A momentous memorial lawn bowls tournament that was a massive hit in 2018 will be held in Yarrawonga this weekend.
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The Joy Johnson Memorial Classic which has a $10,000 prize pool will take place from 10am Saturday, August 24 to Sunday, August 25 at the Yarrawonga Mulwala Golf Club Resort.
This event, which started as a local regional competition that bowler Joy Johnson also hoped to make a national event, will have a field of 84 individuals with 28 teams competing in the Ladies Two Bowl Triples Tournament.
The occasion is a Tier Three Australian event which will help in Yarrawonga’s aims to gain State and National level events in the area.
This year, with the schedule clashing with the Australian Indoor Championships, some previous players are unable to attend, but the event is still looking to be one to remember featuring many top line national bowlers.
There will be six games of 15 ends with $10,000 in prize money up for grabs with first prize winning $4500 per team.
The event has even made its mark nationally as it has attracted players from all over Australia including current or previous medalists.
Some of the big-name bowling stars who will be competing at the event are:
Last years winners skipped by Kelly McKiernan (Canadian International);
Wodonga local Kylie Whitehead teaming up with two WA state players Lisa Featherby and Linda Warburton;
Wendy Wilsons team from Tweed Heads;
Young gun Mikayla Long and her team from Sunbury;
Daphna Orbach from St Johns Park is teaming up with two local ladies – definitely one team to watch.
There has also been a number of current state or ex state players that have entered the special competition.
Joy Johnson, who the tournament is aptly named after, was an avid bowler and an Australian Champion.
She won the YMGCR Club Singles Champion for 14 years from 2002 to 2016 and won team championships at YMGCR in pairs, triple and fours over a number of years.
Joy also represented the region on numerous occasions, competing in the Ovens and Murray Bowls Regional Champion State Events in the over 60s pairs over two years, triples twice, fours, twice, pairs twice, singles three times and champion of champions twice.
Joy was also a member of the regional state pennant which the YMGCR won in 2010/11.
Her name will be remembered for a very long time, not only for her impressive bowls resume but for her attitude to life.
One of her last events in 2016 was the Victorian state titles where Joy was in every event possible.
Her daughter Sharon said the family were proud of how the event has evolved and were keen to see a great number of bowlers compete.
“We are very excited to present this memorial classic to remember mum (Joy),” Sharon said.
“It was always an ambition of mum’s to highlight the club and the Ovens and Murray region in particular as worthy of holding both national and state ranked events.
“Our major sponsor is Lekeal Builders who also happen to be my family. We also have some wonderful support from some of our business colleagues to help fund this total prize pool.
“Dahlsens, Reece, Cerdomus Tiles, and then locally Yarrawonga Mulwala Golf Club Resort, CE Kitchens, O’Sullivans Bricks and Windows Shepparton, Yarra Mul Fuels and Gas, Murray River Electrical and C & M Roofing (Albury).
“All of these companies committed to support not only Lekeal in the sponsorship but also the fact they want to see high profile sporting events up here along the border. A few of them also knew mum and so there was a personal attachment to the event also.
“The Yarrawonga Mulwala Golf Club Resort has been fantastic in sponsoring us and letting us hold the event at their venue.
“In mum’s final weeks she put it on her close friend Anne and myself to take the tournament to the next level and with a lot of hard work and determination, I think we have done that.
“This event is obviously significant to me because it was my mum’s dream to build the event to this level; for myself, mum’s close friend Anne Miles, her committee of Laureen Smith, Ray Brown and their team of helpers, to be able to do that is really special.
“We are determined to make this tournament one to remember this year, then even bigger in the years to come.”
The two-day event will also include entertainment on Friday night for people to eat, drink, mingle and have a boogie with locals and tourists alike also welcome to come along to the weekend and check out the lawn bowling talent on show.