BILLIARDS.

NZ Truth, Issue 252, 23 April 1910, Page 3

BILLIARDS.

t (By "Jigger.") ! Jake Sphaefer, "The Wizard 1 ' (as be | was called) of American billiards is dead. [As an exponent of the game, as played !Jn the United States, he was easily first. (The only other .player who could make: an interesting match with him was Slosson. The contest "between, these two |iiave always created tremendous interest ■ r in the States. Tobercalosis was Jhe icaa3e of his death. ' Our sometime visitor Melbourne Trepan J&as added further to his laurels, and, ln- : ctdentally, to his banking account, by iicarxying off the first prize of £100 m JJurroughes" and Watt's big English tournament. He won the final heat by 804 points, defeating H. "W. Stevenson, wiio was allowing him 1500 points m ,18000. Thetwo same contestants are set dovpx to play for the world's championshrp this month. It is generally anticipated that Stevenson will win easily. . The Amateur Billiard Championship of. Eagiand resulted m toe defeat of the holder, Major Fleming, who has held the titie for one year only. He was beaten by H. A. 0. Lonsdale who held the championship 22 years ago (m 1888). That the winner has lost none ol his ! conning daring all those years is shown by the fact that he made breaks of 102; 7.9, 73, 69, 58, and 57, winning hy 118 paints. • Major Fleming made useful runs of 153, 112, 100, 65, 63, and 69. Details ■of the game, when to hand, should be interesting. The biHiard room m the , new ViceRegal residence, resplendent with silk nangmgs, Axmi&ster carpettngs, paint and .mirror, is to be supplied with the same dowdy billiard table that for years did dnfcy m tte old Government House. Seeing ' that at least two of the Ministers ol the Crown are ardent billiardists, is it, not a little sorpnsiDK that a new and. up-to-date table is not to be installed ? The next meeting of proprietors of 1 public billiard rooms m Wellington is tobe held on Monday morning next, vrben the draft constitution and rules -will be presented, by the sub-commiilee, and officers -for the ensuing year etectea. ■ It is repotted that a certain Wellington (unchartcred but registered) club, where .billiards is the principle source ol revenue, has contracted the habit of indiscriminately admitting non-members into its precincts, and that this practice has , become so prevalent that quite a number of persons, other than members, frequently patronise the club without the ordinary member's introduction. Now, seeing that clubs of this class pay no annual license fee for their tables, and, further, Are allowed to Iteep open half-an-hour later than licensed billiard rooms, it is xcrtainly about time that the authorities •intervened and prevented the practice from becoming a mere subterfuge from the payment of fees and proper control. One frequently roads" advertisements stating that certain billiard rooms arc ■the largest m the Dominion, and I think quite a lot of ignorance prevails as to which is the largest (judging by number, of. tables) room m this country. Unquestionably the room containing the greatest number of tables is m Auckland, and is known as McNeill's room at Ponsonby. This room contains no less than eleven full-size tables, the majority tbeing of Alcock's manufacture. The next largest is Hoare and Bell's room m the Samson Buildings, Dunedin, containing nine tables, all by Alcock, and there are at least three rooms possessing eight tables, viz., Jackson's, m Auckland, j Bid's, situated m York Chambers, Manr j ners-street, Wellington, and Palmer's I room, Bixon-street, Wellington. Quite a frenzy of indignation amongst Milliard room owners m, Wellington has been aroused owing to a local proprietor advertising a reduction m: the customary charge from one shilling to sixpence per hundred. Doubtless the newly-formed Association will have something to* say to ihe matter. .