Open singles attracts strong field
This weekend features the blue ribbon event of Bowls Manawatu¯ Open Singles and fields for both genders feature most of the centre’s top-liners with just a few notables missing.
The men’s event attracted a field of 48, while 16 will line up to seek the women’s title.
In analysing the men’s field I can’t help but bemoan the absence of true singles exponents.
The halcyon days for bowls were from the 1950s to 1980s and it was a vastly different scenario then.
With the game much stronger numerically it was much tougher to win at this level back then but numerous top flight performers managed to string together multiple titles in singles.
The legend Phil Skoglund won five open singles and two champion of champion titles while that fabulously versatile sportsman Vic Sellars won four of each.
Michael Galloway and Kevin Wing each won three open singles while Wing also added one COC title.
Peter Shaw, Wayne Sellars, John Davies and Tony Andrews all won a brace of open titles with Shaw making his total five singles by winning a further three COC titles. Terry Puklowski and Philip Skoglund jnr never won open singles but won three COC events each.
Our modern bowlers don’t come near matching those performances.
Shane Rogers is the only one who lines up next week who has won more than one open singles (two) and he also has one COC title.
Stephen Love may only have one open title but his five COC titles places him behind only Philip Oscar Skoglund (six), father of Phil Senior.
Of the rest of the field only Brian Schischka, Ross Ellery, Craig Gush and yours truly have an open title while Jason Hawe and Terry Johnson have both won one COC event.
Surprising figures when you consider Ellery is regarded as a singles exponent and Johnson to a lesser degree the same. So you can see my basis for bemoaning the lack of true exponents in the discipline.
The pool of death is at Johnston Park and includes Love, Rogers, Hawe and last year’s runner-up Tim Hook.
If Love and Rogers survive their first round games they will lock horns in round two in what will be a mouth watering match-up if it comes to pass.
Players of note at the Northern section are Gush, Schischka and Ray Boffa, while at Palmerston North Ellery, Johnson, John Tiddy, Terry Curtis and Clayton Simpson will keep that section competitive.
I can’t give the same in depth history on women’s singles as I don’t have access to their records but I don’t need records to tell me Bev Budd and Mere Fryer are outstanding singles players and they are on track to meet in round two if they get past their first opponents at Ashhust.
That won’t make those in the one life group feel very comfortable knowing either Budd or Fryer will be meeting them early on in the day.
Sheryn Blake is in form and another Open singles winner while Lyn Jensen has one champion of champions title.
It will be an interesting day’s bowls and the time-honoured twolife system soon sorts the field out.
After day one the men’s field will be cut to six two-lifers and 18 one-lifers and the women will have two two-lifers and six onelifers.
■ Manawatu¯ interclub was concluded for the season on Saturday and Palmerston North Gold won the men’s division two from Terrace End and the Palmerston North Blue team. There was some controversy during the day over substitutions and replacements and I don’t consider clubs are fair on the centre executive when they don’t refer to conditions of play and the lawbook.
Since forever substitute players have had to be of equal or lesser ability to the player they replace.
In the end it didn’t matter because the team that won was not compromised, but a couple of different results could have provided an unnecessary headache.
Division four (any gender) was also decided on Saturday and the smiles on the faces of the victorious Terrace End players was a pleasant reminder that this game caters for players at all levels.
Whether it is division four, a gala day, or ham tournament, your day in the sun is exactly that and is to be cherished.
■ Some disquieting talk around the traps on Saturday about incidents that could have been avoided if sportsmanship was put first and never forgotten. Our sport doesn’t need it.
Good Bowling and take the chance to look in on some good singles games this weekend.