Robert Fulford (croquet player)

Born in Colchester, England, he started to play croquet at his local school at the age of 15. Fulford has a light attitude towards the game, often travelling from cheap hotel or homes of local croquet players to the next because he only makes about £8000 a year from the sport. One tournament yielded him a lawnmower.

He is an alumnus of the University of Durham, where amongst some of his friends he had the nickname 'fluffy'

He supplements his sporting career by working for a stone merchants in Thurrock in Essex. Robert has become a CPA [chartered public accountant] and it is not clear what effect, if any, this will have upon his sporting pursuits.

Robert also coaches croquet, particularly in Australia and the Chattooga Club in North Carolina. Robert has made croquet videos with Australian croquet expert Kevin Brereton in which Robert teaches both basic and advanced break tactics. He has won the world championship 5 times:[1]

• 1990 at Hurlingham Club, England
• 1992 in Newport, USA
• 1994 at Carden Park, Cheshire, England
• 1997 at Moorabinda Croquet Club, Bunbury, Western Australia
• 2002 in Wellington, New Zealand

Fulford has also won the President’s Cup twelve times (1989, 1998, 1999, 2001, 2002, 2006, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012 and 2018), the Open Championship eleven times (1991, 1992, 1996, 1998, 2003, 2004, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2014 and 2015) and the Men's Championship four times (1990, 1998, 2006, 2011).[2]

Fulford's playing style includes the ability to play a range of shots. His tactic of peeling an opponent's ball through hoop 1 makes a triple peel as hard as possible for the opponent. His sextuple peels are also more frequent than those of any other player. Robert Fulford uses an Irish grip [rather like a golf grip] and employs "casting" [swinging mallet over the ball] about three times before each shot. He has strong wrists which makes the Irish grip work for him without it causing the R.S.I. that the grip is sometimes blamed for. In fact, Robert admits that he has quite a wrist-dominated technique which contradicts most coaching manuals that advise minimal wrist involvement.

Fulford has played in the following World Championships:[1]

• 1989: Round 4: (lost to John Prince +26tp, -17, -26tp)
• 1990: won (beat Mark Saurin +26, +24tp)
• 1991: S/F (lost to John Walters -14otp, -26tp)
• 1992: won (beat John Walters -5tp, +4tp, +12tp)
• 1994: won (beat Chris Clarke -12tpo, +12tp, +18tp, +13)
• 1995: runner-up (lost to Chris Clarke -18tp, +12tpo, -26tp, +26tp, -26)
• 1997: won (beat Stephen Mulliner +17, -3tpo, +9otp, +11otp)
• 2001: runner-up (lost to Reg Bamford +16tp, -17sxp, +3, -26sxp, -26qp)
• 2002: won (beat Toby Garrison +26tp, +26tp, -17tp, +15tp)
• 2005: runner-up (lost to Reg Bamford -17tp, -26sxp, -17sxp)
• 2008: S/F (lost to Chris Clarke +26tp, +26tp, -11tpo, -17, -26)
• 2009: Round 3: (lost to Ben Rothman -14, -15tp, -17)
• 2012: Round 3: (lost to Marcus Evans +26tp, -20tp, +26sxp, -3tp, -25qnp)
• 2013: Round 3: (lost to Andrew Johnston +17tp, +12tp, -26, -15, -15)

• The Croquet Records site