BOWLING NOTES.

Press, Volume LXV, Issue 19813, 28 December 1929, Page 7

BOWLING NOTES.

[By "SKIP."] Owing to so many playws being away on holiday the City greens have been deserted during the past fewdays. The Timaru toarnamenl has become a great source of attraction for Citv players, and many business men make up their minds to visit the seaside town, enjoy their bowls, and make it their annual holiday. Each vear Timaru is becoming more popular, and the South Canterbury Centre are to be congratulated on the businesslike wav in which their tournament is ca, ried through. From small beginnings it has developed into a very large enterprise, and it seems that in the course of another year or two it may have to bo run on similar lines to that of Potorua, viz., split up into two tournaments.

The Liuwood Club have received an excellent entrv for their New ."iear rink tournament, and it now depends on the weather whether it will be a success or not. The green at present is in excellent condition and bowlers can have no fault to find. It is playing keen and true, and with a special preparation during the. next few days it should please the most fastidious plaver. The object for which this tournament was institute*! is to reduce the debt on the pavilion.

Mr Tim llealey. who has been on a holiday visit in the North Island, returned home last week. He has had a most excellent time and his health has great!v benefited by the change. He had games of bowls on several greens, and i<= fast returning to his old form. He will verv shortly be seen out again for the Kaiapoi Working Men s Club.

Mr Arthur Allan, of the Wellington Club is at present on holiday m Christchurch. Mr Allan has just recovered from a very serious illness ana is at present taking things very quietlv. \s he intends staying over the New Year holidays, he may be able to hare a game before he returns home. # * *

Tt i« pleasing to record that the Sunnyside Anniversary Day Tournament realised the magnificent sum or £33. which went to the benefit or the Patients' Christmas Cheer Fund. The promoters desire to convey their thanks to nil those players who so readilv gave their stippor... * * * A special meeting of delegates to the Auckland Bowling Centre was called to consider the following motion, which was decisively beaten :—"That at tne Dominion tournament in W,M rinks onlv be plaved; that there be a fuH week of sectional play, the winners to 20 forward on the two-life principle; that in the South Island a champion singles and pairs tournament oe plaved. and a similiar tournament m the" North Island, the winners to meet at the Dominion tournament.

* * * An unusual conclusion to a match in the champion pairs competition occurred at the Gisborne Bowling Club s green vesterday afternoon, when three bowls "rested against the "kitty." With onlj one bowl to play, the bowls were closely grouped about the "kitty," the position resulting when the last bowl cannoned into the placed bowls, three 0 f which were left touching the "kitty. The incident must be unique in the history of bowls in Poverty Bay, and is seldom encountered by a bowler in his lifetime. The last time the tournament "was held in Dunedin fifteen rinks entered from Wellington, consequently this year's entry of six rinks from this centre is much below the average number (writes "No. 2" in the Wellington "Evening Post"). However, with all the tournaments taking place throughout the country round about the time of the Dominion gathering it follows as a matter of course that the big fixture should suffer. Enough warnings have been sounded on this point, and it is for the Dominion Council to take such steps as it deems fit to protect the Dominion tournament from being further impaired. .... At the coming tournament the rinks will be played from start to finish without interruption, and this should be much more satisfactory than the practice of the past four years, although, of course, Dunedin players probably have other ideas on the subject. From the Wellington point of view the interruption of the rinks to allow of two days of pairs to be played entails a risk of players becoming somewhat stale before the rinks are resumed. A glance over the entries for the annual Dominion tournament, to be played at Dunedin, suggests that they are exceedingly small (writes "Jack High" in the Auckland "Sun"). The comparison with last season is as follows (this season's entries mentioned first) :—Rinks, 88 (130); singles, 168 (268); pairs, 168 (195). A closer view shows that there are contending factors against a large entry. There is, first, the fact that the tournament is to be held in Dunedin, when the larger portion of bowlers is in the North Island. Again, this year has been a stringent one for business, and therefore it is hardly to be expected that a large number of players can afford to take the long, expensive journey to the southern centre. Furthermore, last season's fixture was entered by a large number of Australians. Similar entries are not available this season. Moreover, when the tournament was last held in Dunedin some four years ago the South Seas Exhibition was in progress, and many entrants had the opportunity of taking in the two events. However, in consideration of these points, this season's entry can be regarded as satisfactory, and it assuredly can be said to those plavers who have entered that they will have the best of bowling elements to contend with. The Dunedin greens are equal to, if not better than, the best in any other part of the Dominion. The plavers there, who will, no doubt, comprise a large share of the entrants, are excellent exponents of the game. Indeed, it has often been claimed that thev are, as a whole, better than elsewhere. With these two main elements of bowling established, coupled with the renowned hospitality of the Dunedin Scots, entrants for this season's blue ribbon test of bowling for the Dominion may be assured of an excellent time, both from a bowling point of view and socially.