Extreme Croquet - Rules

Rules

Due to its inherently anarchistic nature, extreme Croquet will forever be without a governing body (though legitimizing the sport on a national level has its benefits), meaning different societies play by necessarily disparate rules. Many organizations opt to list these on their websites, offering other groups a look at their own unique interpretation. Variations include the following:

• When one ball strikes another, the striker may choose to continue play as the strikee's ball.
• A player receives an extra stroke for passing through a second story of a wicket.
• A player may strike the ball with any part of the mallet, including a billiards-reminiscent style.
• The first player through the second wicket determines the direction of play.
• As each player reaches the starting post after clearing all wickets, he is "poison" and must declare his status to all players.
• A non-poison player can eliminate a poison player by sending the latter through a wicket.
• Passing through a wicket out of order is punished by sending the ball back to the previous post.
• Small children and dogs are legal obstacles, and if they interfere with the ball's placement, the player must still "play it where it lies."

The Richmond Extreme Croquet Group has these rules:

• Revert Rule: If a ball traverses its prior wicket in the opposite direction, this now becomes its current wicket; exceptions: (1) a rover cannot be reverted; (2) until the ball remakes that wicket, it cannot be reverted again
• Nosering Rule: Once per game, at the end of one's turn, one may move the ball exactly one mallet head, except not thru one's current wicket in either direction
• Alzheimer's Rule: After hitting the ball, if that player or anyone else realizes that the player forgot his current wicket, the hit is retaken; all players have the obligation to point this out