Local lawn bowler Russell Bates overcome a star-studded field of world champions and Commonwealth Games legends to take home $50,000 with a win in the Everest of Bowls tournament at Dudley Park Bowling Club over the weekend.
The event (the richest of its kind in the Southern Hemisphere) saw Bates toppling Australian national team members and interstate stars on his way to first prize, as he took down Kardinya’s Daniel Brown 31 shots to 18 in the final in front of a strong crowd at his local.
Bates was off to a flying start in his final against Brown, notching a 9-0 lead in the early goings before regularly countering Brown’s great bowls and efforts to close the gap on the score board.
An exceptional game saw the local legend come away with the victory to ensure the bulk of the prize money would remain in Mandurah, while Brown was rewarded $14,000 for his outstanding runner-up effort.
It was a great weekend for the Bates family as Ron Bates finished equal third with Mandurah’s young rising star Scott O’Brien, who also took home the Daniel Patterson Memorial encouragement award.
The tournament saw champion bowlers from around the globe flock to the Dudley Park base, including inaugural winner and current Commonwealth Games singles champ Aaron Wilson, New Zealand world champion Shannon McIlroy, Irish international Jeremy Henry, world champion of champions singles winner Aaron Teys and Australian superstars Aron Sherriff, Brett Wilkie, Nathan Rice and Ben Twist.
National under 25s representatives Corey Wedlock and Sean Ingham, along with WA star Kristina Krstic and Scottish under 25s representative Kevin Anderson, also hit the club’s greens in the hopes of taking home the cash.
Three great days of sectional play reduced the field to eight with five West Australians making the cut.
The qualifiers were Mitch Sidebottom (Victoria), Sean Ingham (Queensland), Ron Bates (NSW), Russell Bates (Dudley Park), James Webster (Mandurah), Scott O’Brien (Mandurah), Daniel Brown (Kardinya) and Tom Mitchell (Manning).
A contingent of fans braved the rain and strong winds on Sunday to see how the finalists would handle the difficult conditions, and it was Bates shining through the brightest as he pulled off the stunning victory.
For more information on the Everest of Bowls, visit the tournament’s Facebook page or the Dudley Park Bowling Club’s Facebook page.
