The 8 Stillman Memorial Croquet Tournament - It's not just another silly backyard game - It's an adventure!
This is as brief a history as we could muster. If you'd like to see photos from this years event, click on Part II at the bottom of the page and scroll down or click over to the Photo Gallery.
The Stillman wasn't always known as "The 8 Stillman Croquet Tournament." Originally, it was deemed "The 10th Avenue Freezeout," with an obvious tip of the hat to the famous Springsteen song of the same name. Don and Donna Dawson were living in a wonderful old house on 10th Avenue in Sea Cliff, New York and the idea of a backyard hootenanny came to mind not long after moving in. With what little yard surrounded the house, friends, family and neighbors crowded the yard for burgers, beer and what is now debated as the first family croquet outing.
The year is 1984 and it's late-summer and the course is truly in rough shape. After several rounds, the finals are drawn and consisted of Chris Cordano, Linwood Gunther, Carol Zanetti, and a few other people we can't really remember at the moment. At the end of it all, Chris Cordano was knighted champ and the legacy was born. We would hold the "10th Avenue Freezeout" one more year before picking up camp and moving onward.
The following year the tourney was hosting at 8 Stillman Road in Glen Cove, New York and it was quite the shindig. Records and details are hard to come by during the segment of the tourney. Much like when the Spaniards came and destroyed the records detailing the history of the Aztecs, the croquet tourney has little in the way of detail dating back to 1986. Who won? Was there a final? Was their alcohol served? No one knows. It's a mystery worthy of Nancy Drew.
Not long after this point, Don and Donna Dawson move to Hauppauge, New York. It is at this point, the croquet tourney hits its all-time low point. One tourney was held in this location and it was not received well. There wasn't much room to play. It was incredibly hot and overall, the challenge, the competition and drama never showed up. It was nearly the death knell for the event.
In 1989, Don and Donna move to Smithtown, New York. This charming little cottage had an enormous backyard, that was flat as a pancake, perfect for roqueting the crap out of fellow wicketeers! Part moving-in party, party meet the neighbors, part croquet tourney; the backyard hoopla begins, once again. PART II
