HAVING completed this year’s very successful early season Beginner’s Course, several newcomers to the fascinating game of croquet have joined Camerton and Peasedown Croquet Club.

Every spring the club runs a beginners course consisting of five afternoons of skills and tactics training from the club’s fully qualified coaches.

The first session is always free and the nominal fee for the other four sessions is deducted from the membership fee if the new player joins the club. 

Membership gives access to the club’s four full-sized croquet lawns and to their new clubhouse for 12 months of both summer and winter play. Roll-up sessions are for Golf Croquet, both singles and doubles, on Saturdays, Sundays, Mondays and Thursdays and for Association Croquet on Wednesday mornings. 

League matches are played against other local clubs in the South West Federation of Croquet Clubs. In the Handicapped Leagues novice players receive extra shots when playing against more experienced players.

And it is not just about the croquet; CPCC holds regular social events, quiz evenings, barbecues and the like throughout the year, providing members with a chance to make new friends with similar interests.

In the five coaching sessions of the Beginners Course the new players were taught the basic shots of croquet and on their first afternoon they had mastered these skills sufficiently well to play a game of Golf Croquet. 

On subsequent afternoon training sessions they improved their basic shots, honing their ability to send their ball accurately on a line and to a precise length; they learned more advanced strokes and more advanced tactics. Golf croquet is often likened to ‘playing chess on grass’.

The new members joining the club from the April Beginner’s Course will be quickly introduced to club afternoons and some will play a key part in the club’s upcoming Open Day on Saturday, May 18. The Open Day will be part of the Croquet England’s National Croquet Week.

On May 18 Camerton and Peasedown CC will be open from 10.00am until 4.00pm to welcome anyone interested in the game; introductory sessions will be offered free to both adults and accompanied children.

The club is situated in Whitebrook Lane in Peasedown, BA2 8LD; the entrance to the lawns is through the Peasedown Cricket Club grounds. No advanced booking is necessary for the Open Day – just roll up and join in; there will be someone on the gate to welcome you and direct you to the croquet lawns.