BILLIARDS.

Ashburton Guardian, Volume 55, Issue 246, 31 July 1935, Page 2

BILLIARDS.

McCONACHY IN FORM. WORLD RECORD BREAK. By bringing off a brilliant break of 1178, Clark McConachy, continuing his match with Walter Lin drum on Saturday night, established a world record break under the new rules, which necessitate the striker’s ball crossing the balk-line once in the last 20 points of every 200. Bigger breaks have been made under the old rules, but it is this “balk-line” rule that makes the massing of big breaks doubly difficult. It' is particularly penalising for players like Lindrum and McConachy, who, apart from shots played with the bail in hand, confine their play almost entirely to the top of the table, to have to interrupt the natural sequence of their break to make the “line-shot.” It was in working up to a position to make a profitable “line-shot” that McConachy ended his break, missing by a hair’s breadth an indirect short cannon.

When approaching the “line-shot” during a series of nursery cannons, McConachy invariably worked the balls down to the middle pocket, so that he could pot the red with a fine cut, sending his own ball through balk, to finish

so that he could make a losing hazard off the white, and at the. same time bring the two object again at the top of the table. If working up to the middle pocket th white was on the cushion ~ ly played a losing hazard off the whit , and then played a winning hazard wR the red, sending his own ball up tn table, down through balk to maw®, . “line-shot,” and up again to finish m position for a cannon. McConachy was playing cannons an Avimiing hazards at the top of the table when the warning was given for ms third “line-shot.” It was not, however, until his score was at 598 that he managed to get the opportunity:, whicn he took by playing a svnft winning hazard with the red, sending his own ball down the table through balk, and up again to continue his break. This was the only time in the whole of his break that it looked as if he might fa.il, but apart from that he played a faultless game until, approaching his sixth “line-shot” down the, right cushion with a series of nursery cannons, he played one cannon a fraction too fine, and in endeavouring to regain position with an indirect cannon, he narrowly missed. McConachy’s break took up the greater part of the evening, but Lmdrum Avas settling doAvn to a good break when time was called.