He just needs to win two more games to get New Zealand's berth to the lucrative World Indoor Singles.
Archer (55) won the Dunedin final of the Professional Bowls Association singles at the Dunedin Bowls Stadium last evening when he beat Dennis Leeden (Wakari) 7-6, 6-6 in a tense final.
He is one of four national winners from tournaments in Pukekohe, Hamilton, Hastings and Dunedin who qualified at the weekend for the national finals in Dunedin in September.
The winner will get an expenses-paid trip to the world PBA finals at the Potters Leisure Resort in Norfolk, England, next January.
Archer has been a member of the Dunedin PBA since its inception a decade ago.
He gained confidence in the final because his bowling mate Mike Kernaghan was sitting on the sidelines.
They won the New Zealand pairs title together at Dunedin four years ago.
"Mike said a few stern words if I played a short bowl," Archer said.
He was up against a tough opponent in Leeden (54), who has competed at two PBA finals in the United Kingdom and reached the second round at Potters Resort last year.
"I expected a close game from Dennis. He has all the shots," Archer said.
"My plan was to play three-quarter length ends that I'm happiest with."
Archer started well in both sets but Leeden came charging back and almost won the game.
The fifth end was critical in the first set when Archer was leading 4-2.
Leeden had drawn three shots and Archer pushed in his own bowl for the shot with his fourth bowl.
It was a game-breaking shot.
Leeden missed with his drive.
Leeden drew the bonus shot on the seventh end for three shots and was just one point behind, 6-5.
Archer played a vital bowl on the eighth end when he pushed up his own bowl for shot when he was one down on the head.
Archer won the first set and this gave him the trump card in the second set.
Leeden had to win the game to force the tie-breaker set.
The Taieri bowler continued to play accurate draw bowls in the second set and led 4-1 after five of the nine ends.
He played the master stroke on the sixth end when he drew touchers with his first two bowls.
The jack was tucked in behind his two shot bowls that acted like an iron fortress that made it difficult for Leeden to attack.
Leeden, as expected, came storming back to score two, two and one on the last three ends to draw the set.
But it was too little and too late.
The statistics of the game show that Archer played more consistently.
He gained seven touchers compared with three by Leeden and hit two of his three drives or weighted shots while Leeden hit the target on three of his six attempts.
Archer beat New Zealand representative Andrew Kelly (Christchurch) 5-5, 8-7 in the semifinal and Leeden beat former World Bowls representative Ken Walker (Fairfield) 5-6, 12-3, 2-1 with a superb last bowl to the ditch.
In Pukekohe, former New Zealand representative Jamie Hill beat fellow Aucklander Neil Fisher 13-3, 9-6.
In Hastings, Murray Glassey (Hawkes Bay) beat Peter Lambert (Manawatu) 7-6, 7-8, 2-0.
In Hamilton, Chris Lourie beat fellow Waikato bowler Graham Fitzpatrick 10-4, 10-2.
