BILLIARDS.

New Zealand Illustrated Sporting & Dramatic Review, Issue 1139, 8 February 1912, Page 19

BILLIARDS.

The billiard match of 16,000 up between Lindrum and Reece has been won by the former, the final scores being Landrum 16,000, Reece 9548, Landrum thus winning by 6452 points. During the final session Landrum made a break of 462, including 409 off the red.

The London “Sportsman” publishes the following as a good trick shot: — “Take the three balls, placing them on the right hand, left hand, and centre of the D. Then strike the ball on the left hand in order to put

it in the left top pocket; follow it with that in the centre, and finish with that on the right hand, but the last ball struck must be the first to go into the pocket, the second in its proper order, and the first last. This takes a lot of doing.”

George Gray, the young Australian cueist, this season again holds pride of place in the English break list and averages made from century breaks, having the excellent figures of 60.46 from that medium. Reece comes next with 55.67, followed by Inman with 58.80. Lindrum is fourth on the list with 53.72, a surprisingly high position, considering that he had only taken part in two games when the + "ble was made up, and well ahead of both Stevenson and Diggle. Gray has the hignest break of the season (1135), Lindrum second highest (584), followed by Inman (583), Reece (557), Stevenson (543), Roberts (540), and Aiken (524).

Particulars are now to hand by the English mail of the first match between Gray and Stevenson, and the following account of the closing session as described by “Hazard” in the “Sporting Life” is not without interest. “There were a few dramatic moments at the Holborn Hall on Saturday afternoon when the issue of the first ‘test’ match between Stevenson and Gray may be said to have hung in the balance. That was when Stevenson, after being 1103 behind ere the opportunity arrived of getting a stroke, came with such a rush as

to cut down the Australian’s advantage to 480 as the result of just over an hoar’s brilliant play. Gray was palpably uneasy at this turn of events, which was rejected in the weak attempts made to get in with a break, b: t fortunately for the Australian’s hopes and aspirations, the English champion afterwards got on to a ‘bad wicket,’ and with Gray making a remarkably good recovery in the closingstages, the result was hardly ever in doubt subsequently. There was just a I’ttle wave of excitement in the clcsmg thirty minutes of the match i he evening, when Stevenson came out with a wonderful ‘red-ball’ break, b it all things considered, it was a singularly tame finish to a historic

game, Gray requiring to go nine times to the table for the last •■.£<./ points, which carried him to game a winner by 638.”