On the Greens

Evening Post, Volume CVII, Issue 61, 15 March 1924, Page 18

On the Greens

THE FINAL STAGES

SEASON NEARING THE END

QUESTIONS FOR FUTURE

CONSIDERATION.

(By "Number Two"),

If the wintry weather being experienced at the time of writing keeps up, the 1923-24 bowling season will have to be regarded as a thing of the past. There are some optimists, however, who feel that the weather has not yet done its worst, and that it will still be possible to "roll 'em along" for some weeks to come. With what looks like an early winter setting in, however, the prospects for some of the Easter tournaments do not appear to be exactly propitious. Some of the clubs still have many engagements to fulfil, anjl there is the final of the Senior Pennants to be disposed of. This is due for to-day, and the meeting between Newtown and Victoria has aroused a great deal of interest. The Newtowu Club is anxious to close down the season, as it desives to get ite green into order for next year, and believes that it cannot embark upon this work too soon now. If Newtown is able to get off its Past and Present Members' Match next Saturday, it may bring the season to a close. Should it be possible to play the final of the Pennants to-day the presentation of prizes won during the season will take place after tho conclusion of - the Champion of Champion rinks next Thursday, but if the Pennants cannot be disposed of today then the prizes will be handed out on. tho Thorndon green on sth April, after the Pennant game, which will be played then if it is postponed to-day. So_ far as the centre is concerned the finish of the Pennant games will terminate the season.

Taken all round, the season has been a very successful one, and has been marked by several important events, notably the Veterans' Gala Day, which everyone trusts will become an" annual affair. There has not been so many interchanges of visits with other districts as last season, but the clubs have been enabled to provide more competitions for their members on their own greens, and this has given a great deal of pleasure all round. Bowling has never been so popular in Wellington as it is to-day, and. the fact that most, if not all, of the clubs have full membership lists shows that the game has become one of our most important pastimes.

There are many questions to be faced between now and next season, including some which will necessitate approaching the municipal and national administrations. .Bowlers should make every effort to force the Government to pass a Daylight Saying Bill during the cominnsession, seeing that this proposal has the endorsement of all sports bodies, and in view of the fact that so much emphasis is always laid by our Mayor on the independent and self-reliant spirit shown by bowlers in providing their own greens, it might be as well to consider the advisability of urging the City Council to give some relief in the matter of the payment of rates on bowling club properties. If bowlers are considered to be such excellent exponents of the art of paying for the whole of their sporting amenities themselves, then it does not seem altogether unreasonable for them to ask that unfair financial burdens imposed by civic authorities should be alleviated.

Among other matters to which consideration may have to be given before next season commences is whether it is . not advisable to play all finals on the Wellington Club's green, and to try to so arrange matters that all championships shall be played on Saturdays— that is, centre fixtures. There are those who argue that the Wellington green because of its central situation, should Oe made the one place where finals should be played. There is no doubt a good deal to be said for this contention but perhaps the Wellington players are not selfish, and have no rooted obiec- . tions to favours being handed around As to whether all championship fixtures i should be restricted to Saturdays is quite ; another matter. Certainly it must be admitted that many v \ ayvs find it im . possible^ to get off for games which are ■ played m the middle of the week, not ; at any rate without a good deal of inconvenience, either to themselves or then- employers, but if an effort were made to confine centre championship fixtures to Saturday afternoons it is to be feared that it would so disorganise the domestic arrangements of clubs that,nothing but dissatisfaction would arise ; However, some bowlers, especially memibers of some of the smaller - dubs, feel

NELSON TOURNAMENT Many bowlers will be interested in the tournament which Nelson is going to Se awifi ah er tiMe- Uis «P«ted gthat at thi, ™ an T n Iar S« attendance at this very popular fixture this year were «,,t ert ,i»ed ,t a, MmCd «» A DUNEDIN INCIDENT. t "i This „s,u bJect of bowl-testing' seems I Pion of champions contet. "From all I can gather, it appears that frequent reumi-Ks were passed about Tillio's bowls not drawing properly during the pion; still no formal protest was made till after T.lhe, with two lives intact! met C. Amtman m the final, ich ' TUlie won. It was at this stao- e that a protest was made against bowk by a former defeated opponent, D. Hutchison. On Time's bowls beintested they were found wanting Calc3doinan Club's committee thereupon considered the position, and, taking as its guide Clause 10 of Law XXIV of the constitution of the association, decided that lilhe had forfeited his game against Amtman, thereby losing one of his "lives, and must play : Amtman again. This om, e ,A« ltmali, w°n, and represented Caledoaiaa Club in the chamcion of

champions contest. There has been a lot of talk since then. Some have questioned Hutchison's right to enter a protest. Clause 7of Law XXIV. state? that 'in an association tournament any player may challenge any bowl being played by an opponent upon the ground that such bowl does, not comply with the laws,' etc. Whether this permitted Hutchison's appeal (he not being actually engaged in the game) is a moot point. It must be remembered that Amtman (Tillies opponent in the last game) did not enter any protest. But Caledonian Club's committee accepted Hutchison's protest and acted under Clause 10 of Law XXIV., which reads: 'If the result of any test is that any challenged bowl does not comply with the laws the player of tho challenged bowl shall be disqualified for the !ia°m6 in which ho was playing when his 'bowl was challenged, and the game .shall bo awarded to his opponent or to tho onposing rink.' " ONE FOOT ON THE MAT. At the last meeting of tho Christchurch Centre Mr. A. Dickson moved: ''That steps be taken for the better enforcement of the rule requiring, players to have one foot on the mat when in the act of delivering a bowl." He said that in many ways the rule was a dead letter, except in big matches and tournaments, and he thought good would result if they could endlist the assistance of the clubs in attempting to get tho rule enforced in all club contests. The chairman said that there was no doubt that the rule should be enforced. 'The motion was carried, and a committee consiting of Messrs. Benzie, Smithson, and Dickson was set up to bring down a. report on the matter at tho next meeting of the centre. LUCKY THIRTEEN. People often talk about lucky thir-' teen and the numerous occasions on which the game seems to hinge on that number, but it is not very often that both claim it as a talisman. It happened at the second Rotorua. tournament, when Hamilton met Ponsonby Lafferfcy, Masters, Condon, M'Guire v Jamieson W. Wright, Paterson, Mackie SfiP,,. handler" in the Auckland bear ) J.he game was fixed for rink 13, and of course Both sides claimed this as their lucky "number. From the outset Hamilton picked the green and piled on the points so rapidly that on the seventh head they were 17 to nil Ponsonby then. got one, but on the tenth Hamilton were 21 to 1. Even with such odds against them Ponsonby settled down to reduce the difference, and finding the strength of the green they fought out head after head, changing the whole aspect, of the game, till on the twenty-first head they were 21 all iheir big pull was' the eighteenth head' \vhen they got 5, bringing them up to 18, and after that they got three singles, all due to M'Guire's good saving shots. On the nineteenth Ponsonby were lying 3, when M'Guire drew second shot with his lastbowl. On the twentieth they were lying 4 when the skips changed over, and Mackie drew a fifth, but JVLOruire again drew second shot. On the twenty-first Ponsonby again came to light with splendid bowling, and were lying 5 when M'Guire, for the third time, drew' second shot, making the score 21 all. On the extra head Hamilton picked it, and were lying 3 when the skips went down, but Mackie drove with his last bowl and burnt the jack* On the twenty-third head it looked as if Ponsonby must succeed, being 3 up on-the change over, Mackie adding another with a nice draw, but it Was not to be, for M'Guire rested Mackie's bowl with a lovely shot, amidst great excitement, and Hamilton won what is described as a record game in tournament bowls. Apparently this interesting sequel justified the faith of both skips in their lucky number. THE INCONSISTENCY OF BOWLS. It is wonderful what a lot of satisfaction some competitors are able to derive from a few wins at a tournament, even if they do not have the good fortune to win their section, writes "Irundler" in the Auckland "Star." For instance, at the South Auckland Centre tournament at- Cambridge a fortnight ago a certain team from Devonport were not overburdened with wins, but they included in their diminutive list the defeat of a Hamilton team which gave the section winners, a team from Onehunga, their only loss. Since their return to Auckland they have been studying the position, and they recall that a celebrity who used to worry us at school elaborated a most convincing argument to prove that if A is greater than B, and B greater than C, much more then is A greater than C. It sounds reasonable enough, although most of us have forgotten the steps by which the final conclusion is reached, but the modern version is of far more immediate interest, for by a substitution of terms they arrive at the conclusion that if Devonport is superior to Hamilton, and Hamilton is apparently superior to Onehunga, Devonport is vastly superior to Onehunga, and would, wipe the floor with them. That is the happy little theory they have worked out, and there is only one fly in the ointment—when they did meet Onehunga the' boot was on the other leg, and they only scored about 10. Such is the inconsistency of bowls. THE CONSISTENT BOWLER. The above description is the standard test of skill at bowling. The consistency, to count as a credit, should be spread over a fairly lengthy period, say, at least, two or three seasons, says a Sydney writer. It would be folly" to judge ability at the sport by spasmodic success or by occasional failure. It would not be difficult to find an acknowledged skilful player giving at times a poor exposition of the game, and a very average' bowler displaying an occasional brilliance. One of the charms of the game is its uncertainty of result, which result is frequently dependent upon the physical condition of the players,.or the influence of harassing business experience or domestic anxiety, the effects of which the bowler has not been able to throw off entirely. The consistent bowler will not, however, be eager to allege any of the above causes for his failure to achieve success, as he, being known as a good man at the .game, equally good bowlers will make allowances, for they will have had similar experiences. the championship of the club may fail to discover its most consistent bowler of the season, as on the knock-out system a player may fail owing to one or more oi the above-mentioned causes. The best system of deciding the championship no doubt would be for each player to play every other in turn and the winner decided on the highest average of points This method, however,' has its drawbacks in that it would occasion the uso of the green to such an extent as to prevent members of the club enjoying the rink game to the degree that is possible under the knock-out system. The rink game is pre-eminently the sociable cr ame and its encouragement should be pur' sued. Consistency is bound to reveal itself, and not only will it do so in the practice games and competitions of the : club, but in addition, will be manifested in friendly games with other clubs and the player will become known in the bowling world as one of no mean order