LEE'S SUMMIT, MO -- The MCA announced five winners for the 2014 MCA President's Awards at the beginning of the 2015 AGM Meeting on February 7, 2015:
OFF-THE-COURT: JODI ADAMS
Adams earned the Off-the-Court Award for her management of all MCA revenue and expenses during a record year for MCA revenue. The award also recognizes the work she did in 2013 to transition the MCA to a new bank account to accommodate a name change. Honorable Mention: Greg Adams for his work with Mahaffie Farmstead and Sunflower Wickets. Honorable Mention: Matt Griffith for planning and hosting the USCA Nine Wicket National Championship at Liberty Memorial in Kansas City, MO.
MOST IMPROVED PLAYER: BILL BERG
Honorable Mention: Jason Johnson
JUNIOR PLAYER OF THE YEAR: TAYLOR AIRRINGTON
ROOKIE OF THE YEAR: NATE BENZ
Honorable Mention: Taylor Airrington
GROUNDSKEEPER OF THE YEAR: BILL BERG Berg was awarded Groundskeeper of the year for his work in preparing the courts for the 2014 Kansas Challenge and for the opening of his nine wicket lawn at the Cleveland Croquet Club.
Also see: 2013 MCA President's Awards
LEAWOOD, KS -- The Midwest Croquet Association has confirmed that the third edition of the MCA Championship will be held on September 19, 2015. The MCA is still finalizing details for a venue and expect to make an announcement in February.
MCA President Dylan Goodwin also indicated that the event may also include play on Friday afternoon and evening to accommodate the six ball championship that runs alongside the event.
"With the accelerating growth in entries overall, the six-ball event really became an afterthought at the 2014 Championship," said Goodwin. "It's a fun segment and I think we want to build on it. We are going to look at some time on Friday first and then possibly Sunday."
LEE'S SUMMIT, MO -- The 2015 Midwest Croquet Association AGM will be held Saturday, February 7, 2015 in Lee's Summit, Missouri. Deborah and Ron Millican are hosting the event which will start at 11:00 a.m. The meeting is open to all members of the MCA. Lunch will be served during the meeting. Please RSVP to kccroquetclub@gmail.com if you plan to attend.
RANCHO MIRAGE, CA -- MCA members Matt Griffith and Steve Jackson travelled west this week for the 2014 USCA Golf Croquet Nationals in Rancho Mirage, California. Jackson partnered with California local Pat Dugan and they scored national title in first flight doubles with a 7-5, 7-4 win over Gary Neal and Richard Kennedy in the final (playoff bracket).
Jackson also made some noise in the first flight singles bracket as he gave favorite Michael Rumbin a real fight in a match that went three games but ultimately fell 5-7, 7-5, 6-7.
Griffith played at the champioship level in preparation for the upcoming WCF GC World Championships to be held in February in New Zealand. The event featured the toughest GC field it has seen in many years and had 36 total entrants. He was 3-6 in block play with notable wins over Leo McBride and Stephen Morgan. He was 1-2 in the plate event.
After a solid second year of MCA Nine Wicket Series play, MCA players and members made a lot of noise in USCA and club events in the postseason. Here's an update:
Matt Griffith and Paul Miller had a repeat of the Kansas City Open final on a much bigger stage as they fought through a tough field at the USCA Nine Wicket National Championship in Kansas City to battle in the title game. This time Paul Miller prevailed 24-15 to claim his first national championship. Miller also made a run at the doubles title as well with his partner Doug Moore from New York, but they came up short against defending doubles champions George Cochran and John Warlick in the final.
PARKVILLE, MO -- Nate Benz survived a field of nine to claim the Kansas City Open Silver Division title with a 10-8 win over Steve Jackson. The win was the third straight Silver title for Benz and should help extend his lead in the Silver Points race.
Benz and Jackson played a tight game for the full 50-minutes in front of a nice gallery on the Kactus Creek Croquet Club veranda which sits right up next to the court. Most of the Silver Division players stayed to watch the final and several of the Pro-Gold players came by to enjoy the action as well.
The USCA 9-Wicket Croquet website has posted part one of a two-part interview with MCA President Dylan Goodwin. You can read part one here:
LEAWOOD, KS -- For MCA members that have not signed up for 2014, a PDF form is now available. You have the option of mailing the form to the address included or emailing it to kccroquetclub@gmail.com. Remember that MCA membership entitles you to discounted MCA tournament fees as well as free entry into the MCA Championship for qualified players.
The form also includes the option to pre-pay for MCA tournaments. This is strictly for your convenience and it is perfectly acceptable to sign up for and pay for events as you go.
TOPEKA, KS -- MCA representatives Dylan Goodwin and Bill Berg travelled to Topeka on March 14 to meet with Frank Chaffin and Keath Allen regarding the development of a croquet club that would operate next to the Hy-Vee on Wanamaker Road.
Chaffin owns the internet radio station WREN based out of Topeka and he is interested in developing a club to provide a good interactive activity for families and friends in the area. WREN Radio would be the primary sponsor for the proposed club.
KANSAS CITY, MO -- The Midwest Croquet Association announced yesterday that the MCA Nine-Wicket Series will visit Tulsa, Oklahoma on Saturday, June 14. The event will be part of the season points series and was enthusiatically embraced by members of the Tulsa Croquet Club. The agreement was reached late Friday afternoon and more details are to follow.
"We are extremely pleased to add the event to the series," said MCA President Dylan Goodwin. "This truly gives the series a more regional feel and now we're excited to lock in a few dates in Kansas."
Goodwin indicated that the MCA was interested in four to five regular season events to precede the Championship event in September.
BELTON, MO -- Bill Berg reported yesterday that an agreement to hold the 2014 MCA Championship at Markey Park in Belton, MO with the Belton Parks and Recreation Department has been reached. The event will be held Saturday, September 13 and will be for the top qualifiers in the respective MCA Nine-Wicket Series points races. Players must be members to participate in the MCA Championship, but there is no entry fee.
The event will be one week prior to the USCA's Nine Wicket National Championship which is set for September 19-21 in the Kansas City area. The MCA Championship should provide a good warm-up for that event.
Behind the scenes, the MCA is also close to announcing another regular season event. The target for 2014 is four regular season events in addition to the MCA Championship.
2014 MCA SCHEDULE TO DATE
02/22--AGM (Kansas City)
05/17--T-Bone (Lee's Summit)
09/13--MCA Championship (Belton)
Detailed Schedule:
LEAWOOD, KS -- All feedback to date has indicated a preference to keep the MCA Championship on September 13 for 2014. This is the second weekend following Labor Day and the idea is to establish this as the annual target for the event.
All members are encouraged to provide feedback this week (kccroquetclub@gmail.com) as the the MCA would like to move forward on securing a venue and establishing the full season schedule.
With the announcement of USCA Nine-Wicket Nationals coming back to Kansas City September 19-21, the MCA Championship will likely need to move forward. A proposed date at this is Saturday, August 16.
All feedback to date has been that we should stick with the September 13 target. If you have an opinion, please get your feedback to Dylan Goodwin (kccroquetclub@gmail.com) soon as we would like to go ahead and secure a venue.
WEST PALM BEACH, FL -- MCA members Deborah and Ron Millican made the big trip to Florida in December to play in the USCA's Seniors Masters tournament held at the National Croquet Center in West Palm Beach, Florida. The couple tied for fifth in second flight singles for the Senior Division and tied for third in second flight doubles. Full standings are posted on Croquet Network:
http://croquet.ning.com/forum/topics/2013-seniors-masters-results
04/04
MCA AGM
Leawood, KS
05/02-03
Missouri Open (9W)
Lee's Summit, MO
07/10-12
US Golf Croquet Classic (GC)
Denver, CO
10/16-19
Houston Invitational (A6)
Houston, TX
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