A General Plan for your game may be as follows:
Let's suppose you have, say, 16 bisques and your opponent has not set up a break on the fourth turn and gone round.In one turn: Use 2 bisques to set up a good break, use up to 5 more for break downs, and take your first ball to the peg, leaving all four balls on or near a boundary, your opponent's separated and your own joined widely.
Your stronger opponent may then hit in and go round. Let us assume your opponent has been unable or chosen not, to peg out your first ball.
In your next turn: Repeat the scheme with your second ball. (i.e. 2 bisques to lay the break and 5 more to get your second ball the peg). Now use the remaining two bisques to peg out both your balls. End of turn. End of game ! You win !
Do not join up if your opponent is already joined up, since this would allow your opponent to roquet and take off to your two balls.
It is better to leave your opponent's balls separated near hoops, helpful to your break, rather than on a remote boundary; e.g. put one at your next hoop and the other where it can be used for your break, or, one ball at each of your next hoops (and maybe yourself with a rush to either hoop).
If your opponent's balls are for different hoops it is generally wise to send each opponent's ball to its own hoop, this leaves it awkward for your opponent.
Unless your hoop is a certainty, take off first to one of opponent's balls. The more distant ball is frequently the better one to choose.If you choose to do a wide join yourself do not place your ball near a corner, since if you subsequently shoot at that ball and miss the wide join becomes join becomes a close join.Even if your hoop is a certainty, it may still pay to take off first to his ball, since you leave your partner ball at your hoop to be roqueted again with a bisque turn. The wide join means you have more room to get both opponent balls into the court and less need to leave one near the boundary, although an immediate break is less likely without taking a bisque.
Once you have taken up position after stalking, try to avoid moving the position of the feet on the ground and the hands on the mallet. If you need to adjust your stance or are just not comfortable, start all over again.
Keep the feet, body, shoulders and head as still as possible throughout the stroke with the arms pivoting at the shoulder. If the eyes follow the course of the stroke, do this without raising the head.
Strike your own ball in its exact centre with the centre of the face of your mallet and follow through.
Even with the longest of shots you should be able to remain in perfect poise at the finish of the stroke.
Swing back slowly, this gives better control. On fast lawns very little back swing is necessary.
Curtail the backward swing to the minimum consistent with the strength of shot required -- let the mallet weight do the work -- do not "push" or "shepherd" after contacting the ball.
If you are faced with a difficult hoop, before attempting it, consider the consequences of failure.
If you fail to approach a hoop properly with your partner ball, it is generally unwise to end your turn by placing the striker's ball in a perfect hoop running position. There are two main reasons, (1), you will most likely be wired from your partner ball, thus probably forcing you to play with the hoop ball, and (2) , you cannot alter the direction of the rush after running the hoop and your opponent will have moved one or both of his balls. Much better is to use the continuation stroke to place your striker's ball to give a rush on your partner ball (remembering not to leave a double target) thus allowing the reception ball to be repositioned for a good rush after the hoop is run.
It is frequently better to use the continuation stroke in playing behind the ball off which you are making the hoop, taking a bisque and approaching again, thus expending just one bisque, rather than, possibly two, if you had stuck on the wire.
Better still is to use the continuation stroke to approach the most distant ball, take a bisque and improve the position of the balls, before returning to the ball at your hoop and approaching it afresh.
If you can avoid making the Rover hoop with your partner ball (which is already a rover ball i.e. on the peg) and leave partner ball near the peg, this makes the pegout after running rover easier, as you can roquet the reception ball after making rover and then take off back to your partner ball waiting near the peg.
If you have to use your partner ball to run rover then be sure to leave a rush back towards the peg after running rover, if you are to peg out in the same turn.
For precise adjustment of the balls in the croquet stroke, the line of the peg must bisect the crescent formed by viewing the further ball over the nearer. The cresent must be such that an imaginary line joining the cusps is horizontal. This means stooping low to view. Some players find it helpful to view also from the side of the peg furthest from the two balls to be pegged out.
When rushing the object ball nearer to the peg take care to avoid rushing partner ball on to the peg, as this will peg it out and you will have no ball to take croquet from and therefore be unable to peg out in this turn (unless you have an unused bisque).
Congratulations or commiserations are best left to the end.
Careful play need not mean slow play. Watch your opponent's play and be ready to play as soon as their turn ends, as far as possble.- this will make you a popular player and help to make you a good one. Take the maximum of pains in the minimum time.
Crush. A crush shot occurs when the mallet head, a ball and a hoop or peg are in contact simultaneously and the line of aim is not away from the hoop or peg. This can also occur when a ball is hit downwards into the ground.Push. Occurs when a mallet head accelerates or deviates from the initial line of swing, once it has contacted the ball. Also known as Shepherding.
Double tap. Double or multiple taps occur in croquet strokes when the mallet head continues to "trundle" the balls after first contact.
Touch any ball with any part of body or clothes.
Touch another ball with your mallet.
Failure to move or shake the croqueted ball in a croquet stroke.
That said, play every game to win or it is pointless to play at all - but more important - Play your best game always, which you may not do if overmuch concerned as to its issue. You must play your best out of respect for your opponent, to give them something to fight against and a game worth winning.
Do not play with the selfish dread of defeat. Play for the sake of
the game, not merely for yourself or for your handicap.