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Linville Ridge Croquet Pro David Maloof Ranked #1 in the US, #9 in the World

On April 24, 2016, the 2016 WCF World Croquet Championship, held at the National Croquet Center in West Palm Beach, FL, had narrowed it field down from 80 players to the two best – British veteran Stephen Mulliner and Linville Ridge Head Croquet Professional, American David Maloof. Mulliner and Maloof survived a five-day knockout to meet each other on center court and ensured that there would be a new name on the Wimbledon Cup and, as both are 62, that the new World Champion would be the oldest ever winner.

David Maloof at QF of AC World Champs - Photo by Jeff Soo
David Maloof at QF of AC World Champs – Photo by Jeff Soo

Mulliner, Secretary-General of the World Croquet Federation, won his first world championship in 1986, and has won several world titles since.

Maloof began as a full-time working tennis professional and added croquet to his schedule in 1995.  Due to his work schedule he has been limited in playing competitive croquet, however he has made rapid progress in US and world croquet in the last few years.

Maloof, a dark horse in the tournament, ranked #18, defeated #4 Paddy Chapman (NZE), the 2013 runner-up, and #7 David Maugham (ENG), a stalwart of the England team, in the quarter and semi-final rounds to join Ben Rothman as the only two US players to reach the AC World Final in the championship’s history.

In an epic 11.5-hour final match that ended under floodlights, Mulliner came back from a 0-2 deficit to Maloof to claim the title. The score line read 22-26, 9-26, 26-21, 26-19, 26tp-0 for Mulliner.

Based on this tournament’s silver medal results Maloof, the reigning American champion in both singles and doubles, is now ranked #1 in the United States and is ranked the #9 player in the world.

Maloof has been the Head Croquet Professional at Linville Ridge since 1999.  Maloof stated, “Linville Ridge has two of the most beautiful, well maintained lawns in the country and it is a privilege to be part of the Linville Ridge croquet program.”  He will be back on “The Ridge” this summer with a brief absence while he represents Team USA in Manchester, England, against Great Britain for the Solomon Trophy (croquet’s equivalent to golf’s Ryder Cup) fromJune 24-July 3, 2016.

About Linville Ridge

Linville Ridge is an established private residential community near Blowing Rock, North Carolina – a short drive from Charlotte, Raleigh/Durham, Winston-Salem and Asheville.  Developed by The Lutgert Companies in 1982, Linville Ridge boasts the highest elevation golf course east of the Mississippi River which was redesigned by Bobby Weed Golf Design in 2009; five dining venues; eight Har-Tru® tennis courts; two regulation–sized croquet lawns; heated mountainside swimming pool; hiking trails; youth activities; and a full service hair salon and spa. Linville Ridge Country Club offers a variety of membership categories for golf and social members alike. Linville Ridge offers a range of ownership opportunities from estate homes, mountain cottages, town homes and homesites, through their on-site brokerage, Premier Sotheby’s International Realty. For more information, visitwww.linvilleridge.com.

 

LR Croquet Courts

David Maloof at SemiF of AC World Champs - Photo by Jeff Soo