A last-ditch effort with his final bowl gave Bob Crawford (Dunedin) the gold medal yesterday.
Crawford (66), a retired dairy farmer, won the 61 and over singles title when he beat Blair Cowan (Dunedin) 11-10 at the Dunedin Indoor Bowls Stadium.
Cowan held a 10-8 lead before the last end and it looked like a tall order for Crawford to bridge the gap.
"I was holding two and that would have forced the extra end," Crawford said. "But I had one bowl left so I thought I would have a go."
Crawford drew on the backhand and his bowl nudged in among Cowan's bowls to add the extra shot and win the game.
He was excited and punched his right arm in triumph. It was his first gold medal at a New Zealand Masters Games.
Cowan (61), a retired factory manager, took control in the middle stages and led 9-6 after nine of the 12 ends.
It was a time when he should have played it safe and consolidated his position.
The 10th end was his undoing when he pushed back his own bowl with his fourth bowl and gave Crawford an extra shot.
The gap was just one shot, 9-8, and Crawford saw his chance.
On the penultimate end, Cowan built a wall of three bowls in front of the jack that made it difficult for Crawford to break in,But with his last bowl Crawford split the wall and reduced a possible three count against him to one.
Cowan's brother, Craig, went one better when he beat John Williams (Dunedin) 12-10 to take the gold medal in the 40 to 60 grade.
