Autumn work on the croquet lawns

Autumn work started this week on the croquet lawns with the contractor planning to seed and top dress after fungicide has been applied. In order to allow the grass seed time to germinate, all the croquet lawns will be closed for play for about 3 to 6 weeks. The length of time very much depends on the weather in October. It is planned that one or two smaller “winter lawns” will then be set up which can be used through the winter months when weather permits.

The GC All-England Handicap Final (Advantage GC) 2023

 

For the first ever national Croquet Advantage final in the UK, fourteen finalists from the north (Ashby), south (Ryde), east (Maldon) and west (Glamorgan) and all points in between, assembled promptly at Ryde LTCC on a sunny September morning.

Players’ handicaps ranged from 4 to 10, causing starting scores to extend from the familiar 0 : 0 to -1 : 2. The tournament lasted 2 days with all playing all – a total of 91 matches.

By the end of day one Walter Hall (Maldon) was the only undefeated player with 7 wins, followed by four players on 5, Nigel Balchin (Glamorgan), Paul Green (Sussex), Jonathan Haslam (Dulwich) and Dee McKibbin (Phyllis Court).

Walter’s winning streak continued uninterrupted on Sunday, and at lunchtime he was 3 wins clear of his nearest rivals Dee and Anne Dennis (Watford), making a close finish seem unlikely. However, the players had other ideas; after suffering two consecutive 6 – 7 defeats, and with one round left to play, Walter found himself just one win ahead of Dee and two ahead of Nigel and Anne.

The manager’s serendipity decreed that Walter and Dee would play each other to reveal the final denouement. Walter’s magic touch returned with a 7 – 5 victory and Nigel, unbeaten in his final three games, swept into second place on points over Dee, with Anne finishing fourth.

Walter Hall being presented with the trophy by Richard Carline 

 

Photos: Roy Tillcock and Andrew Larpent

 

Junior Summer Camps

Summer holidays are here!   Keep your children busy and entertained at one of our Junior Tennis Camps.   Contact Melissa O’Riain on 07786486290 to reserve a space

Open Day – 8th July 2023

RLTCC will be holding an Open Day on Saturday 8th July from 11am to 2pm.   Non members are welcome to come along and try their hand at tennis, croquet, petanque and pickle ball.

A special 50% discount on first year subscription fees will be available to anyone who joins the club on that day.2023 Open Day.docx

SCF Solstice GC Doubles Tournament June 4th 2023

Southern Croquet Federation Solstice GC Doubles Tournament

On Sunday June 4th 2023, Ryde had the pleasure of hosting this doubles competition on a lovely sunny day with a gentle breeze. There were 8 pairs of entrants, four from the “North Island” and four from the Island. Combined handicaps varied from the allowed minimum of 6 up to 24.

The preliminary rounds consisted of two blocks of four, all-play-all 13-point games, and these results determined seeding for the Knockout rounds, which took place after lunch. Unexpectedly the top seeds both fell at the first hurdle, leaving the way clear for a North v South final between the two second seeds Johannes & Mark Hamann (East Dorset) and Joan Grove & Jim O’Keeffe (RLTCC).

 

A close final ended with a 7 – 5 victory for the oldest pair in the competition, Joan Grove & Jim O’Keeffe.

 

 

B-level and C-level Croquet tournaments May 2023

B-level and C-level tournaments

In May 2023 Ryde Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club hosted the first rounds of two CA tournaments, a ‘B’ Series Competition (for players with handicaps between 3 and 6), and a ‘C’ Series Competition (for players with handicaps of 7 and over).

B-level winner Andy Jones from Guildford with Vernon Gibbs,  Ryde Croquet Chair

The ‘B’ Series Competition was contested by 16 players, 11 coming  from mainland clubs, including two who had travelled from Chester. The tournament format was 4 blocks of 4, with the best two in each block progressing to the quarter finals.

The final saw Andy Jones from Phyllis Court, Henley, beating Marian Manning from Colchester.

Ryde players Debbie Haynes and Nick Westmore reached the semi-finals; the Plate Competition was won by Steve Haynes of Ryde in a tight finish against Bernie Phillips of Guildford.

The ‘C’ Level Competition was also contested by 16 players and  in a well fought final match Ron Gould from Ryde beat Hilary Bird of Guildford 7-5; Ron then went forward to the National ‘C’ Level final on the mainland in September.

Junior Tennis Tournament

The next junior tennis tournament will take place on the 27th May 2023.  There is plenty of time to get those keen young tennis players involved.

Contact either David Fothergill on 07703891266 or Carrie Bateman on 07855 796569 for further information about the tournament on our Saturday morning junior coaching sessions.

Auction of Promises – 26th May 2023

Our Auction of Promises event is now sold out but if you’d like to submit a bid for one of the fantastic Promises on offer then please submit a sealed bid in advance of the day.

Simply provide the following information on a piece of paper and post it in the club post box situated on the walkway up to the clubhouse.

Name:

Contact details:

Lot number:

Title of bid:

Minimum bid:

Maximum bid:

If you are successful, we will contact you with all necessary details.

A copy of the catalogue of can be found here