COMPOSITION v. IVORY BALLS.

New Zealand Illustrated Sporting & Dramatic Review, Volume XVIII, Issue 1034, 30 December 1909, Page 11

COMPOSITION v. IVORY BALLS.

In the course of a two column criticism of George Gray in the .“ Sporting Chronicle,” the well-informed writer “ Ivor ” contributes to the opinion that the composition ball is “easier” for hazard breaks than ivory. Amongst other objections he says:—“As I have explained in these columns on several occasions, abundant proof has been supplied that the composition balls, bonzoline or crystalate, favor the oneball control of losing hazards from the red ball kind of scoring. I had my lessons read to me a long while ago, when John Roberts undertook to play regularly with composition balls. He could often do better with two balls—his own and the red—than with all three. Many times have I seen hirn score two and three hundred points, and, unless my memory serves me badly, four hundred from the red only. Their chief feature lay in the fact of the red never being taken through baulk and the enormous proportion of middle-pocket strokes played. What would frequently have been a forcing or screw shot with an ivory ball was merely a half-ball shot with the benzolines, which respond so readily to any slight touch of ‘side’ of ‘screw* to alter the angle. The composition balls in short, enable the player to make one-pace shots in almost endless variety. They do not run away from the player, and so demand his best attention on every stroke, as the ivory balls do.

“ If young Gray would oblige with a demonstration of his still truly phenomenal losing hazard abliities, first with ivory and then with the crystalates, which served him so well in his record-breaking achievement, I venture to say the distances covered by either red ball would see the ivory getting over twice as much ground, if not more, than the composition. Not only does the middle-pocket play differ, but very frequently what would mean a long loser at the top pockets with ivory can easily be made at single ‘strength’ with the composition. “ And I adhere to my often-express-ed conclusions that losing hazard play with the composition balls bear no comparison in point of difficulty with the freer-moving, lighter, and infinitely more elusive ivory ball. Mind, lam not running the composition balls down. Far from it. They in their turn are infinitely more difficult than ivory in close range play, such as the top-of-the-table game.”