BILLIARDS.

New Zealand Graphic, Volume XLVII, Issue 5, 31 January 1912, Page 8

BILLIARDS.

The Big Match. HATEVJER the outcome of the // I match between Stevenson and I LL Gray may prove to be, there is no blinking the fact of the extraordinary interest taken by the the extraordinary interest taken by the general public in the doings of the two professionals, wrote an expert in the Jxmilon “Daily Telegraph,’’ when the first match, illustrated in this page, was under weigh. No species of game that ever has been played can, surely, bring two greater extremes in the matter of style and scoring method together than Stevenson and Gray. They are unlike in all respects. The young Australian’s boyish appearance, his upright carriage, almost automatic development of pose and quickstep walk to and from and around the table, are all so utterly different to the studied deportment of his opponent as to command notice. Stevenson is the cool-headed, well-seasoned professor of his art, who has exhibited his skill in many lands and under all kinds of conditions. It is “second nature” to him to play billiards and be in the atmo-

sphere of a curious, critical company. He has, apparently, no eyes or ears for anything but the passage of the balls as they Hit to and fro upon the green • loth. He is one of the high masters of his profession; and none is more conscious of file fact than he. A knowledge of what is best suited to tickle the palate of the billiard amateur occasionally tempts him to desert the chess-like plannings of his top-of-the-table touches for classical variations of the main strokes. These flights of fancy always gather their due meed of appreciation. None appeal more than those little twists and turns of the cue-ball as it directs the movements of the two object-balls, moving side by side, ■in a series of the most delicate close-cannon touches. The sudden appearance of the cueball on the opposite side to that which It has previously been operated from and the return of the admirably controlled objects along the path whence they had been “nursed,” makes for an unfailing source of gratified comment on every •ide. Beyond question. Stevenson has the happy faculty of combining scoring effectiveness with a full complement of attract iveness.

There are bound to be patchy periods in every game. The Stevenson-Gray affair ha>- proved no exception to this well-established phase of play. At times the wilful Ixlls have defied the bestmeant efforts of either player. Then, again, lapsea of form (which will come and go while this world lasts) have shown that the high..-*, class of player

is fallible, and often troubled to make headway. One of the causes, it is said, of the occasional spells of low scoring and accompanying weak shots has been the sinking of the floor on which the table stands. Owing to one part of the bait holding more spectators than another. a subsidence, slight but sufficient to affeet the pitch of the table, has

been noticed as the various chapters of the match have worn on. The players complained that, the balls were wpt running quite truly. Then the spirit-level examination and the need for readjustment at the close of play confirmed earlier suspicions while accounting for not a few surprising mistakes rrom either player. There is no doubt that this circumstance contributed more to the disadvantage of Stevenson than his opponent. The Englishman’s tender treatment of the balls and his regular aim of gathering the balls together within the smallest reasonable compass were not well served by the give of the flooring. Other than this, it is perfectly safe and wholly fair to say that no two billiard players can ever have had a' more perfect specimen of the billiard table maker’s eraft to display their skill upon. The fine unity’ of pace between cushion and cloth, the free-running encouragement by both these great essentials, and the clear-cut shape of the whole deserve especial mention. The vast strides made in the improvement of material during the last few’ years cause one to seriously ponder over the excellence of the old-time players, who accoVplished such brilliant performances under most exacting conditions. The way of the billiard-playing pioneer was hard: Really, the disappointment of the match has been George Gray, whose name was synonymous with four-figured breaks in the succession of triumphs he scored in England last season. Since lie resumed operations in September, after a summer rest, he has fallen away considerably from his former high estate. So far as the present match has progressed the Australian prodigy has been playing in a very minor key. He -has failed to open up a business connection with the left middle pocket, and he is far less certain of hfs long shots at the top pocket than of old. That he has not yet acquainted himself with the requirements of the bonzoline balls (with which article the game at the Hol born Hall is being contested) his continual disappointing breakdowns when in position to attack the red ball from the base of operations plainly tell. East season, when he played exclusively -with the crystalate balls, to see him with bis ball in hand and the red lying centrally between the baulk-line and the centre spot meant a big break. It is otherwise now. The thing which surprises one most is the uncertainty young Gray shows in dealing with the middle pockets, the main scoring points of his

breaks. Apprehensive of failure at the slow, thin strokes, and none too certain of his run-throughs, he distributes his failures impartially. The cue-ball finds its way below and above the pocket Opening. There is no uniformity about the direction. The strokes represented on the diagrams herewith are drawn from the big match. One of the enduring features has been the ready acknowledgment of any stroke by young Gray which has set the red ball favourably for his losing hazard strokes. Two of the most striking instances in point are illustrated upon the first diagram. The “screwing-in-off-the-spot” from the D effort that “doubled” the red more than two and a-half times the length of the table drew :<• hubbub of cheering, then grew in louder volume as the coloured ball was seen to stop rolling and open up the right middle pocket for the player. It was by a different stroke in all its bearings that the second position shown occurred. With the cue ball lying almost touching the red and the object white well in the background Gray lifted up his cue butt to execute a beautiful pique shot. The cue ball recoiled into the corner pocket, and the red ball rolled down and across the line of the table, to stop when nieely placed for losing hazard practice at the left middle pocket. Another aspect of the game is presented with the reproduction of flukes committed by either exponent and within easy periods of one another. It was Stevenson who aroused reminiscences of ■"corresponding angles” surprises by his cannon attempt played from under the right top cushion. Only failing to score as intended (out of the left top angles) by a mere shade, the cue ball passed down into baulk and returned off the corner cushions as indicated, to score a spectacular cannon. Any stroke above medium pace has a prospect of achieving some measure of scoring success on such a high-speed' table as that on which this particular cannon was played. The ‘‘corresponding angle” was again in evidence when Gray, in trying to "stab” the red ball by an acrosa-the-table shot into the right middle pocket drove it forcibly full against the point of the lower "shoulder.” The rebound sent the ball hurrying in the direction of the left top pocket to find its depths.