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Bowater Honda heads out to the Stoke Bowling Club

The Stoke Bowling Club is a very high profile local bowling club with a very large space, nicely tucked away in Stoke. It is the hub for the local bowling community, with most large events in the region being held there as it has 2 separate lawn greens, and a large facilities complex.

Bowater Honda has been a keen supporter of the Stoke Bowling Club, with ongoing support for tournaments, players and the club itself over the years.

We went along to the BMG sponsored Bowater Honda Classic Fours Tournament at the club on the weekend of 24-25th November 2012, and caught up with club president Allen Johnson to talk about the tournament and what Bowls means to Stoke.

Established in 1949, the Stoke Bowling Club has seen many changes, especially in the club surrounds themselves as Stoke has grown and the land use change to the urbanised landscape we see today. The Stoke Bowling Club have a big year planned next year, with upgrades to facilities on the cards.

The Bowater Honda Classic Fours Tournament operates around teams of 4. Each team of four plays in 5 games spread across different divisions, with the overall winner coming out of the results from those combined five games' scores.
Each team fields a complete team of four for the fours, 2 teams of two for the pairs component, then a team of 1 for the triples, and finally a single player for the singles section.

This year the clear winner was Bob Foster's team, who score 5 wins in all 5 games.

Bob foster

Paul Bakers team was second, with the Arthur McMillian team coming in third.

 

The Stoke Bowling Club Story.

The Stoke Bowling Club has evolved over time to become a hub of the local community

In August 1948 a suitable piece of land for a bowling club was located for $540 in Ranui Rd. it was purchased through debentures and guarantors, and remarkable progress was made during the next 12 months.

The Stoke bowling club green was opened on Nov.1949.
By 1952 a new pavilion was completed, and by 1958 this was used also by and indoor bowls section. Increasing numbers necessitated an 18 metre extension be added in 1961.

Further land was bought and in 1969 an additional four rink cotula green was laid, to cater for the growing membership.
By 1970, after problems maintaining a grass green to a suitable standard , the main green was converted to cotula too, and was an outstanding success.

Don Carter became the greenkeeper in 1975, and still is today, and maintains the greens to the highest standard.
1980 saw the demolition of the existing clubhouse and a modern attractive one built, with much fund raising by the members , to also buy new furniture. And 1986 saw further development when more land was bought and the 4 rink green rebuilt into a full size green and ample parking.
The greens were named (Bob) Wadsworth and (Don) Carter in recognition of the contribution by these 2 men to the club's growth.

In June 1996 at a special meeting, after nearly 50 years as separate clubs, the Stoke Men's Bowling Club and The Women's Bowling club amalgamated, and became equal partners in the Stoke Bowling club.

The modern clubhouse features superb kitchen facilities, a bar, television and recreational and meeting rooms. Ample off street parking is also available - this is a great setup for a vibrant and active section of our community.

You can visit their website by clicking here.

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