Croquet mallets and balls in Bakewell

The short answer: Bakewell and Peak District players can order an Invictus mallet or Invictus X balls online for delivery to the town or anywhere in the Derbyshire Dales. For a friendly club that mostly plays golf croquet on hill-country grass, our usual first suggestion is the Invictus Rise.

Croquet in Bakewell

Bakewell Croquet Club has two full-sized lawns at Bakewell Recreation Ground on Haddon Road, in front of the cricket pavilion. Now in its twenty-second year of play, it belongs to Croquet England and the Federation of East Midlands Croquet Clubs. Club sessions are mostly golf croquet, which the club finds more sociable, while association croquet is generally played on Thursday evenings, where some members are being coached in it. Visitors can drop in, beginners are coached, and equipment is provided. The club's own tournaments include the Founders Cup and the Chairman's Cup, it competes in the East Midlands Croquet League, and it gives demonstrations and tasters, sometimes for local charities. Nearby Darley Dale has a club in the same federation.

What Bakewell's lawns and weather mean for your mallet

Bakewell lies on the Wye in the heart of the Peak District, higher and wetter than the Midlands plain to the south. Lawns here are often soft in spring and autumn, and valley dew lingers on cool mornings. Golf croquet asks for a confident hit, and that is easiest with a mallet that carries the ball through damp grass by its own weight.

Which Invictus mallet suits Bakewell players

Invictus Rise, £525. Ask which Invictus sells best and the answer is this one. Its aluminium head comes to about 3 lb, and the sweet spot is cut a little wider, so control comes slightly easier. With it we usually advise the 11 inch head.

RF Pro, £975. Our flagship: lighter, at roughly 2 lb 12 oz, and very precise. World Champion Robert Fletcher was part of its development, and it is built on an aluminium head made by 3D printing, set with brass weights and finished with composite faces.

When you order, we make the mallet to your handle length and fit a head 11 or 12 inches long. You keep standard Graphite Black, or pay £89 for Rose Gold, Deep Purple, NRA Blue or Snow White. Weights are fixed. Read how we fit a mallet and the two models compared.

Balls for Bakewell clubs

Invictus X: a 450 g ball, made entirely in Australia, approved for championship play by the World Croquet Federation, at £479 a set. Two lawns call, as a guide, for a pair of first-colour sets and a pair of second-colour sets. More in ball colours explained.

Delivery to Bakewell

Every mallet is made after you order and sent to the UK; reaching the Peak usually takes 4 to 8 weeks from order, and that is an estimate. For balls we quote the delivered price, and you accept it before payment.

Questions Bakewell players ask

We mostly play social golf croquet. Is a specialist mallet overkill? No; one at your handle length simply makes each stroke more comfortable.

Can I see how it plays first? Yes. Our 30-day satisfaction guarantee is an optional £75 extra.

Does Peak District rain affect the head? No. Dry it after play; see product care.

More from England: our England page.

Designed in Queensland, made in Australia.