt Griffith 2nd, Joe Franz and Matt Baird 3rd, Billy Bob Breeden, Jeff Caldwell, Pat Garner, Stu Brodsky 4th, Bob Bozeman and Glen Taylor 5th.

First flight: Rob Franks 1st, Ralph Bozeman 2nd, Lee Reed 3rd, Barry Dupuy 4th, Carl Jarret, Debbie Breeden, Scott Kennedy, Ron Millican 4th, Debbie Millican 5th.

They had a great tournament with the players from Arkansas, Missouri, Louisiana, Oklahoma. The Royal Knights would like thank every one for making this a successful and fun tournament.

George Cochran only had one loss to Billy Bob Breeden and Matt Griffith only lost the one game to Cochran.

Nine Wicket National Championship

SHAWNEE, KS -- Sunday wrapped up the 9W Singles & Doubles Championship.

George Cochran defeated Bill Martin in Singles Championship 28-20 and Matt Smith & Nick Zink defeated Matt Baird and Jeff Caldwell in Doubles Championship 32-25.

***

Sunday will wrap up the The 9W singles Championship between George Cochran & Bill Martin and the semi finals championship doubles. Matt Smith & Nick Zink vs Matt Griffith & Billy Bob Breeden & Matt Baird, Jeff Caldwell vs Geroge Cochran & Don Oakley

Todays winners for the 9W National First Flight Doubles was Greg Adams & Troy White over Ron & Deborah Millican. 

Billy Bob Breeden loses heartbreaker to Bill Martin in Semi-Finals 24-23. George Cochran wins over Nick Zink in Semi-Finals. George Cochran & Bill Martin will square off  tomorrow afternoon to decide who will be crowned 9W National Champion. Doubles competition will start tomorrow morning at 8 am sharpe.

Tulsa Fall Classic

TULSA, OK -- Matt Smith Wins Tulsa Classic 15 - 9 over Matt Baird in Championship division. Matt Griffith also place 3rd in championship division. In the First Flight division Don Brooks took 2nd in singles & in Second Flight singles Jodi Adams took 2nd & Deborah Millican took 3rd place. In Championship Doubles action Matt Smith & Art Parsells took 2nd & Billy Bob Breeden & Matt Griffith took 3rd. In First Flight Doubles Greg Adams & Wendell Thompson took 2nd place. All in all Missouri players played very well.

Brad Clouse Wins 2010 Lee's Summit Tourney

Brad Clouse (click photo to see gallery)LEE'S SUMMIT, MO -- Twelve players braved a day of steady, cold rain at Hartman Park in Lee's Summit yesterday to kick off the 2010 MCA croquet season. Brad Clouse emerged as the first place winner of the Waterford Doubles nine-wicket event with a perfect 5-0 record.

Nick Zink claimed second place and Johnny Nichol grabbed third place, but the main story was one of survival. Umbrellas, rain suits and a change clothes were essential for the event as the rain never quit. The time limit games were shortened to 40 minutes after lunch to speed things along. Lunch was a big highlight as Ron and Debbie Millican funded a catered BBQ lunch that was fantastic and gave the players a chance to huddle near the heated food trays.

Despite the wet atmosphere, Hartman Park appeared to be a great facility for the event and players discussed the potential of hosting the event there again in 2011.

Link to Photo Gallery

Full Standings:
01. Brad Clouse
02. Nick Zink
03. Johnny Nichol
04. Matt Smith
05. Jason Johnson
06. Ron Millican
07. Jodi Adams
08. Greg Adams
09. Harvey Clouse
10. Greg Clouse
11. Dylan Goodwin
12. Debra Millican

2010 Mahaffie Sunflower Wickets

OLATHE, KS -- The Missouri Croquet Association provided equipment and referees for the First Annual Mahaffie Sunflower Wickets golf croquet fundraiser on Saturday morning in Olathe, Kansas. The event was held on four fields on the Mahaffie Farmstead and had 16 doubles teams battling in a single elimination event that was completed in two hours.

After the croquet tournamant, a champagne brunch was catered by delish Catering of Olathe. Engraved mallets were presented to the first through fourth place teams. It was reported that the event raised $4000 and appeared to be very popular with the participants.

Results:

1st -- Brady Small/Tim McKee

2nd -- Marge Vogt/Fred Sherman

3rd -- Brad Cornell/Matt Holstin

4th -- John Bacon/Bob Montgomery

Full Photo Gallery

2010 Sunflower Wickets action