BOWLING CHAMPIONS

Sun (Auckland), Volume 1, Issue 15, 8 April 1927, Page 7

BOWLING CHAMPIONS

SOUTH AUCKLAND TITLES GRIFFITHS WINS THE SINGLES (From Our Own Correspondent.) HAMILTON, Thursday. The bowling contests to decide the champion of champions rink of the South Auckland Centre began at the Hamilton East Club’s green yesterday, and when play stopped the singles title had been won by Griffiths (King Country), while the rinks competition was in its final stages. Play was conducted on the two-life principle. Rain forced the postponement of the competitions yesterday, but the green was in good order to-day, though slightly heavy. A cross-wind made conditions tricky. SINGLES CONTEST In singles play yesterday morning Vercoe (Goldfields) 18, beat Frost (Waikato) 13, while Griffiths (King Country) 19, eliminated Frost (Waikato) 18, on the 22nd head by the bare margin. Vercoe (Goldfields) and Griffiths (King Country), both two-lifers, met in the final of the singles to decide the champion of champions in the afternoon. The first game was a remarkable one, Griffiths making a great recovery after a bad start. Vercoe took four in the first head and at the Bth head was leading 12—1. Griffiths then scored a couple of twos. Vercoe again forged in front, but from the 13th head Griffiths scored four singles in succession. Following with wins on the next three heads and the loss of a single on the 20th he levelled the scores, making them 15 all. A single to Griffiths on the last head decided the game in his favour and he won 16—15. Griffiths was again responsible for a great uphill fight which gave him another victory in the second game. He failed to score on the first ,four heads, Vercoe running up a lead of seven points. Griffiths scored two on the fifth, but did not capture another head until the 9th, when the total stood 12 —5 against him. He won again on ,»the 11th with a single, repeating the effort on the 12th, but Vercoe took two on the next head. Vercoe then went off! and Griffiths steadily piled on points until he led 16—15 at the 18th head, having 2|iade a wonderful recovery. The game stood at 16 all on the following head, but Griffiths took the 20th for three, scoring a single on the last head, won the game by 20 to 16, and annexing the singles title. RINKS CHAMPIONSHIP The opening game in the rinks championship this morning saw King Country (Munro, Peters, Munson, and Sarah, f.) take the measure of Goldfields (Kristovitch, Heathcote, Peterson and By grave, s.) by 21 to 19, in a closely contested game, the issue being in doubt right up to the finish. In the second round of the rinks competition Bygrave, who played Higgott, scored a two on the first head and a three on the second. Higgott took the next and the game fluctuated until at the 7th head the rinks being 8 all. Higgott then drew ahead and at the 10th head, led 14—8. At the 13th

the game was 17—12 in Higgott’s favvour. From then on the Waikato rink was never troubled and increased its score to 31 on the 19th head. The Goldfields rink only scored a single and retired at the 19th head, leaving Higgott s rink a comfortable winner by 31 to 13. Higgott met S. Sarah’s rink (King Country) in the following round. He scored a single in the opening head, but Sarah got two on the next, and at the sixth Higgott led 6 —5. His rink increased its lead by four points on the following head and at the 13th the Waikato bowlers led 18—9. Sarah’s rink took the next two heads, making its total 14, but Higgott went ahead again to run up 24 points by the time the 18th head had been decided. King Country took singles on each of the next two heads, but abandoned hope at the 20th, the Waikato rink winning 24 —16. The rinks title will be decided today, when Higgott again meets Sarah (who has one life left).