Croquet mallets and balls in Bathurst
The short answer: Bathurst croquet players can order an Invictus mallet, or a club set of Invictus X balls, online and have it delivered to the Central Tablelands. For most players on Bathurst's two lawns we would start with the Invictus Rise.
Croquet in Bathurst
The Bathurst City Croquet Club has its two lawns on the corner of Durham and Bentinck Streets, with a small clubhouse holding a meeting room, a basic kitchen and change rooms. It is affiliated with Croquet NSW, which counts nearly seventy clubs across New South Wales and the ACT. Members play association croquet on Tuesday, Wednesday and Saturday mornings and golf croquet on Mondays, Wednesday afternoons and Friday mornings, and Bathurst Regional Council lists Aussie croquet among the club's games as well. New players are welcome, with coaching and handicapping offered by the club. Each November an association carnival brings visiting players to Bathurst from other clubs around the state.
What Bathurst's lawns and weather mean for your mallet
Bathurst sits on the Central Tablelands at around 650 metres, and its winters are properly cold: hard frosts, foggy starts and lawns that can stay soft and slow well into the morning. Summer swings the other way, with hot, dry afternoons that firm the courts and speed the ball up. Your own mallet has to cope with both.
Which Invictus mallet suits Bathurst players
Invictus Rise, A$990. The most popular mallet we make. Its aluminium head weighs close to 3 lb, which helps on a frosty, holding lawn, and a sweet spot slightly bigger than most makes it a little easier to control. Pair it with an 11 inch head, our usual advice.
RF Pro, A$1,980. Our flagship, developed in partnership with World Champion Robert Fletcher. The 3D printed aluminium head has brass weights and composite faces, about 2 lb 12 oz in all; a lighter, very precise mallet for players chasing touch.
Neither is sold off a shelf. Each is made to order at your handle length, with an 11 or 12 inch head, in Graphite Black as standard; Snow White, NRA Blue, Rose Gold and Deep Purple are A$130.90 extra. The mallet fitting guide explains how to measure, and compare mallets sets the two models out.
Balls for Bathurst clubs
Invictus X has World Croquet Federation championship approval, weighs 450 g and is made entirely in Australia; a set costs A$990. For a two-lawn club, the usual guide is two sets in first colours plus two in second. Our page on what WCF approval means is worth a read.
Delivery to Bathurst
Allow roughly 4 to 8 weeks from order until a made-to-order mallet arrives in Bathurst. It is an estimate only.
Questions Bathurst players ask
Can I choose how heavy the head is? No; the weight comes with the model, about 3 lb for the Rise and about 2 lb 12 oz for the RF Pro.
What if I buy before the November carnival and dislike it? Take the optional 30-day satisfaction guarantee (A$99) and you have a month of play to decide.
Will cold mornings hurt the mallet? The head is aluminium, so frost is no problem. Dry the faces after play; see product care.
Other New South Wales croquet towns: New South Wales mallets and balls.
Designed in Queensland, made in Australia.