Croquet mallets and balls at Wrest Park, Bedfordshire

The short answer: players at Wrest Park, and across Bedfordshire from Bedford to Luton, can order an Invictus mallet or a set of Invictus X balls online and have it delivered locally. At a club that plays all year and hosts national finals, the RF Pro will suit tournament players, while the Invictus Rise is our usual choice for everyone else.

Croquet at Wrest Park

Wrest Park Croquet Club was formed in 1961 and plays in the publicly accessible grounds of Wrest Park at Silsoe, an English Heritage estate midway between Bedford and Luton; you do not need to be an English Heritage member to reach the club. It has four full-size lawns and two smaller ones, shares a pavilion with two local children's football teams, and has around 70 members. Volunteer members look after the lawns under an honorary head groundskeeper. The main season runs from April to October, but members can play all year, which makes Wrest Park a popular second club for players whose own clubs close in winter. The 2026 calendar was busy: a GC international performance squad weekend in March, the Wrest Park Golf Croquet Open in May, AC handicap and advanced tournaments, the All England AC Handicap final in September and a GC C-level series final. The club also finished second in the federation's regional AC league final, and Court 1 was being refurbished in October.

What Wrest Park's lawns and weather mean for your mallet

Bedfordshire is among the drier counties of England, and in summer the Wrest Park lawns can play firm and quick for national events. Because the club plays through winter, members also face cold, soft and slow grass for months at a time. A mallet here has to work in both conditions.

Which Invictus mallet suits Wrest Park players

Tournament players heading for the summer opens should look at the RF Pro, £975, the flagship we developed with World Champion Robert Fletcher. A 3D printed aluminium head, brass weights inside and composite faces outside bring it to near 2 lb 12 oz, lighter and very precise on a fast lawn.

For year-round club play, the Invictus Rise, £525, is the better all-rounder and our most popular mallet. Its head is aluminium, roughly 3 lb, which carries the ball on soft winter grass, and the sweet spot is a little larger, so it is slightly easier to control. We usually recommend the 11 inch head.

Both are built only after you order, to your handle length, with an 11 or 12 inch head. Graphite Black is standard and four other colours, Snow White, NRA Blue, Rose Gold and Deep Purple, cost £89. The fitting guide and comparison page cover the choice.

Balls for Wrest Park clubs

Invictus X is a World Croquet Federation championship-approved ball of 450 g, made entirely in Australia and sold at £479 per set. Four full-size lawns at Silsoe would, as a guide, call for eight sets. Read what WCF approval means for a tournament venue.

Delivery to Wrest Park

Once you place an order we make the mallet and send it within the UK; Bedfordshire deliveries generally take four to eight weeks, as an estimate. For ball sets, the delivered figure is agreed with you before payment.

Questions Wrest Park players ask

I play here in winter as a second club. Which mallet? Usually the Rise, whose extra weight helps on slow winter grass.

Is there a way to try it before keeping it? Yes. Take the optional satisfaction guarantee, £75, for 30 days of play.

Will winter play damage it? No. Dry the head after a damp game and look at product care.

Find other places on our England page.

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