HONG KONG—Elite bowlers Tony Cheung, Shirley Ko and Vivian Yip won their first Bowler of the Year (BOTY) Award after a successful 2017.
Representing Hong Kong Football Club, Hong Kong international Cheung won the National Singles, Champion of Champions Singles, Indoor Pairs and Mixed Fours; and finished runners-up in the National Triples and the Knockout Singles within the calendar year. At international level, he won a Singles silver and a Triples bronze at the Asian Lawn Bowls Championship.
He beat his closest rival Robin Chok from Craigengower Cricket Club by 12 points on the BOTY table.
Cheung is happy to see his progress in the last few years, “From the 8th position in 2015, 4th in 2016 to top in 2017, I feel that there was a steady growth in my ability as a top bowler.
“Since my first taste with the sport some 15 years ago, I have been learning from other bowlers and studied how they play. This year I can see my improvement in team collaboration and individual performance but I know there is still plenty of room to improve.”
Looking forward, Cheung would focus more on bowling technique and psychology, “These are the areas I need to work on so that I can contribute more to the Hong Kong team.”
For the women, Ko and Yip were level on points to share the BOTY award.
Ex-Canadian international Ko won the National Singles and National Knockout Singles; she also finished runner-up in the National Pairs and Fours.
Ko, who played for the Indian Recreation Club, represented Canada in 2003 to 2009 and won the Canadian Singles in 2005.
She believed her performance throughout the year was good because she kept following the four Cs in bowling, “Concentration, control, consistence and confidence are the four keys that allowed me to perform my usual standard during games. It helped me to overcome the pressure during a tense game and let me focus more on the delivery.”
Her next focus will be on the Premier League, “As a captain this year I would like to take the team to achieve some results in the league. It would also be nice if I can put up a good fight to defend my Singles title.”
Twenty-five years old girl Vivian Yip became the youngest women Bowler of the year. She became the first local lady to collect both Classic titles when she lifted the Singles title at this year’s Hong Kong International Bowls Classic.
Yip said that the BOTY award is proof of her hard work throughout the year, “I played with a calm mind and this brings me consistency this is the key to my success.”
Yip still holds the record of the youngest winner of the National Indoor Singles and National Knockout Singles in Hong Kong.
