Member Profile: Zack Watson

Age: 32

Home base: Mount Jackson, Virginia

Home club: North Mountain Croquet and Tennis

Grip: Standard

Mallet: Oakley, 3.07 lb, 11.5” head, 2 3/16” wide, 1 7/8” tall, 36” shaft

Years playing croquet: Roughly six years, give or take

Favorite croquet venue: My favorite venue would have to go to Pinehurst or NCC; the courts would be the Sarasota Club. Two years ago, at the association nationals, they had some of the best, most consistent courts I have played on.

Favorite tournament: Selection 8s (association). It’s a brutal few days’ worth of sun-up-to-sun-down croquet. Who wouldn’t love that?

How did you get into the game: My dad built a court in our yard in 1990. I didn’t have any interest in the game until filling in for a drop out in a tournament we were hosting. He took me out the night before and started teaching me the rules so I could get going the next morning at 8:00 a.m. Since then I was introduced to association laws by Doug Grimsley and others, which boosted my interest in the game.

Croquet highlights/tourney wins: The only important ones are ahead.

Do you play other sports? I grew up playing competitive tennis. I went through the junior circuit right on up into college. Favorite sports teams? USA CROQUET OF COURSE....

Pop culture favorites: For TV or movies, I can handle most anything. From “Gone with the Wind” to “Dexter” to “Star Wars.” The same goes for music; I tend to listen to a bit heavier stuff when I am working. My reading material generally comes from any place I can learn something. I realize that seems silly, but I love to learn new things: how to build things, how things are made, how to clean something (yes, whites included).

What is the best thing the USCA has done for croquet? While I realize not everyone is going to be a fan of my answer, I know that I am not alone in this. I believe the BEST thing the USCA has done is put bodies on the court. A big majority of USA croquet members are playing golf croquet and I see nothing wrong with this. Those that are skilled enough or interested in taking it further will eventually try out the other games. I say keep pushing.

What is the USCA’s greatest weakness? I see the argument about youth croquet thrown out every time this question pops up. While, yes, I agree something needs to be done, it’s hard to forget that we have some of the youngest players playing right now. There seems to be a bit of a divide when it comes to what is more important within USA croquet. I am talking about the COMPETITIVE side versus the SOCIAL side. While I can’t exactly put my finger on it, I hope we all can get along in the upcoming seasons.

What would you like to see happen in the sport over the next 10 years? I want to pull up the world rankings and see more USA names up there near the top.

Quick croquet tip: LISTEN WHEN SOMEONE TRYS TO HELP YOU! Absolutely the best advice I can give. Every single event that I have participated in, someone has come to up to me and given advice or a new strategy to use, AND I LISTENED. It’s the quickest way to improve, in my opinion.