The three members of the New Zealand Commonwealth Games team competing in Dunedin this week will find conditions more in their favour than in Delhi.
Two-time champion Shannon McIlroy (Nelson), Richard Girvan (Australia) and Dan Delany (Auckland) are competing in the 20th Speight's Invitation Singles at the North East Valley club.
The greens in Delhi were slow and erratic but the faster greens prepared by greenkeeper Terry Scott should be more reliable.
McIlroy first made his mark on the national scene when he won the prestigious singles event in 2006 and he followed this up by winning again in 2008.
The invitation singles attracts the best bowlers in the country and is no different this year, with 18 current or former New Zealand representatives in the 32-strong field.
This includes former winners such as Jim Scott (North East Valley), Andrew Curtain (Canterbury), Shaun Scott (North East Valley) and Ken Walker (Dunedin).
The event has a prize pool of $20,000, the highest amount for a bowls event organised by a club in New Zealand.
Four international players to watch are Andrew Kelly (Canterbury), Jamie Hill (Auckland), Mark Watt (North East Valley) and Tony Grantham (North Harbour) who are close to breaking into the top New Zealand team.
Grantham is an aggressive singles player who first reached the national spotlight when he won the New Zealand championship singles in Dunedin four years ago.
Watt and Kelly are two younger bowlers who were both unlucky to miss selection for the Commonwealth Games.
The event is special for Hill who was brought to the green as a youngster when his father, Neville Hill, was playing bowls for the club.
North East Valley bowlers have a chance of being included in the field through a club tournament.
The club players to gain selection this year are Tim Ball, Andy McLean, Matt McCombie, Colin Wheeler and the chairman of Bowls Dunedin, Josh Freeman.
The four-day tournament starts on Friday and the semifinals and finals will be played on Labour Day.
Speight's Invitation Singles
At a glance
First held: 1991Prize pool: $20,000.
Star turns: Commonwealth Games reps Shannon McIlroy (Nelson), Richard Girvan (Australia) and Dan Delany (Auckland); 18 current or former internationals competing.
Starts: October 22; final, October 25.
