Two New Champions Crowned!
The weather wasn’t the only thing hot in Mackay these past two days, the quality of bowls for the Champion of Club Champion Singles event was everything we expected and more.
Any victory over Aron Sherriff, especially off the back of his recent form, is a victory you will never forget, but to do it in such emphatic style shows the class of player our newly crowned State Champion is.
Glen Pitts, formally a top-level player from Northern NSW and now a Queensland Over 40’s representative, put on a clinical display in today’s final which saw Algester’s best score a 25-10 win over Broadbeach star Aron Sherriff and etch his name onto an impressive honour roll of previous winners.
Pitts had qualified for the final with three strong wins over Alex Murtaugh, Chris Rosanes and Armando Isgro; arguably the tougher of the two sections.
Sherriff had cruised through his section with a margin nearly three times that of Glen Pitts; but fast forward 24 hours and all that meant nothing when the final commenced.
Pitts got out of the blocks the quickest and in the blink of an eye, he had established a 13-2 lead.
Things didn’t get much better for Sherriff who was unable to find a way to stop his opponents great form and Glen Pitts ran away with the game.
In the women’s final earlier today the one who got out of the blocks the fastest was also the one hunted down.
Julia Brownie (nee Allen-Best) didn’t let the slow start worry her, she knuckled down quickly and started to put her more experienced opponent under immense pressure. Brownie lost the first four ends against the former Victorian State Representative; however, it only took the West Toowoomba champ 16 more ends to claw back and defeat Burrum Heads’ Joan Tennent 25-13.
It was a one-sided affair in the women’s bronze medal playoff with Australian Emerging Squad member Kira Bourke defeating Mackay local Diane Faulkner 25-8.
The men’s playoff for bronze was a more see-sawing battle with never more than a handful of shots separating Alex Murtagh (Mt Isa) and John Hammond (Roma).
The lead constantly changed but it was former Queensland State Representative Alex Murtaugh who claimed the victory 25-22.
Our two champions, Glen Pitts and Julia Best will represent Queensland at next years Australian Champion of Champions as part of the two-week long National event on the Gold Coast.
Bowls Queensland would like to sincerely thank Henselite, Atsichs Mackay, the Mackay Regional Council for their support of this event and the South Suburban Bowls Club for their hospitality and acknowledge the volunteers and officials who made this event possible.
Thank-you to the Gold Coast Tweed District Media Team who Live Streamed 6 days of play during the Champion of Club Champion Fours, Pairs and Singles; 12 games can be found on the Bowls Queensland Facebook page under videos.
