In focus

Another club competition quarter final this afternoon against a competent B Team player. It's the Men's Handicap Singles, and I'm giving my opponent four shots. So I've got to get to 25, he's aiming for 21. He knocked a good A Team player out in the last round with a similar difference, so a bit of a challenge on my hands.

I'm seeing his handicap advantage as just a couple of winning ends to me. Aiming to make that up pretty quickly. Doesn't quite work out that way. I do gain half the difference by the third end, 3-1 to me. But another couple of ends and it's 5-3 to him.

I'm not panicking, but also not making any headway. The sun is high, the sky clear blue and it's over 30ºC in the shade. The local climate is classed as semi-arid and our automatic sprinklers placed around the green edge are normally in frequent use. But they're currently out of use, the heads being replaced. An inadequate garden sprinkler is all we've got and the green is fast. Not at all to my liking. My line spot on but the length a bit variable. At least getting enough near the jack to keep pace.

My opponent then has a wobbly few ends, his bowls all over the place. Within four ends I've gained fourteen shots, 19-7 to me. Only six more to win and things going to plan!

Wish my opponent had read the script. He gets back on track and has a string of six winning ends. By the eighteenth end we're effectively all even. I still need five to win... BUT HE ONLY NEEDS FIVE TOO. Rats!

Keeping my head down and bowling as consistently as I can pays off again. Four to me. Another two single bowl ends and the match is finished, 25-15 to me.

So that's one quarter final left to play, the Men's pairs on Sunday evening. Next week I've got three semifinals to play in two days. Lots of rain forecast for Saturday, so hopefully conditions right up my street next week.

Here's the scorecard.