BOWLING

Evening Star, Issue 19197, 13 March 1926, Page 22

BOWLING

[By Measurer.]

“ C.H,H.” (Sydney). Communica-. ' tions received. Thanks. | The interest last Friday and Saturday was in the Champion of Champions ! contest and the final game of the Fourrink competition. "With the memory that Foster, the Caledonian Club’s .representative, was champion singles player of the dominion aijd had exhibited great form quite recently in attaining that position, his chance was highly favored, Ho lost his two lives right away, Thomson, of Caversham, defeating him first; then Alf Peters, of i Port Chalmers, proving too good for | him in the second game. Peters, by the way, excelled himself, playing one of his very best games. The different opponents gradually weeded themselves out till on .Saturday J. Tonkin (N.E.V.) was left with one life to play off with A. Thomson (Caversham), who still had two lives. These men play much the same stylo of game, relying mainly ou true, accurate drawing shots for sucI cess. It proved to bo Tonkin’s day out. Roslyn green was in perfect condition, ami he was enabled to give an exhibition of the game which has seldom been surpassed. Some seemed to think that Thomson had gone off hia game, but that is doubtful. Ho drew many fine shots, quite good enough to win generally: hut if lie stopped 6m from Icitty Tonkin would put one in 4in away, and this kind of tiling occurred again and again. So Thomson was forced to resort to driving, which will never beat consistent deadly drawing* and the result was that Tonkin beat the Caversham man twice easily, and won the Champion of Champions event far the second time, his previous win having been in 1920. Tonkin is an everrehahle player, and on his Saturday’s form it is doubtful if any player in New Zealand could have beaten bun. Thomson played steady, scientific bowls all the way through, and well earned bis position. _ . It was unfortunate that Kaituna Club’s champion, W. H. Shepherd, was not able to compete. An attack of influenza prevented him, I understand. To prove that, despite its position in the interclub games, there is life in the old institution yet, Dunedin Club resumed possession of the Holmes Feathers by defeating Caledonian by a dozen i points in the final game. _ 'They earned their position fairly, being ahead in three of the four rinks, Bentley’s team having a lead of 15 over Foster’s. D. • Scott, for Caledonian, made a great | effort, defeating W. M. Hogg by 24 to 12. Since the four-rink games were started .in 1919 Otago Club has held tho Feathers once, St. Clair once, Caledonian twice, and Dunedin four times. To-day the postponed interelub games which the executive resolved should be played are to be decided. The only interest attaching to these is I tiie question whether Valley can get ! away with Roslyn and Caledonian put it over Balmacewen. If both win they are level with banner points, and will j have to play off. If only one wins it I is the champion club for the season. A large proportion of bowlers, of I necessity, confine their financial sup- : port of tho game to tho hare paying ■of their subscriptions; others give : largely of service in various ways, acting on committees and doing many things which make for the success of the clubs to which they belong; and there are a few of the many who can afford it who are ready to help with Hie money that talks. A case has been mentioned to me. A local club which contemplates extensive additions to its conveniences has found itself hampered by want of funds. Its bankers could not sec their way to advance the amount necessary on tho security offered, and no individual member or ■.combination of members came forward i to stand tho risk. __ A player belonging |to another dub Happened to bear or I the financial difficulty, and asked what I was the amount required. Ke was told ' that it was a sum well over four figures, .He at once offered fo take the risk and | advance the sum at quite reasonable ! interest. This may ho considered as | practical support ol the game. 1 Home dubs are about finishing up with their dub ties. During die week ■ St. Hilda lias found liotTi its rinks and pairs winners. The winning rink wai composed of Wakelin, Duncan, Todd, and Summerell, who defeated Shepherd, Fish, J. Nelson, and D. G. Cameron in . the final. The pairs were won by Shepherd and Gladding, who met (lourley and Braekonridgo in tlio last game. I Much comment was heard on Roslyn I green last Saturday in regard to tho j costuming of players. It was a lovely ] afternoon—fust the. wea flier for fine clothes. But quite a number of those taking part in tho game were drab individuals. The regulation flannels wer« not worn by several of tho chosen ones. When, passing the Oval, you see even the hoys in third and fourth grade cricket dressed spick-and-span in I all-whites, it seeips that tho example which the elder should set the younger I in sporting etiquette is being reversed, i The annua!' Southland pairs championship contest was decided at Invercargill last Wednesday on the Southland Club’s green. Fourteen clubs sent along their representatives, with tho result that Donaldson and Thomson (Southland 01111)1 defeated Fletcher and M’Gorlick (Bluff) in the final game by 25 to 17. D. 11. Thomson will ho ' remembered ns the skip of tho rink which took second place in tho recent association tournament. The Southland singles championship was also played this week, sixteen clubs competing. F. H. Francis (Otautau) won tho final from Harvey (Hokonui). Wellington Centre found itself unable to raise sufficient members to journey to Christchurch to contest tho inter-provincial game for tho Barnett “ Tiki ” trophy. Which sounds surprising! “Number Two,” in the Wellington ’’Post,’ writes: “Homo of tho local clubs have certainly had a heavy season of travelling, but surely, with such a large centre as Wellington, it would have been possible for at least twenty men to bo found who could have made tho trip to Christchurch, Even at tin’s late date some further effort might he made to play the match. Now, then, yon howling ‘sports,’ don’t let tho Tiki match go by default for want of a quorum!” The latest proposal to deal drastically with narrow bowls is being made hv Mr Finnan, a member of the Christchurch Centre, who will propose at the next meeting of the centre that all howls to he used in the finals of tha centre championship matches shall ha tested on the green before play commences. A short resume of the bowling career of Mr J. D. Best may be of interest. Ho. started the crams comnarativfcJy ro

cently—in 1921—and has met with much more success than is usual. He has taken W. Carswell, the well-known Taieri player, as his model, and freely acknowledges the value of his instruction. The following is Mr Best’s record:—l922: Represented his club in the four-rink championship; reached the semi-final section of the New Zealand championship doubles. 1923: Represented Ids club in the .four-rink championship; was second in the champion rinks and third in the pairs of the Southland tournament, second in the champion pairs and second in the Meadowbak rinks at Oamaru tournament; was defeated in the sixth round of the New Zealand championship singles. 1924: Represented his club, in the fourrink championship: first in champion doubles at Southland tournament; third in the rinks at Oamaru; third in doubles of the New Zealand championship ; was defeated in the seventh round of Ngw Zealand championship 'singles. 1935: First in New Zealand championship singles; Ist in champion doubles and second in the rinks at. Southland tournament; represented his club .in four-rink championship and champion rink. 1926: First in the New. Zealand champion rinks; first in champion pairs at Southland tournament j fourth in New Zealand champion pairs. Represented Otago all matches in 1923, 1924, 1825. Extract from a letter written by .a friend of mine visiting a small town, in the North Island: “There is ft bowling green here—T know, because when you want a pound of tea in the afternoon that is where you find the storekeeper.” Bowling by electric light has taken on in Nelson (says “ Number Two ” in Wellington 'Post ’). Owing to absence of , wind, the evenings have been beautiful there. The Nelson Club has four powerful lights on its top green, and the whole of the grounds are lit up, making the place like daylight. As both clubs have adopted evening bowls, it will be possible to hold a monster electric light tournament on the Saturday evening at Easter, and, judging by the interest being taken, Nelson will break all records this year with its Easter tournament. Out of over 150 playing days ibis season bowling has only been, stopped fifteen times in Nelson. It is safe to say that this would not .apply to many other towns in the dominion.