Poverty Bay Bowls opens summer season

FIRST BOWL: Poverty Bay Bowling Club members watch as the club’s youngest member, 12-year-old Flynn Hall, sends down the symbolic first bowl of the summer season. Members played a progressive triples tournament to mark the occasion on Saturday. Picture by Liam Clayton

TWELVE-year-old Flynn Hall, Poverty Bay Bowling Club’s youngest member, sent down the symbolic first bowl of the club’s summer season.

Club president Bruce Ball welcomed members to the opening on Saturday, following a successful winter of play on the club’s all-weather green.

A Star Service Centre-sponsored progressive triples tournament attracted a field of 42.

They played three games of 90 minutes each, using a format that socially mixes the entrants.

When the individual scores had been assessed, each of the three grades had a winner.

Kathy Carroll won the skips’ section with nine game points and 17 ends. She was closely followed by Erin Sutherland, who had the same number of game points and one end less.

The director’s prizes went to Ron Seabrook and Kathryn Flaugere, with nine points each.

Seabrook had the best overall result for the day, winning 20 ends, while Flaugere won 15.

Trish Leach won the leads section. She and oldest member Bruce Smart each had nine game points, but Leach won 18 ends to Smart’s 17.

At the prize-giving, Gisborne-East Coast Bowls Centre president Robin Jefferson talked about the future of bowls, locally and nationally.