He qualified for the national Professional Bowls Association final at the Westpac Bowls Stadium yesterday when he beat Duane White (Forbury Park) 8-5, 6-5.
McLean (32), the marketing manager of the Otago Cricket Association, heads overseas two days before the national PBA finals in Invercargill. He is going to India with the Otago Volts for the Champions League twenty20 competition.
McLean will be replaced in Invercargill by White, who will get a chance to qualify for a second trip to the United Kingdom.
White has already qualified for the Scottish singles event and will get another chance to win the national title and get the trip to the other side of the world.
The winner of the playoffs in Invercargill will represent New Zealand in the United Kingdom early next year. White is top of the New Zealand PBA ranking list.
McLean switched his sporting interests from golf to bowls nine years ago and he has won three Bowls Dunedin outdoor titles.
He has been a member of the PBA for two years and this was his first win in a major tournament.
''It was nice to finally get a win,'' he said.
''It was also the first time I've beaten my mentor, Ken Walker, in singles.''
McLean beat Walker 9-4, 9-7 to advance to the final. White beat John Cross, the manager of the New Zealand PBA team, 14-4, 3-8, 2-1 in the other semifinal.
McLean played accurate draw bowls and kept his cool when White held the lead 5-3 after six of the nine ends in the first set.
McLean scored singles on the next two ends to draw level 5-5 and scored three on the last end.
The seventh end was decisive in the second set. McLean led 5-3 on the scoreboard but White had three shots on the head before McLean drew the shot with his last bowl.
The Andersons Bay pair of Graeme Jeffrey and Aidan Lusby won the ranking pairs tournament 7-7, 9-5 after a tense battle with Trish Marr and Russell Dawe.
The scores were locked at 5-5 in the second set with two ends left when Lusby scored a one and three to win the game.
