This year's Major Singles was off to a flying start last weekend, with eight games for round 1. These games were played in less than ideal conditions, with heavy green, drizzle and high humidity making for an uncomfortable start to the championship.
Saturday 9th Feb saw four clashes in more favourable conditions, although still slow following a heavy downpour the previous night.
- Dallas Palm and John Skidmore looked to be headed for a marathon match with single scores being the order of play. From the 2nd end, Dallas led all the way. Each time Dallas made a small break, John would reciprocate and close the gap again. Final score Dallas 31 to John 22.
- Jim Ede and Max Walters had a relatively quick game, with Jim in demolition mode against Max. Regardless of how much effort Max applied, Jim had the answers. Jim took control at the eight end, not letting Max build any momentum or counter-attack. Final score Jim 31 to Max 9.
- Ross Fitzpatrick and Geoff McIntosh had 38 end battle lasting just under 4 hours! The battle was tight all the way with the margin typically under 3 shot for most of the game, and the biggest margin was only 5 shots at the 32nd end. The lead changed 8 times indicating the very highly competitive nature of the match. Despite the strong battle, there was much friendly banter and laughing during the match. Eventually, Ross took the match 31 to 26.
- Steve Arnold and Darrin Ede had a close game. Steve thought he had the game in the bag when sitting at 30 to 28, however, Darrin wasn't happy to let a win slip out of his grasp, finishing with a triple to take the game 31 to 30.
Round 3 is scheduled for Saturday 16th February. However with some semi finalists playing in the State Triples, there will be some change to the schedule.