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 The largest public croquet club in the US welcomes you!
Founded in 2000 by Jackie Jones, for many years the leading female croquet player in the USA, Sarasota County Croquet Club is growing and thriving nearly 20 years later with the vital ongoing support of Sarasota County and the city of Venice. Come join us!


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When Jackie and Fred Jones moved from Newport RI to Venice, FL, they convinced the developer at Waterford to pay half the cost of a croquet lawn. Jackie and Fred started playing and teaching at Waterford and from that humble beginning, in the early 1990s, the Sarasota County Croquet Club was born. In the early 2000s, Jackie convinced local government officials to enter a joint venture with the newly formed club to use some “dead space” in Wellfield Park to build croquet courts on in Wellfield Park but have the county maintain it.

Now, almost 20 years later, the Sarasota County Croquet Club is completing its second major expansion. Soon, we will have 7 full-sized courts. We are the largest public croquet club in the country and, one of the largest croquet clubs in the United States. We are the site of numerous national competitions and this year, our first international competition. We remain true to Jackie’s original social values: For her, the social aspect of croquet is the glue that binds the club together. For many of our members, the club is the center of their social lives. For others, it is the venue at which they have achieved national recognition for their croquet skills. We also actively support local youth programs and teach croquet to the next generation of players. We are not a country club with 1 or 2 courts. We are a club dedicated to croquet and to promoting an active, healthy lifestyle for members of the community which we serve.

Even though the members support the maintenance of the facility, we remain open to the public one or two days per week and give free instruction to guests and all our members. Our membership, more than 260, is drawn from the local area as well as all over the US and world.

As a public club, we have a strong culture of volunteerism. To keep dues low, we ask everyone to volunteer in a way that they can.


SEE YOU ON THE CROQUET COURTS SOON


Volunteers

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Volunteers

Our club runs on volunteers. We are not a country club with a paid staff which sets up courts and waits on its members.

We estimate that our volunteers put in 6000 or more hours every year serving our club through their volunteer efforts. That translates to the equivalent of three full-time employees. If we were to hire three full-time employees, our dues would soar to over $1000 per member per year. Dues of that level would drastically change the nature of our club.

We have an employee to do our heaviest chores. But we need everyone to pitch in.

On December 12, we honored the volunteers who have served our club through its 25-year history. Going forward, we plan to honor our volunteers on a yearly basis with an annual Volunteer Appreciation Day which is held during Volunteer Appreciation Week in April. Our first event is planned for April 2024.

Chris Smith and Kathleen Skoog did a fantastic job organizing our first Volunteer Appreciation Day. Mark Claff, Jon Ayers, Michael Sarback and Dean Ricci were recognized for contributions to our club which were extraordinary. You will see their special gold name tags. Please thank them for everything they have done.


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Solomon Trophy
The Solomon Trophy is one of the oldest and most prestigious Association Laws croquet tournaments. We are honored to host this event in 2023 at the Sarasota County Croquet Club.

The Solomon Trophy event is held every 2-3 years. The venue alternates between the US and UK. This is the first time the event has been held in Sarasota and we are very honored to have been selected to host the event.

John Solomon was a consumate gentleman. He dominated English croquet for years. He is perhaps best known a single-handed win in the 1972 Open Doubles Championship where he peeled his absent partner's ball through all 12 hoops – twice.

John led the Hurlingham Club team to the US in 1967 to play the Westhampton Mallet Club team. His advice to the late John Osborn led to the formation of the US Croquet Association in 1981.

The first match between the US and UK teams was held in Nottingham in 1985. The next meeting between the two teams was held in 1988. This was the first time the meeting between the two teams was called the Solomon Trophy event in honor of John's contributions to the sport of croquet.
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Construction
Upcoming Events
Upcoming Events

Teamwork!
We met our $360,000 goal for our club improvement campaign which was matched by generous contributions from Sarasota County and the City of Venice

We thank each of you who have so generously donated to the Sarasota County Croquet Club. Our renovations should be completed by the end of the summer.


Watch for our Grand Opening this Fall



 

 

How To Find Us

Our courts are located at 1420 Lucaya Ave., Venice, Florida, at the intersection of Pinebrook Road (off Venice Ave.) and Lucaya Avenue, in Wellfield Park, two miles South of the exit-195 (Laurel Road) on  I-75.  

Click Here For A Map


Affordable Membership
With six categories of membership, choose the one that fits you. Annual club membership fee is $395 per person which includes membership to the the United States Croquet Association (USCA). Trial (monthly) $150, weekly $90, social $10, and summer $100 (May 1-Sept. 30) memberships are available.  A non-resident membership (residing over 60 miles away) $240, and Annual Legacy membership $356 membership are also available by contacting the membership chair at: ellen@goldener.net.

Members can participate in free clinics, group and open play 7 days a week. The club holds several USCA sanctioned invitational tournaments during the year, which draw some of the top players from all over the country. Club Singles and Doubles Championships are held as well as several social tournaments. A monthly potluck dinner at venues or at a member's home are always well attended.



FREE INSTRUCTION
Even though our members support the maintenance of the facility, we remain open to the pubic one or two days per week including free instruction.

On Tuesday mornings at 9:30 AM (8:30 AM in the summer), any non-member can come to the club and  participate in free instruction and play social golf croquet in the afternoon. Non-members may come twice for free and twice for an additional $20 per visit. After that, we ask non-members to join. If you are still undecided, we have weekly and trial (one month) memberships. 
TOURNAMENTS
Each year SCCC hosts several tournaments during the active season (October - May).  Click on our event calendar for the complete schedule

SOCIAL EVENTS
As a very active club, we have monthly social events as well as a daily play and instruction schedule.

Contact Info:

Jim Coling
43seadog@gmail.com
703-887-7236