Croquet - Chess on grass

Croquet is a sport that involves hitting balls with a mallet through hoops embedded in a grass playing court. Croquet is popularly believed to be viciously competitive. This may derive from the fact that (unlike in golf) players will often attempt to move their opponents' balls to unfavorable positions. However, purely negative play is rarely a winning strategy: successful players (in all versions other than golf croquet) will use all four balls to set up a break for themselves, rather than simply making the game as difficult as possible for their opponents. At championship-standard association croquet, players can often make all 26 points (13 for each ball) in two turns. Croquet (also known as "wickets" in the United States) is a sport played on grass in which the objective is to hit balls with a mallet through hoops embedded in the grass. There are many forms of Croquet - Association Croquet — an advanced game of croquet played at an international level involving four balls teamed in pairs, with both balls going through every hoop for one pair to win. Golf Croquet — a popular form of croquet in which each player takes a stroke, in turn, trying to hit a ball through the same hoop. Garden Croquet — this version of croquet is widely played in the UK, and is similar to association croquet. This version of the game is easy for beginners to learn. American Six-Wicket — The American rules version of croquet, another six-hoop game, is the dominant version of the game in the United States. This version has an emphasis on strategy. The major difference to association croquet is that a ball's "deadness" on other balls is carried over from turn to turn, until the ball has been "cleared" by scoring a wicket. Nine-Wicket Croquet — sometimes called "backyard croquet", this version is played mainly in North America, and is the game most recreational players in those countries call simply "croquet". There are nine wickets, two stakes, and up to six balls. The course is arranged in a double-diamond pattern, with one stake at each end of the course. Extreme Croquet — a variation on croquet similar to the croquet played in most backyards and gardens, however, there is no specific field dimensions or out-of-bounds, and played over novel terrain. Bicycle Croquet — A time limit of 10 seconds has to be met for every individual play. The players alternate strokes and are not allowed to touch the ground with any part of their body.