Southport B Level and Super B (Liz Wilson reports from Victoria Park, 22/07/12)
Sunshine at last! 18 players smiled their way through the weekend with not a waterproof in sight. The manager even arranged a fly past by the red arrows (something to do with a celebration of a local BEN convalescent home). 8 players in the handicap range ½ to 2 ½ contested the super B trophy with 10 players in the handicap range 2 ½ to 8 competed for the B level Hawkins Cup. Topically on the weekend when the new Batman film “The Dark Knight Rises” the B level was won again by Derek Knight (Beverley) who finished on 5 wins out of 5. Peter Wilson (Fylde) was the runner up with 4 wins out of 5 only having been beaten by Derek on the first day. The Super B was won by Gail Curry (Tyneside) returning to the game after a break. Liz Wilson nearly won in the first game but managed to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory (-2). After that Gail remembered how to play and upped her game beating all the manager put before her including Peter McDermott (Middlesbrough) +2 (T) in the final.
The atmosphere was friendly and jolly, the food was Michelin standard, the bar was well stocked and the local members were very generous in letting the visitors win! Credit to the Southport club who have taken over full care of their lawns and it shows. The lawns were as good as they ever have been – definitely worth a visit – next tournament “Open Advanced” 15th and 16th September – come and have a go at beating the CA Gazette Editor! – see you there!
Super B – Winner Gail Curry, Runner-up Peter McDermott
B Level – Winner Derek Knight, Runner-up Peter Wilson
The local newspaper (Southport Visiter) reports:
B Level Advanced Tournament
In a glare of bright sunshine, tournament manager John Haslam had to pick his way through a maze of level scores to find the finalists of the annual B-Level Advanced croquet tournament at the weekend – a B-Level event for low handicap players plus a Super B-Level for very low handicaps. The event attracted well known players from Tyneside, Yorkshire, Nottingham and Fylde. Southport players performed well, with several players entered at both levels. Tony Thomas went as far as the final of the B-Level, but in a tough match saw the beautiful B-Level trophy slip from his grasp to the play of Derrick Knight of Beverley, a worthy winner. The Super B trophy went predictably to Gail Curry from Tyneside, formerly a scratch player, who is making a come back after a serious injury.