Croquet

The game of croquet started in England in the 19th century and quickly made its way across the Atlantic to America. Croquet is a game played on lawns with lightweight equipment, 9 wickets, 2 stakes, and the course is laid out in a traditional double diamond shape. I remember playing croquet growing up in my family; we played in our backyard and always had fun. We were constantly trying to knock the opponent's balls off the course.

The wickets are metal or wire pieces that look like miniature arches and are located throughout the croquet course. You must move your ball along the course and hit it through the various croquet wickets. You eventually win the game by being pegged out which means your ball has hit the finishing stake. Other croquet equipment includes the mallets, balls, and flags. We will discuss those below.

A standard croquet mallet weighs 3 lbs and has a 36-inch shaft with a 9-11 inch head length. The mallet shaft should be lightweight with all the weight centered in the head. Modern mallet shafts are made of fiberglass, carbon fiber, or wood and the face of the mallet are composed of metal or hard plastic. The croquet balls are blue, black, red and yellow. Croquet is a great outdoor game that you can play individually or as a team.

With many homes being built today that have little or no yard, the game of croquet may not thrive as well as did in the 1970s' and 1980's. Even if you have to take your croquet set to a park to play, we recommend getting the family out of the house and enjoying a classic lawn game. CroquetAmerica.com is the official website for the United States Croquet Association and is a comprehensive guide to the sport and the game.