Rose Gardens Croquet Club member Luke Francis says executing jump shots and long roquets gives him a buzz. "Winning is a massive bonus that helps the buzz last longer." Photo / Judith Lacy
“You miss 100 per cent of the shots you don’t take so bite off more than you can chew, then chew like heck.”
Croquet player Amy Gust lives by this saying.
Last season, Croquet New Zealand named her the most improved golf croquet player.
Gust started the 2022-23 season with a handicap of 12, but ended the season as a four.
She attributes her spectacular progress to the hard work she put in on and off the lawns and the help and encouragement from a wide range of people.
Gust is not a grandmother. In fact, the 17-year-old’s grandparents, Lyn and Selwyn Johnson, introduced her to the sport.
She is the head girl at Rangitīkei College and a member of Marton Croquet Club.
She is also an associate member of Rose Gardens Croquet Club in Palmerston North where the competition is better.
She debuted for New Zealand at the 2023 Under-21 Golf Croquet World Championship in the Bay of Plenty in February.
She had a “real mint” experience and came back jabbering her grandparents’ ears off.
“I was filled with nerves from head to toe but by the end of my time up north, it’s safe to say that it was one of the most cracker and surreal experiences out there.”
She enjoyed seeing how other countries play: Egypt has amazing players who don’t miss a thing.
Injuries halted Luke Francis’ rugby playing. A friend introduced him to croquet, which is not as physically demanding, and he is hooked.
Francis likes the positive vibes of the sport.
“It is only competitive if you make it competitive. People don’t really get frustrated at all.”
The 18-year-old is at Palmerston North Boys’ High School.
He was seventh in the national Under-21 Golf Croquet Championship in Ashburton in April.
Francis would love to be selected for the Under-21 Golf Croquet World Championship in Florida in 2025, as would Gust.
Lowering his handicap is important because it would give Francis a sense of progress and improvement that he finds motivating.
Golf croquet player Micki Tyler joined Rose Gardens in the late 1990s. She enjoys it as much as when she first started.
The only improvement would be year-round play.
Vince and Annabel Neall are founding members of Rose Gardens, which started 40 years ago.
The club also offers association croquet, a longer and more complex form of the game that features break play.
Its club days are Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday and Sunday, arrive by 12.40pm for a 1pm start.
The club is running have-a-go days on Wednesday, September 27, and Sunday, October 1, 10am-3pm. The club is in the carpark behind Cafe Esplanade.
It is also hosting a six-week business house competition on Tuesday evenings starting on October 17. Registration for teams of four is on October 10.
The club will provide the mallets and balls, but wear flat-soled shoes.
For more information ring Neil Stantiall on 027 207 7052 or email neil.g.stantiall@gmail.com.
On average, 18 people die every year in recreational craft incidents in New Zealand.