Bowling Notes.

Free Lance, Volume XVIII, Issue 971, 27 February 1919, Page 20

Bowling Notes.

By Wrong Bias.

EIGHT rinks of bowlers from the Nelson and Marlborough .centre have been on a visit to, Wellington. They met with a glad welcome, and since last week-end have played a round of highly enjoyable games. The inevitable result will be a Wellington invasion of Blenheim and Nelson next season, and probably an annual fixture will be the sequel. So mote it be! The clubs represented by the visi- « tors were : Nielson, Maitai, Wakefield, and Blenheim. On Friday morning they put. eight rinks in the field against Wellington Centre, and lost on points by 144 to 167. But in games tjtiey came out even, losing four and winning four. Dir. Adams, 0. Mills, Best, and Allen were the winning skips. In the afternoon Blenheim's two rinks beat "Victoria by 13 points, and three rinks from the Maitai Club were 3 up against Thorndon. Nelson's two rinks had an in-and-out sort of match against Lower Hutt. Best bested Macaskill by 28 to 13, but Barlow got ahead of Tom Haldane by 27 to 8. If Alick Haldane had been able to make the trip from Nelson the Haldane brothers would have had a full rink. But Alick has only lately .got home from tjie Auckland tournament, and was probably hot re&dy for another trip so soon. On. Friday night the visitors were entertained by the Wellington Centre a very jolly smoke concert in the Wellington Club's pavilion. Mr F. Meadowcroft presided, the speechifying was above par, and the song-pro-famme, which was arranged by Mr j. Hill, was very satisfying. Saturday forenoon was the visitors' great day. Their combined forces (eight rinks strong) were brought into play against Wellington on the Mother Club's green, and they pulled off the match by 170 points to 150. Dr. Adams and Allen were the star skips, iihe former scoring 31 to Erskine's 15, and Allen bagging 26 against Tasker's -9. In the afternoon Nelson's two rinks beat Newtown 3 up. Mills' and Adams' rinks lost to Karori by a point, and Maitai's rinks were knocked out by 76 to 40 at Hataitai, where the ozone is -always strong. Wakefield's two rinks "were 9 points too good for Island Bay. Mr S. J. Underwood (in the absence of Mr Roberts, the Centre's secretary) made all the arrangements for the entertainment of the visitors, and tjie job could , not have been more successfully carried out. The annual tourney of the Civil Service came off on Thursday on the Thorndon and Wellington greens, 16 departments (each represented by a rink) competing. Grouped in sections of four rinks, each rink had to play three games of 16 heads. After several hairbreadth' 'scapes the Railways team (Widdon, .Batten, Chitty, and D. Munro) won, beating Education (Bell, Caughley, Cresswell, and Porteous) by 23 to 15. The victors had very close shaves with Legislative and Internal Affairs. Against the former they tied hy scoring four on the last head, and then on the extra head they got the winning point. Against Internal Affairs they played an uphill game, and won by 2 on ..the last head. • Legislative had two ties in its threes games. Against Ordnance it tied by scoring 6 on the 20th and 3 on the

21st head. In the extra head it liad two bowls on the jack when Ordnance sent up a whizz-bang in the last shot, burst up the head and won. Colonel Collins and Mr R. W. Jourdain deserve credit for their management of the tourney. The Champion of Champion Singles came off at Hataitai on Wednesday and Thursday, eighteen club champions competing, and Harry Mayer, of .Eastbourne, for the second year in succession won the event. In the final he beat Raven, of Lyall Bay, by 25 to 13. As Singles Champions of Champions the brothers Tom and Harry Mayer have put up a striking record. In the eight years this championship has been contested they have won it four times, Tom Mayer being champion of champions • the first two years and his younger brother Harry the last two years. Harry Mayer was also one of the Pairs Champions of Champions last year. What mair could ye wish ? Wellington and Newtown played a home-and-home game on Saturday (eight rinks a-side), and Grandma won in the aggregate by 13 points. But in a go against Karori (three rinks aside) the old- lady had a nasty spill — 20 points down. Mr Thos Jamieson and Mr Walter Cole, of the Victoria Club, had a really delightful bowling and motor tour from the 4th till the 14th February. Casting care and business to the winds they set out in Mr Cole's motor-car and in ten days they visited and played matches on nine country bowling greens, viz., Levin, Wanganui, Hawera, Stratford, New, Plymouth (two afternoons), Eltham, Waverley, Feilding, and Palmerston North. They declare the Waverley green was the pick of the basket.