LAWN TENNIS.

Dominion, Volume 3, Issue 775, 26 March 1910, Page 12

LAWN TENNIS.

CBr SebvzbJ

This week will practically end HtS season's tennis. Altogether, pi"" 'tournaments iuo being held during the holidays. The Wellington Association's championship tournament' is being held! on the'Thorndon and Brougham Hill' Club's courts; seniors at Thorndon and' juniors at Brougham Hill. .'.'■■: The inter-club' matches finished lasfc Saturday afternoon with, the final fori the pennant between the Newtown, audi Brougham Hill teams, .The first-men-' tioned team won after a close finish;by 5 rubbers to 4 rubbers, 63 games to; 55 games. To the Newtown ladies falls tho credit of winning the match. Miss C'ark—who' has only played.for her club m the matches against the Brougham Hill team—was the Newtown) team s. strongest' member, and easJuV accounted for her.single and doubhv Miss Powell met a weak opponent ini Miss Carter. Hurley had an easy wini against Grady, although the score (9-8)! would indicate a closely-fought game. IMwards failed to play up to expects-' tions. . Anyone who can get to B—att with Edwards is a sure winner at 9—BJ but credit is due to Thwaites for winJ rung the oily men's single for his' team. Prince did well to score six' games against Towhsend, who has beew playing too low in. the Brougham ESH, .team. ".'..,

Townsend's performances' this seaian,' are the best put up in. the pennant? grade matches. Ho has played meveryi match in which his team las taken': part,'] and is undefeated in his singles audi doubles. , Clark found Amos" in] good form at 5—9. In dsmbW Grady and Thwaites hardly; strong enough' ;fcr-. Hurley".'-"andl ' Townsend, but Prince and : Clarke' avelv) aged their losses in the singles by deK feating Edwards and Amos, 9-tB. ' i : The result of the inter-club competi' tions held this season are as follows ■Tbonidon has won the shield, Lower'. Hutt has won the cup, Newtown, his. won the pennant, Trinity, has ;wm tho! racket. Last season Wellington woaj the shield, Newtown the cup, Broughamj Hill the pennant, and • BidwiD Street 1 tbo racket. "-■',■ -' : j. The tournament held 'in Palmerstonr North-last. week was a great success.j All the'exception of the men's handicap doubles, were won by visitors. The following are the re* suits: —Men's Championship ' Singles, Geo. Prouse; .Men's Championship Doubles,: P. M.;'"B,; Fisher' and Geo-.. Prousej Ladies' Chanrpionship Singles, Miss Hartgill; Combined Championship, Doubles, F. M. B. Fisher and Misa( Hartgill; Men's' Handicap Singles,' F.i M. B- Fisher; Men's Handicap Doubles/ Wither and 'Waldegravo; Ladies' Handicap Singles, Miss Simpson;.Ladies' Handicap Doubles, Misses Simpson and Wilson; Combined Handicap Doubles, Geo. Prouse and "Missi Simpson.,, In the final of the ladies', championship singles, Miss Hartgill meti and. defeated Mrs.. Payne,-12—10. Although Prouso's'defeat of Fisher in the championship singles is deserving of all ' praise; it; must . be.-. considered.. that' Fisher .is, playing much below, his true, form.. -His poor showjng.in bined double in the inter-club "match; between' Thorndon and Wellington,. . and'- in: the; subsequent. match; against Swanston in the Thorndon Club'a championships,: 'bear.'out 'this.opinion. This brings -us to the question of the advisability of holding championships. at; the end of the season.'. ' Young players,vwith the benefits'of. a season's traming'and experience, must naturally show'.out at the' end of' the' : '"scason against .the older players,;_ who. have, .paid 'less, attention te- their .training; . Wo had an instance'of this at the end of last:,season,; whenv Harold.:. Brown, shot to' the front,.: and. this• season it : . has ..been,, more, noticeable, amongst players, excepting "Prouse, who may be classed second-grade to. our best exponents of ..'the game." j.So.it comes to this: The majority of our senior'players' do.'noi'train sufficiently; to last a whole season;-.. They become stale'and'■: lose, interest, and the juniors, fit and'full of enthusiasm;'are able to"see the season, through, and step,, if only for a short • while, into our front ranks. ■ This: naturally robs Easter championships ofi much.,of. their interest'to followers of the game, who knowing, the condition of .things,;attach little importance to the.defeat of our front-rankers at the season-end.

Warne Pearso, of Temuka, and G. Ollivier, of Christchurch, are competing in thVOtago"(&ampionships.'' '' ' J. C. Biair has- won the'. handicap] single's of the Wellington' Club, defeat-1 ing H. Wl. Brown in the final, 70r-63.! ■Both'players' started oh .'.scratch."'.,'. • ." The final of. the doubles handicap ofi themen's handicap tournament, neld" 'at Day's Bay in' January last was played off last week and resulted'in Bi-L. Wardl and W. : Sheppard, scratch; defeating T. H. Jones and P. Wright, rec. 10, by. 60—46. v ,- : :- ;: '--., ."'■-.'

:'" It. :N;. K. Swanston has again' woni what may be considered the bine ribandj of local tennis by winning the championship of the Thorndon Club. In •-the '"■ ,semi-final he defeated F. M. B. Fisher,, 6—4,. 6 —3, 6—l, and: in the final ho met and defeated J.' 0. Peacock, 6—4, o—6, -6—4,, 6—o. These; performances show that ho is at his best, and if heshould meet C. C. Cos in the Easter championships the match will be worth going a long way to sea. ■■_~-. An incident worthy of note occurred' 'on"the".Trinity Club's courts last Satur- •' day afternoon. One player, played' a ball which.passed over the net, and, having; a .reverso screw on, returned back over the' net without having been' touched by his opponent. ..The umpire scored the point against the first player- ■ Rulo 17, Clause B, says: "It is a good! return if a ball, served or' returned,. drop into the proper court and screw orbe blown back over the netj and the. ■ playor'whoso turn it'is to strike "reach • over the net and play the ball, provided, , that 1 neither be nor any part of his clothes or racket touch the net and that the stroke be otherwise good." : Last Saturday afternoon-the final for . the Country Cup competition in the Wairarapa Centre was played in Masterton between the-Masterton and Carterton Club. The result was an easy, win for the home-team by 8 rubbers to 1,. The final round for the ..cup' will , nowihave to'be played off between the winning teams in the Wairarapa, Maria- _ watu, and Wangahui Centres.