“Red hot” field of bowlers eyeing gold in Orange
Orange City Bowling Club’s iconic Golden Eagle Classic Pairs tournament has attracted unprecedented interest from some of the best lawn bowlers in the country.
Now in its 53rd year, the Golden Eagle tournament has long had a reputation for attracting strong competition, but this year the field is “red hot”, says tournament organiser, Lee Stintson.
A full complement of 42 teams will take to the greens on Tuesday, February 28 for the start of the tournament, which concludes Friday, March 3, says Lee, adding that all available places were filled just seven days after the tournament was advertised.
“It's been incredible! We sent entries out far and wide for people to come and play and the response was fantastic,” says Lee.
“It was great to fill that up early and the quality of player coming this year is… yeah, it's exceptional!”
Among those competing for a share in the $20,000 on offer this year are Australian representative bowlers Corey Wedlock, Ben Twist and Carl Healey — who were part of the five-man team that competed at the 2022 Commonwealth Games in England.
Irish international and Commonwealth Games silver medalist, Gary Kelly, will be taking part as well as Chris Smith, who has represented Tonga.
“We've got world champions, current Australian players, current internationals, plenty of players with state bowls experience from New South Wales, Queensland, Northern Territory, Victoria, ACT… so the field is red hot this year and whoever gets through and wins it, will have definitely have made their way through a pretty tough field,” says Lee, who believes it’s the most competitive line-up of bowlers he’s seen in his 25 years being involved in the Golden Eagle.
“Over its time, we've attracted some pretty big names, as we have again this year. I think those players realise the quality of greens that we have here at Orange City as well as the facilities in the club,” says Lee, who reckons spectators will be in for a treat over the four days of play.
“We're getting here that week, the players who are right at the top of the sport, the ones that are on TV playing in those major events are going to be here in Orange that week and there's plenty of local talent.. the better players in Orange are playing in the event,” he says.
The night before play begins on Monday, February 27, Orange City Bowling Club will host the Golden Eagle ‘Calcutta’ auction of competing teams.
Given the quality of bowlers attending, the bidding could be fierce, says Lee.
A new addition to the Golden Eagle this year is a gala sportsman’s dinner on Wednesday, March 1, featuring rugby league legend, Steve “Blocker” Roach as the guest speaker.
“He'll be here with comedian Justin Karcher, doing interviews and there'll be auction prizes, lucky door prizes, a two-course meal from the new caterers and a drinks package as well,” says Lee.
“So it will be a nice meet-and-greet opportunity for people in our local club to meet with these top-line players. Also, a chance for us to recognise those sponsors and the contribution they make to the event.”
Orange City Bowling Club's Sportsman Dinner will be held on Wednesday, March 1. Tickets are on sale now for $100 per person and can be purchased from reception.