One of the oldest billiards Leagues in Canada is entering its 80th season this year. The "Winnipeg Veterans Billiards League" was established in 1923 by veterans of WW1 who were members of the Fort Osborn Army Barracks in Winnipeg, Manitoba.
Harry Lockwood was one of these original players and was consistently involved from this time until his death in December 1970. He was always one of the highest handicapped players at around -250 points until a cataract operation caused this to be reduced to -100. At the age of 82 he won his last game by more than 100 points even though giving his opponent 125 points start. However, he collapsed and died minutes later at the table at Fort Rouge Legion and the League now present a trophy in his memory, which is restricted to the best 16 players. The oldest surviving member is Tom Hargreaves, who played his first game in the League in 1949. Now a "life member" he was also the League's secretary/treasurer for 25 years.
The League currently has ten teams competing in handicap games of 200-up with a total of seventy-six registered players. Fraser Durham (Norwood No.2) is the back-marker with a handicap of -330, and the other handicaps run through to +30. Last season the Norwood No.1 team took the honours, and the highest break of 101 was made by Rick Kendall (-220) who plays for the John Osborn team.
The League organises a range of competitions designed to suit all their members, regardless of ability, including an annual trophy for the player voted the most sportsmanlike and another for the "most feared". Kevin Corrigan (Imperial Vets) is the only player to have been a recipient of both of these seemingly contradictory accolades, while Jules Mortinson (Norwood No.1) was regarded as the "most feared" player of the most recent season.
Anyone interested in keeping up with the League's activities can visit the Winnipeg Veterans website which is regularly maintained with the latest information.