Jaques Competition Croquet Mallets
It was John Jaques who introduced the game of Croquet to England and the world at the 'Great Exhibition' of 1851. A century and a half later, Jaques are still the leading manufacturer of Croquet equipment and they continue to be the only company who make truly high Croquet sets and accessories. Whether you want to play an international Test match or just in your back garden, Jaques croquet is the obvious first choice and as Jaques' largest and most knowledgeable Internet retail partner, Masters Traditional Games will ensure a service to match.
From left to right, John Solomon LV, Colonial, Laser Tuftex LV, Association and Championship LV.
The mallets on this page are all high quality strikers suitable for serious players and competition. The range can be confusing so we have tried to simplify it by providing this guide:
| Handles | |
|---|---|
| Hickory | Ideal traditional wood for croquet mallet shafts. |
| Hickory handle | The handle favoured by John Solomon, the greatest croquet player of our time. Octagonal. |
| Spliced Hickory handle | The insertion of a cane splice not only strengthens the octagonal shaft but extra 'zip' to the shots. |
| Hickory Roller Grip | These octagonal handles have a Jaques patented roller grip for use when playing roll shots. |
| Wedge | All the handles on this page are fitted with Jaques secret wedging system, lessening the chance of water penetration in damp conditions. |
| Diamond Carbotec | High quality wind-on grip. |
| Heads | |
|---|---|
| LV - Lignum Vitae | the hardest wood known to man. This extremely heavy wood is also self-lubricating. |
| Rings | The best mallets are fitted with brass rings at either end of the mallet head. These help protect the mallet faces as well as providing additional weight. |
| Tuftex | An extremely hard material. Mallet heads faced with Tuftex will last much longer. |
| Square/Round | Some players prefer round heads, some prefer square. Professional players tend to favour square heads as the slightly narrower width makes 'hoop' shots easier. |
Handles & Bags
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Click on the picture to enlarge.
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Change to $  Change to  |
UK pounds (ex.VAT) |
Pounds (incl. VAT) |
Typical ETA in wkg days |
Add to basket |
|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Jaques Mallet Handle - Hickory |
£49.28 | £57.90 | 3 + transit time | ||
Jaques Mallet Handle - Hickory with splice |
£63.83 | £75.00 | 3 + transit time | ||
Jaques Mallet Bag |
£33.96 | £39.90 | 3 + transit time | ||
For an immediate quote and ETA, add to the basket & select your location. |
Hurlingham Tuftex Square
Mallet with a hardwood square head reinforced with Tuftex at either end. No rings. Hickory handle with Diamond Carbotec grip. Weight about 2lb 14oz.
| Change to $ Change to |
UK pounds (ex.VAT) |
Pounds (incl. VAT) |
Typical ETA in wkg days |
Add to basket |
|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Jaques Hurlingham Tuftex Square mallet |
£118.21 | £138.90 | 3 + transit time | ||
For an immediate quote and ETA, add to the basket & select your location. |
Association
Spliced Hickory handle with with African hardwood round brass ringed head. 3lb in weight.
| Change to $ Change to |
UK pounds (ex.VAT) |
Pounds (incl. VAT) |
Typical ETA in wkg days |
Add to basket |
|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Jaques Association mallet with spliced hickory handle (wind-on grip) |
£126.81 | £149.00 | 3 + transit time | ||
Jaques Association mallet with spliced hickory handle (Roller grip) |
£131.83 | £154.90 | 3 + transit time | ||
For an immediate quote and ETA, add to the basket & select your location. |
Laser Tuftex
Tuftex reinforced square faces without rings. Standard version is about 2lb 14ozs, LV version is about 3lb. Hickory handle with Diamond Carbotec grip.
| Change to $ Change to |
UK pounds (ex.VAT) |
Pounds (incl. VAT) |
Typical ETA in wkg days |
Add to basket |
|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Jaques Laser Tuftex mallet with hickory handle (wind-on grip) |
£135.32 | £159.00 | 3 + transit time | ||
Jaques Laser Tuftex mallet with hickory handle (Roller grip) |
£143.83 | £169.00 | 3 + transit time | ||
Jaques Laser Tuftex LV mallet with hickory handle (wind-on grip) |
£157.45 | £185.00 | 3 + transit time | ||
Jaques Laser Tuftex LV mallet with hickory handle (Roller grip) |
£165.96 | £195.00 | 3 + transit time | ||
For an immediate quote and ETA, add to the basket & select your location. |
Colonial
Spliced hickory handle with Diamond Carbotec grip combined with brass ringed square head. African hardwood - about 2lb 14ozs.
| Change to $ Change to |
UK pounds (ex.VAT) |
Pounds (incl. VAT) |
Typical ETA in wkg days |
Add to basket |
|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Jaques Colonial mallet (spliced hickory handle, wind-on grip) |
£186.38 | £219.00 | 3 + transit time | ||
For an immediate quote and ETA, add to the basket & select your location. |
Solomon
John Solomon's personal mallet. Narrow square Lignum Vitae head with brass rings with a Hickory Diamond Carbotec handle. Weight is about 3lb. An alternative version of the mallet is available in Banjou wood.
| Change to $ Change to |
UK pounds (ex.VAT) |
Pounds (incl. VAT) |
Typical ETA in wkg days |
Add to basket |
|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Jaques Solomon standard (hickory handle, wind-on grip) |
£191.49 | £225.00 | 3 + transit time | ||
Jaques Solomon in Banjou wood (hickory handle, wind-on grip) |
£203.40 | £239.00 | 3 + transit time | ||
Jaques Solomon Roller (hickory handle, Roller grip) |
£216.09 | £253.90 | 3 + transit time | ||
Jaques Solomon Tuftex (hickory handle, wind-on grip) |
£225.53 | £265.00 | 3 + transit time | ||
For an immediate quote and ETA, add to the basket & select your location. |
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History of Croquet
Mallet and ball games are thought to have been first played in England and Europe during the middle ages. Games would normally involve only one ball which would be struck through very wide hoops. A Croquet-like game is believed to have been first played by thirteenth century French peasants who used crudely fashioned mallets to whack wooden balls balls through hoops made of willow branches. In seventeenth and eighteenth century France, mallet and ball games were quite popular and one of them, "Paille Maille", was introduced to London where it was played in open ground near St. James's Palace. This area became known as Pall Mall which is how the famous street of today got its name.
The modern game of Croquet appears to be Irish in Origin. A game called Crooky was played in Ireland from the 1830's and, in 1852, it was brought to England where it quickly became popular. It was particularly popular with women because it was the first outdoor sport which could be played by both sexes on an equal footing. Widespread popularity began when Croquet equipment became readily available due to London sporting goods manufacturer, John Jaques, who began selling complete croquet sets.
Over the next 30 years uniform rules were established and national competitions commenced, Croquet becoming a major sport of the day. The first national headquarters was the Wimbledon All England Croquet Club (later to become the Wimbledon All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club); the first national championships were held there in Victorian times.
Spearheaded by Australia and New Zealand, Croquet spread quickly to the British colonies. By 1870, the game had reached virtually all of the British colonies and its popularity grew, following the earlier trend of being especially popular with women. Around this time, the game was denounced from the pulpits of the day, and play was actually banned at some sporting clubs. Croquet was played at the 1900 Olympics but around this time, the up-and-coming sport of Tennis started to eclipse Croquet and this other game's ascension marked the end of Croquet's heyday. The last 20 years has seen something of a resurgence particularly amongst the young.
Today, Croquet is played competitively in over twenty countries, the major ones in the 1990s being Australia, New Zealand, the United Kingdom and the USA.
In Australia, for example, there are nearly 7,000 registered players which is a similar number to Olympic sports such as boxing and rowing.
In the USA, two forms of the game are played, International Association croquet and American rules which uses the same lawn and equipment but has a few rule variations. Many of the best competitors play both versions. In addition there are some garden sets which have 9 hoops and 2 pegs.
Many other countries play croquet or their versions of it. France hosted the 1995 World Croquet Federation Championships, Japan plays Croquet along with a similar game called Gateball, Egypt plays a simpler form of Association croquet. In Russia, Tolstoy apparently had a Croquet lawn in his Moscow garden and astronauts are reported to have played for relaxation upon their return from space. Finally, China possesses many Croquet players from different age groups - a picture in the Illustrated London news of 1938 showed Revolutionary guards playing the game!
Learn more about Croquet by visiting the Online Guide to Traditional Games.