Nitz geared up to bowl like a champion
With his new set of bowls in hand, Burnie Bowls Club member Mark Nitz is aiming to go one better at this year’s Australian Indoor Championships, Jordan Abell reports for The Advocate . Nitz qualified for the national tournament by claiming honours at the Tasmanian Indoor Singles titles over the weekend in Hobart. After a nail-biting escape in the semi-final against Rosny Park’s Darren Monks, Nitz breezed past another Southerner, Derwent City’s Josh Mabb, to be named champion for the third time among a field of 27 male entrants. He will head to Tweed Heads in August, along with Mabb, to contest the Australian crown. And it’s his new set of multicoloured Aero bowls that has filled last year’s runner-up with the belief he can go one step further. His sponsor sent him the fresh equipment just three weeks ago, but Nitz already feels at home using them. “I think it’s a huge advantage to have this set of bowls because you can judge weight control and distance really well as the bowl is coming into the head,” Nitz said. “You can see the bowl changing colour as it goes down the green because of the paintwork in the bowl, which is what makes it easier, I think.” Along with the modernistic bowls, Nitz said the confidence gained from his second placing at last year’s event would also help come late August. He said he had always wanted to win the national title, but he didn’t think it was possible until his efforts in 2013. Carol Bannister, of Sandy Bay Bowls Club, qualified for the women’s section after triumphing in Hobart. The Australian Indoor Championships will be held from August 18-21 in Tweed Heads, NSW. Caption: Mark Nitz, of Burnie Bowls Club, is confident he can do well at the Australian Indoor Championships. Picture: Grant Wells.
