Rules Recap #5 - Roquet and Second Ball Goes Out

What happens if you roquet a ball and it stays in bounds but the roquet ball or your striker ball hits another ball and it goes out of bounds?

This question came up and the Kansas Challenge and the advisement there was incorrect. The USCA Nine-Wicket Out of Bounds rules is unclear on this scenario (Option 2B), so we must defer to the USCA Six-Wicket Rulebook. It is covered under Roquets - Rule 6.2 and essentially it indicates that if a strike causes any ball to go out of bounds during a turn, his or her turn ends. Item F under the rule refers to the situation:

f) If the striker roquets a ball out of bounds or the roqueted ball causes another ball to go out of bounds, the turn ends and the striker incurs no deadness, with balls replaced in bounds as required by rule 8.3.

Rules Recap #4 - Dead Ball Roquet Out of Bounds

For the Pro and Gold Divisions, what happens if I roquet a ball I am dead on, but it goes out of bounds?

This is just like hitting a dead ball that stays in bounds. The balls reset to the original positions and the turn ends. This is sometimes confused with not incurring deadness on a ball when you roquet it out of bounds. In that case, there is no deadness if the ball you roqueted goes out of bounds. 

Rules Recap #3 - Roquet A Ball on the Far Side the Wicket

In nine wicket croquet, if I have roqueted a ball that is just on the other side of the wicket I am for (0.5 inch of clearance to the other side), can I place my ball within nine inches in good scoring position on the proper side of the wicket and score the wicket? Or, when contact is made with the ball on the other side of the wicket, is it a dead ball fault and the balls reset?

You can make this play, but the key is that you must get your ball through that wicket despite contact with the "dead ball." If this shot is attempted and you make contact with the "dead ball" and do not score the wicket, it is a dead ball fault and the balls are reset to their original positions and the turn ends.

Rules Recap #2 - Wiring

What defines an open ball for nine wicket wiring?

An open ball must have at least a full ball width of open space on either side relative to a straight line from the striker ball. This confuses some people as the target ball may be completely visible, but a full shot means a ball could just nick the target ball on a roquet. For example, if a stanchion or dead ball is just an inch a way to the right of the ball the striker is open on, then the shot is not fully open.

Rules Recap #1 - Wicket and Stake

If a ball scores the seventh wicket and hits the turning stake in one stroke, is the player awarded two bonus shots?

Yes. We had this come up at the Lee's Summit event on May 17, 2014 and it was called wrong. However, if a ball scores the sixth and seventh wicket in one turn and also hits the stake, it is not three bonus shots. It would simply be two bonus shots. You are never allowed three bonus shots in nine wicket croquet.