In Association Croquet, two sides with two balls each take alternate turns hitting a ball with a mallet through the hoops in a fixed order and then onto the centre peg. The first side to score all 26 points, 13 for each ball, wins.
This page follows the World Croquet Federation's Laws of Association Croquet, 7th edition, which the laws say were approved by the WCF Council on 24 January 2021. That's the edition I'm working from as of November 2026, via a copy of the laws hosted by Croquet New Zealand. Association Croquet is the version those laws cover. Golf croquet and loose garden versions aren't the same game, so I've stuck to what the laws say rather than mixing in house rules.
The full laws are long and formal. You only need the opening sections to start playing, and that's what this page covers.
Association Croquet in a nutshell
You only ever strike your own side's ball with the mallet. Your ball scores a point each time it runs the right hoop in the right direction, and a final point when it hits the peg at the very end. Hit another ball with yours and you earn extra strokes, which is how a single turn can score several points.
| What scores | Points |
|---|---|
| Running each hoop in the correct order and direction | 1 per hoop, 12 per ball |
| Hitting the peg as a rover ball | 1 per ball |
| Total for one ball | 13 |
| Total for a side with two balls | 26 |
Court, hoops, peg and balls
The standard court is a rectangle 28 by 35 yards (25.6 by 32.0 metres), and the length and width each have a tolerance of plus or minus 6 inches. The corners are numbered I, II, III and IV. If your space is too small, the laws allow a smaller court laid out in the same proportions, using a length unit smaller than the standard 7 yards.
| Item | What the laws say |
|---|---|
| Peg | Set in the centre of the court; a rigid cylinder 18 inches (457 mm) high and 1.5 inches (38 mm) across, painted white to at least 6 inches above the ground |
| Hoops | Six of them, solid metal, 12 inches (305 mm) high above the ground, set parallel to the north and south boundaries |
| Hoop positions | The two inner hoops 7 yards north and south of the peg; the four outer hoops 7 yards in from the boundaries next to them |
| Balls | 3 and 5/8 inches (92 mm) across; blue and black for one side, red and yellow for the other |
Here's a detail people don't expect. The court has six hoops, but a ball scores 12 hoop points, because the order in the laws' diagram takes it through each hoop twice. The laws also allow the crown of the first hoop to be coloured blue and the final hoop red, which is a handy way to see where the circuit starts and finishes. Other ball colours are fine too: green and brown against pink and white is the listed alternative, and other combinations are permitted.
Which ball you're allowed to hit
The striker is the player taking the current turn, and during that turn they may strike only the striker's ball. Hitting your partner ball or an opponent's ball with the mallet is a wrong ball error.
- Singles: one player a side, and you may play either of your side's two balls.
- Ordinary doubles: two players a side, each playing one ball, and you may strike only that ball. Hitting your partner's ball is a wrong ball error.
- Alternate stroke doubles: two players a side, and each may play either ball of the side.
Once all four balls have been played into the game, each turn may be played with either ball of your side, until one of them has been pegged out. Choose carefully, because the ball you pick for the first stroke is the one you keep playing for the rest of that turn.
Inside a turn: roquet, croquet, continuation
A turn starts with one stroke, and most of the time that's an ordinary single-ball stroke. You only keep playing if you earn extra strokes, and this is the chain that earns them:
- Run your ball's next hoop. Scoring a hoop point for itself earns your ball one continuation stroke, which is one more ordinary shot.
- Hit another live ball with your ball. That's a roquet. You must then take croquet from the ball you hit.
- Play the croquet stroke. Place your ball in contact with the ball it roqueted, then hit your own ball so both of them move.
- Take your continuation stroke. After a croquet stroke you're entitled to one more stroke.
- Keep going if that continuation stroke runs a hoop or makes another roquet. If it does neither, you're no longer entitled to continue, and the other side plays.
The rule people miss: in one turn your ball can take croquet from each of the other balls in play only once. Score a hoop point for your ball and that right is renewed, so you can roquet and take croquet from each ball again.
Here's how that plays out. Say you're playing blue and it's sitting near red. You hit blue into red: that's a roquet. You take croquet from red, sending both balls on, then use your continuation stroke to run blue's next hoop. That hoop point renews the right, so red is available to roquet again, along with yellow and black.
One more thing: the first stroke of a turn can only be a croquet stroke in limited cases, such as when you're playing a ball into the game in the first four turns, or after a lift.
How hoop and peg points add up
A ball scores a hoop point by passing through the correct hoop in the order and direction shown as hoops 1 to 12 in the laws' diagram. The last six have names, and you'll hear players use them:
| Hoop number | Also called |
|---|---|
| 7 | 1-back |
| 8 | 2-back |
| 9 | 3-back |
| 10 | 4-back |
| 11 | Penultimate |
| 12 | Rover |
A ball that has scored all of its hoop points is a rover ball, and only a rover ball can score the peg point, by hitting the peg. It's then pegged out and removed from the game. Only when your striker's ball is a rover ball can it knock another rover ball into the peg to score that ball's peg point.
Want AI doing the heavy lifting in your marketing?
I build the systems that handle the boring 80 percent, so you get your week back. Done properly, with the human kept in.
Each ball can make 12 hoop points and a peg point, so 13, and with two balls a side the target is 26.
Doubles, handicaps and shorter games
In handicap play the side with the higher handicap gets extra turns called bisques. The laws set out the detail in their handicap sections; for a first game you only need the idea that the weaker side gets bonus turns to level things up.
Ordinary doubles means each player looks after one ball for the whole game. That's the simplest format for a mixed group, because nobody has to decide which ball to play.
Shortened and time-limited games are allowed too, according to the objective of the game in the laws themselves, so you don't have to commit to a full 26-point game on a short evening. If you're planning croquet as a work outing, my list of team building activities that don't suck has more ideas for getting a group outside.
Errors new players make
- Hitting the wrong ball. Striking your partner ball or an opponent's ball with the mallet is a wrong ball error.
- Running hoops out of order. The order and direction are fixed, 1 to 12, as the laws' diagram shows.
- Going for the peg too early. Only a rover ball can score the peg point.
- Taking croquet twice from the same ball in one turn without scoring a hoop in between.
- Skipping the croquet stroke after a roquet. Once your ball hits another live ball, you're required to take croquet from it before your continuation stroke.
- Switching balls mid-turn. The ball you start the turn with is the one you play until it ends.
How I'd start a beginner
I'd set out the six hoops and the peg, walk the hoop order from the diagram once before anyone picks up a mallet, and play ordinary doubles so each person has one ball to look after. I'd teach the roquet, croquet and continuation chain on the very first turn, because that chain is the whole game; without it, croquet is just a slow walk between hoops. I'd skip handicaps, bisques and the advanced play sections until your group has a few full games behind it, and I'd happily play a shortened game the first time.
Croquet sits nicely alongside other garden ideas, and my party games roundup has more for a crowd. If you'd like a newer bat-and-ball sport next, pickleball for beginners is a friendly place to start.
Frequently asked questions
How many points do you need to win croquet?
Each ball can make 12 hoop points and a peg point, so 13, and with two balls a side the target is 26.
How big is a croquet court?
The standard court is a rectangle 28 by 35 yards (25.6 by 32.0 metres), and the length and width each have a tolerance of plus or minus 6 inches.
What is a roquet in croquet?
Hit another live ball with your ball. That's a roquet. You must then take croquet from the ball you hit.
What is a bisque in croquet?
In handicap play the side with the higher handicap gets extra turns called bisques.
How many hoops are on a croquet court?
The court has six hoops, but a ball scores 12 hoop points, because the order in the laws' diagram takes it through each hoop twice.
