World Croquet Federation
Hall of Fame
John William Solomon
Born: November 1931
Inducted: 2006
Born in Wandsworth, London, England, John Solomon was educated at Charterhouse and Magdalene College, Cambridge. His parents had a grass tennis court at home near Putney Heath which was laid out as a croquet lawn, on which he played golf croquet. From the age of 5, he was used to hitting a ball around.
With this early introduction into the game he adopted a grip (The Solomon Grip) that was unique at that time, and one which was to later in life caste him and it into folk lore. Following his mother’s example, who played local tournaments, he made his own tournament croquet debut at 16 years of age in 1947 winning the Turkentine Tray at Roehampton joining the Croquet Association (of England) in 1948.
Winning the British Men’s Championship in 1951 he went on to dominate the sport nationally and internationally winning no less than a total of 48 Championships (British Open 10 times, British Men’s 10 times, British President’s Cup 9 times, British open Doubles 10 times, British Mixed Doubles once, New Zealand Open twice, New Zealand Open Doubles twice, and the British Champion of Champions 4 times (The only occasions that it has been played). From 1952 on he was involved in a final in British Open Championship week in every year except 1957, when he did not enter, until 1971.
In addition he represented England in 5 MacRobertson Shield World Association Croquet Team Championships, playing a total 50 matches and winning 43 of them. His first was in the 1950/51 series in New Zealand where the team played a total of 85 days out of the 90 days on tour ending in him winning his first New Zealand Open title.
In 1951 Solomon participated in an televised exhibition match to publicise the sport. The BBC attempted to pay the participants for their time but this was seen as an infingement of their amateur status and hence they did not cash their cheques.
In 1964 he completed a three-ball triple in the British Open Championship, and, in the 1972 British Open Doubles Championship, with his partner absent, he elected to play the best of three match single handed and succeeded in winning, 2 – 0, peeling his partner ball through all 12 hoops on both occasions.
He served as the Croquet Association (of England) President from 1982 to 2004 and in 1988, inaugurated the “Solomon Trophy” for an annual croquet match between Great Britain and the United States of America.
Author of “Croquet” which became the standard book on the game, he has played a major part in showing others how hard they must practice to achieve a small part of his own experiences.
John Solomon, one of the greatest players ever to pick up a mallet.
This biography contains text reproduced from:-
The Croquet Association (of England);
"The History of Croquet" by D.M.C. Pritchard;
Townends Croquet Almanack