Words: Alex Hendy, YC&AC Lawn Bowls Captain
The 2023 lawn bowls season was a busy one at YC&AC, our short seven months on natural grass overbrimming with regular club fixtures and the hosting of an unusually large number of regional and national Bowls Japan tournaments (seven).
Approximately 30 members were regularly involved in friendly games, pick-up sessions and club competition over the course of the season, of whom around half also took part in Bowls Japan tournaments.
The green opened on May 13 with a Spider, which was won by Motoko Tsuyama. The Opening Day Tournament itself was contested by 26 bowlers squeezed into eight triples teams, and was won by Terry Potticary, Tom Tyrrell and Eddie Wu.
The Sunday Morning League, contested by six triples teams, was won by Terry Potticary, Eddie Wu and Seishi Yoda.
The Saturday Afternoon League, contested by six triples teams, was won by Ishu Chugani, George Ishiguro and Toshi Kurosawa.
The Nations Cup, contested by ten triples teams, was won by New India (Shion Sakurai, Captain Kumar and Satish Tandon).
In July, ten YC&AC bowlers (three teams) took part in the 94-team Open Triples tournament at the Royal Bangkok Sports Club.
The winners of the 2024 Club Championships were:
Men’s Singles: Seishi Yoda
Women’s Singles: Motoko Tsuyama
Men’s Singles Handicap: Hideaki Ando
Pairs: Russell Brown & Alex Hendy
Pairs Handicap: Foster Klug & Ishu Chugani
Mixed Pairs: Toshi Kurosawa & Yuko Sasaki
Seniors: Shigemitsu Itoh
Super Seniors: Vinod Kumar
Husband & Wife: The Ishiguros
The Closing Day Tournament, played on November 25 and contested by eight triples teams, was won by Yuko Sasaki, Tom Tyrrell and Ed Usuda.
A number of YC&AC bowlers qualified, through Kanto region tournaments, for Bowls Japan national finals in Singles, Pairs, Triples and Fours tournaments, but success on unfamiliar greens escaped us. However…
In the Women’s Pairs finals, held at YC&AC, Yoko Ishiguro and Yuko Sasaki finished third. And in the Women’s Singles finals, likewise held at YC&AC, Motoko Tsuyama also finished third.
Based on her strong showings in Bowls Japan tournaments over the last couple of seasons, Motoko Tsuyama was selected to represent Japan at the 15th Asian Lawn Bowls Championships. The tournament was held in Pattaya, Thailand in March 2024, with Motoko playing in Japan’s Women’s Triples and Fours teams. Motoko’s teams performed valiantly and won bronze medals in both events, a rare triumph indeed for Bowls Japan/bowls in Japan, and the first Japan team medals in lawn bowls certainly for YC&AC.
Motoko Tsuyama (right) with fellow Japan Women’s team double bronze medal winners, Maiko Kobayashi (center)
and Saki Takayama (left) of the Tokyo Lawn Bowling Club
The YC&AC lawn bowls section continues to maintain a website at goodbackwood.com, where you can find more details about all of the above and more.
Members are encouraged to join the lawn bowls mailing list via the Concierge for the latest news from the section.