Category: Latest News

WCF Members have now voted to approve the incorporation of the WCF as a Company Limited by Guarantee. There were 65 votes in favour, none against.

The work to finalise the set-up of the company will continue, with both the old WCF and the new company continuing in parallel until such time as bank accounts have been set-up and all assets and contracts ready to transfer. When this is complete, an official transfer date will be agreed, and the new company will be fully in place.

The following files were approved by Members as part of the vote and will become effective for the new company as soon as it is set-up. The Articles of Association and the new WCF Practice Book replace the previous WCF Statutes. The WCF Administration Regulations have been updated with changes required due to incorporation. All other WCF policies and regulations will be updated in due course, mainly with the minor changes to terminology required due to incorporation.

WCF Articles of Association v1.1 Member Approved

WCF Practice Book Post Incorporation v1 Member approved

WCFAdminRegulations_v7_IncorporationDraft_MemberApproved

Key changes:

• • The Management Committee is replaced by a Board of Directors. The existing Management Committee will become the first Directors.
  • An Annual General Meeting will take place each year during October. Any new Directors required will be formally appointed at that meeting.
  • The Registered Office for the new company will be the Croquet England office based in Cheltenham, England (address: Old Bath Road, Cheltenham, GL53 7DF). The WCF would like to thank Croquet England for providing this service.

What does this mean for the World croquet playing community?
The new company has been set up to reflect the old Statutes as closely as is possible, and no major changes to how the WCF operates are expected. So far as the croquet playing community is concerned, the Incorporation of the WCF will have very little impact.

 

Several members of the current Management Committee will complete their term of office at the end of this year, including our Treasurer, Peter Payne.

We are therefore calling for nominations for the following positions, which will commence on 1 January 2026:

• • • Treasurer
    • Management Committee (MC) – 4 positions

Nominations are now open and will close on Friday 31^st October 2025. If, by that date, we have more candidates than available positions, a Member vote will be held. Some current MC members may choose to stand again for a further term; however, if the number of candidates exceeds the number of vacancies, all candidates—including incumbents—will be subject to election.

Candidates may apply for both the Treasurer role and a general MC position. If doing so, please ensure this is clearly indicated on their nomination. The Treasurer position will be elected first; any unsuccessful candidates will then be included in the vote for the MC positions, if required.

Nomination Process

All nominations must be submitted via the Member Organising Body to the Secretary-General and may be made by Full or Associate Members. Nominees may be affiliated with a Recognised Croquet Organisation (RCO) but must be nominated by a Member.

Each nomination must be authorised in writing or by email by both the candidate and by the nominating Member. Nominations must include:

• • • A brief résumé outlining the candidate’s personal details and including a statement of their objectives as Treasurer or MC Member.
    • A headshot photograph.

All materials must be received by the Secretary-General no later than Friday 31^st October 2025.

Election Process

If the number of nominations exceeds the number of available positions, a Council Election will be held. Details of the election process will be circulated if and when it becomes necessary.

Impact of Incorporation

The WCF is currently in the process of becoming incorporated. The members of the Management Committee at the date of incorporation will become the inaugural Board of Directors of the new company. At this stage, it is unclear whether incorporation will take effect before or after the end of this year. In either case, nominations to the MC or as Treasurer, should be considered as nominations to the future Board of Directors.

Candidates are encouraged to contact either the Secretary-General, Peter Payne - the current Treasurer, or indeed any of the existing Management Committee, if they have any questions with respect to what is involved.

Damon Bidencope (65) passed away early Saturday 13th September 2025 after a battle with Melanoma.

Damon was accomplished in many areas of his life, but his passion, after Jennnie and his children Michael and Emma, was croquet. Damon began his croquet in earnest in 1978 at University in Sydney, Australia and was chosen to represent Australia at his first MacRobertson Shield in 1986 when they played in England.

In the mid 1980's he migrated to Northern California and was instrumental in establishing the croquet courts and program at Sonoma Cutrer and later at Meadowood, in Napa valley. Damon taught many people the game during this time. He was involved in producing the first World Croquet Championships at Sonoma Cutrer, co-hosted by Meadowood in 1986.

1990 saw Damon going across the country to establish, with Dick Pearman, the first Chattooga Challenge and ProAm. He was able to bring the top players from around the country and the rest of the world to compete at this brand new facility in the mountains of western North Carolina. Damon went on to serve as General Manager of The Chattooga Club in 1991. This is also where he met his wife Jennie. In 1992 he and Jennie moved to Charlotte, NC and Damon continued his efforts to bring new people into the game by participating in the Traveling Pro program for the USCA. Along the way he collected three National Doubles and four National Singles titles and was co-captain of the 2006 MacRobertson Shield team for the USCA.

Damon was inducted into the US Croquet Hall of Fame in 2016. Damon also began giving back to the croquet community in the 1990's by serving on the management committee for the United States Croquet Association. This culminated in eight years as First Vice President followed by four years as President. Damon only recently stepped down from that position this past April. While he was in those roles he supported a number of causes. Foremost however was his passion for teaching and making the game accessible to as many people as possible. Several years ago the High Performance and Talent Development program was started. Damon immediately championed this initiative, throwing his significant energies behind it. The program promotes the sport through a series of weekend clinics throughout the year. These are taught by experienced pros at different venues around the country. The dual mandate is on developing new talent and fostering and refining the skills of our top competitive players. The success of our USCA players and teams in the last few years bears witness to these efforts. The cost of this program is funded through donations to a restricted account. The instructors are unpaid volunteers, but the clinic participants have their expenses covered by the fund.

The fund will be renamed the "Damon Bidencope HPTD Fund" in honor of Damon's lifetime of giving back to croquet. His family requests donations in his honor be made to the USCA "Damon Bidencope HPTD Fund". (The USCA is a 501 C 3 charitable organization).

The friends Damon made in his 47 years of loving croquet were a constant source of happiness for him. His family wishes to thank all of you for the love and support you have shown him.