The entry of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle in the B.A. Amateur Championship is especially gratifying to those who desire to see the amateur championship placed on its proper pedestal.
Not so much because he occupies a unique position in the literary world and a foremost place in the world of sport generally, but more by reason of the splendid example set to others in his own social circle who are known to have the best credentials for competing for the blue riband of the amateur billiards world.
Much is known of Sir Arthur's ability as a cricketer and in other forms of sport, but very little of his capacity as a billiard player. I am, however, told by those qualified to express an opinion that Sir Arthur Conan Doyle is no mean cueist.
Tuition from Mr. Mannock, the well-known billiard coach, and some practice games with good players at the Billiards Control Club, of which he is a member, to say nothing of concentrated practice on his own table, have made of Sir Arthur a very fine player indeed. He is, I am informed, of the sound rather than the brilliant type of player; but that is in his favour, for your brilliant exponent is rarely consistent. And sound consistency in billiards, more especially in championship contests, is a more valuable asset in the winning of games than mere occasional flashes of brilliance.
Sir Arthur, I am told, is a fine hazard striker, but is no means a "slave" to the stroke made famous by the young Australian, George Gray. On the contrary, his repertoire of strokes is fairly extensive, and, if favourably drawn in the approaching competition, he is likely to run pretty well into the event.
Altogether, the participation of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle in the big amateur billiards event of the year must have an enormous effect for good on a game of which he has become one of the keenest devotees. One may express the hope that it will mark the dawn of a new era in what ought to be the finest sporting function of the year in billiarddom.
Another notable entry is that of Mr. S. H. Fry, whose return to the game after an absence of several years is particularly welcome. Since he won the billiard championship in 1900 (he was also champion in 1893 and 1896) Mr. Fry has earned a world-wide reputation at golf, among his great achievements at the sister game being his victory in the St. George's Challenge Vase in 1901 and his second to Cecil Hutchings in the amateur championship at Hoylake the following year.
If Mr. Fry gets back to the form displayed a little over ten years ago—and he has been putting in a vast amount of practice recently— one would hardly look beyond him to supply the winner of the southern section of the amateur billiards championship. Moreover, he would also prove a serious menace to the holder of the title itself— Mr. C. Virr, of Bradford.