2015 KC Open: Griffith Rolls On

PARKVILLE, MO -- This past Saturday, Matt Griffith plowed through the field for his fifth straight MCA tournament title and capped the day with a 32-11 win against Deborah Millican in the Kansas City Open Pro Division final. The event had 21 players overall with 11 in the Silver and Bronze Divisions.

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The Pro/Gold Division utilized two blocks and Griffith ran through the A Block with a 4-0 record. Deborah Millican gave him the toughest challenge in the morning action, but she eventually fell 18-16. That was Griffith's first game of the day and he then found his groove and notched three pegouts in his final five games.

The records are still being tallied, but it is clear that Griffith shattered the season record for points with 474 points in 18 games. That broke the Dylan Goodwin's record of 442 in 22 games set last year.

The 474 points also sealed the overall GWM MCA Pro Nine-Wicket Series race for Griffith. Greg Clouse follows in second place with 322 points. Only 96 points are available during the MCA Championship event, and that is the key figure as Griffith will miss the Championship to play in the Toxaway Invitational (GC) in North Carolina.

Fast EddieGoodwin missed the Pro Division bracket after falling to Greg Adams and Greg Clouse in the last two games in the B Block. He did go on to win the Gold Division playoff with an 18-9 victory over Ron Millican in the final.

On Sunday, the Silver and Bronze Divisions went into action and "Fast" Eddie Mondt took the Silver title with a 20-11 win over Di Berg. Gwyneth Bowen won the Bronze Division with a last turns run to win game two. Places were determined by wicket total in the two games played. Bowen had 10 wickets in the two games, while Elizabeth Goodwin won a lag for the second-place tiebreaker between three players tied with eight wickets. All players were coached in the Bronze Division and all five players showed great improvement throughout the two-game session.

NOTES

• Points standings for all divisions are updated and can be found on the Nine-Wicket Series page.
• Eight players each from the Pro, Gold and Silver Divisions will qualify for the 2015 MCA Championship based on total points. The Championship is free for members that qualify. Email invitations will be sent to qualifiers. For non-members the fee will be $25.
• The top twelve players from the Bronze Division will qualify for the MCA Championship. The event is also free for MCA members that qualify. For non-members, the Bronze Division will charge a $10 entry fee.
• There were issues with the application for tie-breaker in Block A. Ron and Deborah Millican tied at 2-2. Goodwin as tournament manager should have taken the head-to-head result, but mistakenly dropped to the gross points category first and awarded Deborah the spot in the Pro Playoff. It's an unfortunate scenario, but there is no choice but to live with the results on the field. Goodwin is suggesting measures to avoid a repeat of this type of mistake for future MCA events.
• For USCA members that enjoyed the KC Open at Kactus Creek, remember the USCA is now accepting nominations for the 2015 Annual Awards and the Kactus Creek Croquet Club would make a great nomination. Read here about the work Matt Griffith has been doing with the club.