The Art Of Golf - When Twin Passions Come Together

I have written before about my my late and growing interest in watching the LPGA. The main reason for this 'sporting flowering' being the rise and progress of New Zealand's own golfing superstar, Lydia Ko.

To see someone so young achieve so much, in such a short space of time, has been quite extraordinary.  She is a credit to her family and a proud Kiwi, which her adopted country greatly appreciates.

A growing interest in golf reminded me of the unique shape and patterns of golfing paraphernalia and the figures in action which lent themselves to artistic interpretation.

The result is this coffee table book which records recent art works based on a golfing theme.  As I stated in its introduction I make no apologies for the eclectic mix of styles.  They were used as the mood took me!

The Art Of Golf

By Roger Smith

Click on the book above to see a preview or go directly to the publishers here. The art works illustrated in the publication are also available as quality prints from TheGolfStore.

A Golfing Epistle - Keep It Simple

There is an old adage "Keep It Simple" and I can't help but think that the life of a professional woman golfer gets more complicated by the minute.  This complexity has to have an impact on their game.

Take the example of our New Zealand golfing prodigy Lydia Ko.  Her great gift was apparent at a young age and she has not disappointed with her rise in the women's game -  even reaching number one in just her second year on the LPGA circuit.

Being number one in anything, particularly sport, is both a blessing and a curse.  The positive side is the increasing queue of prospective sponsors & product endorsements. The negative being the increase demands on time and pressure to maintain the top spot.

When Lydia reached the pinnacle of her sport former World #1 Stacy Lewis sent a warning about the pressure that comes with the ranking.  Lewis should know as she too faced the challenge.  

In a 2013 Golf Channel article she is quoted as saying “I love having that pressure.”  As the writer wisely noted at the time, "Others have made similar brash statements, only to find later that the love doesn’t continue as the pressure grows. Now it’s her turn."

It is no coincidence that much as Lydia and we all reveled in her ascension, her game eventually started to falter.  I suspect even her very supportive parents would have wished that this particular No.1 accolade arrived a little later in her career.  But winning tournaments means an inevitable rise up the Rolex Rankings and successful Lydia Ko has certainly been.

On top of the above are other factors that influence how any professional golfer plays on the day.

Leaving well alone

Take for example coaching, or coach swapping to be more precise.  Some LPGA players have had more coaches than I've had hot dinners!  A slight exaggeration perhaps but you get my drift.

The swing may well be 'the thing' but constant tinkering does not necessarily yield results.  You don't have to look to far to see players who have suffered from over-coaching and have lost confidence in their own natural abilities.

Not that coaches are bad news; they are important to the game.  But sometimes I suspect that coaches need players more than players need coaches.  A good sport coach in any code provides an impartial and critical pair of eyes.

Sports psychologists are another species that I would give a wide berth unless 'needs must'.

Injuries

While not officially a contact sport, a golfer's body goes through stresses and strains that we mere mortals have never had to endure. Those tall in stature may have an advantage in swinging their clubs but conversely they also place greater pressure on their joints and muscles.

While rugby players often retire as beat-up crocks, golfers can also suffer long term medical problems; while they are playing and in their sporting afterlife. One need look no further than the elegant play of Michelle Wie who has battled on through the 2015 season despite a rash of injuries that have thwarted any serious comeback.

The joy of travel

I choose this sub heading advisedly.  As one who did a lot of long haul travel in his career I know the frustrations of constant travel and hotel accommodation.  Lost luggage and (worse still) severely damaged gear arriving on the conveyor belt are constant threats.

Jet lag and congested airport concourses don't help much either.  On the plus side there is the joy of discovering a new culture; the people, food and customs.  But after visiting the same countries each year this thrill of discovery soon palls.  The way around it I found was to take a camera and record experiences in a blog.

Major focus

Why is people keeping saying that a golfer hasn't really succeeded in the sport if they haven't won a Major?  In my book a player has succeeded if they win any tournaments and are constantly in the top ten rankings.

The preoccupation with 'winning majors' is really a sideshow in a sportsperson's career.  It will happen when it happens, and I suspect that young Lydia Ko is finally coming to that realisation. At least I certainly hope she is.

Media Mayhem

And finally I would suggest that the most successful golfers are ones who disregard what the media says about them.  The media never give up.  They have column centimeters and webpages to fill.   Reading stuff others write about you can add extra pressure that no player needs.

Even as I write this columnists are delivering their player expectations.  For example:

"A victory at Turnberry or in the Evian Championship next month would make Ko the youngest winner of an LPGA major, which would be fitting given her teenage success"

My advice to Lydia. Do your own thing.  You are at your best when you enjoy what you do without the expectations of others.  In fact  this advice could apply to anyone on the LPGA circuit and good luck to them all.

Golf (After Nicholson) - Art Print

I always admired the minimalist abstractions of Ben Nicholson.  This, coupled with the fact that today is the first day of LPGA golf in 2015, resulted in a golf inspired composition.

Golf (After Nicholson)
Print on Canvas
Roger Smith 2015

Copies of this print are available here.

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Today's Art Work - Rugby Composition 2214

Rugby Composition 2214
Roger Smith 2014
Digital collage
Prints available here or here.

Combining my interest in the game of rugby with a passion for art.

Asian Golfers In The Ascendant

Golfer Lydia Ko in action.
Source:  LPGA

One of the passions of Singapore, besides food, is golf.  That is, if one can afford the cost of playing the game which George Bernard Shaw once snidely described as "typical capitalist lunacy".

The cost of playing golf in Singapore as in other parts of Asia is very expensive and a club membership is coveted and sometime traded.  Despite this prohibition golf has become an all consuming relaxation and competitive sport for many.

Which leads me on to the admission that in recent months I have become rather an avid followers of the Women's LPGA.  Now while some of you may assume, quite erroneously, that it it the sight of lithe young women that proves the attraction, it is in fact the success of the Asian women golfers that has attracted my attention.

In particular the remarkable achievements on the New Zealander of Asian descent, the sixteen year old, Lydia Ko.  In the LPGA ranks the Koreans and Taiwanese perform extremely well and young Lydia at the tender age often outshines her older compatriots.

This has been recognised two days ago in New Zealand when she was named New Zealand's Sportsperson of the Year, the youngest ever to achieve this honour.

Her elevation to the professional ranks and her previous prowess as an amateur playing against professional has been nothing short of remarkable.

What many of us really appreciate is not only is this teenager a sporting prodigy she is also unassuming, well-mannered and a good sportswomen overall.  Sportsmanship is more than just performing on the course, and she has it all.

As I write Lydia Ko is sitting two shots behind the joint leaders of the Australian Womens' Open, with the final day at hand.  We shall have to wait and see what transpires but she will surely maintain her world number four ranking after another great performance in this, her first year as a  professional.

After Australia the tour heads to Thailand where the playing conditions will no doubt be just as hot as Melbourne, but with humidity to match.  One hopes that there will be no thunderstorms during the tournament which often temporarily curtail play on Asia's links.

Being struck by lightning while playing a shot with a five iron is not something one would want to contemplate!

Mr Flakey Crust & The Six Kilometres Of Fame

It's a fairly well-know fact that if you eat a lot of pastry your days as an aspiring athlete are numbered.  Too much stodge does not a sprinter make!

So it comes as no great surprise to learn that the recent local entry winner of the Singapore marathon, a pastry chef called Tam Chua Puh, cheated.  

When he turned up at the tape several minutes ahead of Singapore's finest athletes it took the race organisers completely by surprise.  It transpires that Mr tam is somewhat of a dab hand at such deception having pulled the same ruse in the previous two marathons.

The reason; he simply wanted a medal and T-shirt for finishing the race.  So he ran 6 kilometres and then took a short cut to the finishing line, choosing to avoid running the additional 36 k's required for a legitimate result.

Of course he is but one in a long line of marathon cheats.  Take the case of Cuban born Rosie Ruiz who in 1980 was crowned the female winner of the 84th Boston Marathon.  She traveled by subway through the majority of  the course only to burst through spectators a half mile from the finish and claim victory at the finishing line.

Then there is a Michigan dentist who magically seems to appear on the winners podium despite being photographed near the back of the pack for the majority of the race.  Or the ex-Army mechanic who took a free ride on a spectator bus only to rejoin the Kielder Marathon and claim a medal.  The latter was subsequently disqualified as several people had noticed him hiding behind a tree near the finishing line before he slotted in behind the leading two runners near the finish.

I blame Tam Chua Puh's lethargy on his trade.  The best pastry, as any cook will tell you, is made with lard as its molecular structure gives a flaky crust.  And lard is a product of pork which, in combination with sugar and salt, is enough to slow anybody down.

Whatever his reasons or motivation, the marathon days of Mr Tam are well and truly over and he will have to content himself with jogging around McRitchie reservoir in the future.

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Sport And Sportsmanship No Longer Share The Same Bed

If you don't like sport then look away, for this is a short and sharp 'rugby rant'.

More precisely it is a commentary on the sad reality of contemporary sport which in many cases now seems devoid of its one important quality, 'sportsmanship'.

I remember with great affection attending the 1956 rugby match between the visiting Springboks team from South Africa and my home province Taranaki.  Resplendent in my amber and black knitted hat which my mother had spent many hours producing, I went with my father to stand on the terraces to see the match.

It was cold as only a Taranaki winter can be but I soon warmed up jumping about with excitement at every flowing movement of the game.  And there was plenty of action, the provincial mascot (a bull called Ferdinand) leaping around with equal vigour.

The 1956 rugby match between Taranaki and the visiting Springboks team

Nobody really gave Taranaki much of a chance of winning but it was team spirit and the home crowd support that saw them match the tourists and produce a very creditable draw.  Several of this provincial team's best performers later went on to become All Blacks.

But this was just one such regional match amongst the many over the years that I enjoyed.  The noticeable difference between then and now being that these earlier players gave their all were part of a wonderful amateur code, unsullied by trappings of so-called 'professionalism'.

Fast forward fifty plus years and we are are in a different era when it comes to sport and what constitutes sportsmanship.  In my day no individual was bigger than the game itself even if you were a star player.  If it was a team sport, you were part of the team and did your best by them for the greater good.

Nowadays it is quite apparent that sport and sportsmanship are diverging markedly. It is all about how much money one can make as a sportsman, or sportswomen.  The impact of any personal decision upon a team is a secondary consideration if at all, to be disregarded if the the money is right.

Being a great athlete does not automatically equate to being a great sportsman, if sportsmanship and the team are measures of one's success both on and off the field.  

In my day our ambition was to play for our province and if you were good enough receive national honours.  A hefty pay packet was never the motivation nor even a consideration.

This past week we have witnessed the less than edifying spectacle of a New Zealand athlete holding both the NZ Rugby Union and the Australian based National Rugby League to ransom as he dithered between accepting one contact offer or the other.  This same player also displaced another who had been previously selected to represent New Zealand at the Rugby League World Cup.

Let's be frank about this - no player is greater than the game itself. This athlete chose to play league in the end so cut him adrift and forget about chasing or signing him in the future.  There are other younger players coming through who should be nurtured and the money that was on the table over this contract offer could be put to better use.

The media (who are making such a meal out of this turn of events) should also be reminded that just last week they were describing the rugby test between the All Blacks and the Springboks at Ellis Park in South Africa as "one of the greatest ever".

The aforementioned player was not in the team and did we suffer as a result?  No we did not.  

The Ellis Park match was great game because it was hard fought, both sides giving their all for the team and because of the sportsmanship shown by the South African captain when an official's error could have jeopardised the opposition's chances.

Today's editorial in the New Zealand Herald neatly sums up the actions of the player I referred to above:

"Williams has good instincts on a rugby field. On the wider field of life he leaves a lot to be desired."

And that is the lesson that sport should be teaching us - sportsmanship is all about consideration for others and working hard for the collective good.

And, if you are a rugby player like I was, surviving eighty minutes in the forward pack on a muddy field was foremost in one's mind!

The author (circled) played representative provincial rugby for Manawatu Juniors in the late 1960's and was part of the championship winning Palmerston North Teachers College teams in 1967 and 1968. Prior to that he played most of his rugby at New Plymouth Boys High School where he was a boarder.

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"Back Through The Gates" - A Boarders Memoir Published

Back Through The Gates by Roger Smith

I have finally put pen to paper and recorded some of the hijinks I go up to at boarding school in New Plymouth!

A direct link to the book can be found here.

Something Rotten In The State Of.......Sport

Amateur Sport the way it used to be

I'm the first to admit it, I think professional sport has ruined sport - full stop! In my playing days (rugby) we were all amateurs what ever grade or representative team we played for.

We didn't get paid for playing but the reward of reaching rep. team status, playing for your province, was reward enough. You might get a free meal if you were visiting another club and of course representative kit was provided by your rugby union. That was the sum total of the 'perks'.

But then rugby went professional and the marketing men and player's agents moved in. Salaries were paid and rapidly spiralled upwards. Now we are in the absurd situation& where the once cherished All Blacks are no longer a team but a 'brand". To compound the idiocy the "brand" has been further diluted so we don't just have an All Blacks team any more, we also have an All Blacks Sevens team.

But this is not the only problem with morphing what were amateur sports into 'entertainment products'. Two very ugly consequences have recently emerged. This past fortnight we have had confirmation of just how corrupt sport betting is.

According to Chris Eaton, ex-FIFA head of security, gambling houses in South East Asia form the foundation for organised crime gangs to generate huge profits from sports match-fixing. Singapore has been fingered as playing a pivotal role the fixing of about 680 overseas football matches says an Interpol and Europol report.

Scarcely had we digested this piece news than the sport-mad Australians revealed that the use of banned drugs in Australian professional sport was rife. The report can be seen here.

" Despite being prohibited substances in professional sport, peptides and hormones are being used by professional athletes in Australia, facilitated by sports scientists, highperformance coaches and sports staff.
Widespread use of these substances has been identified, or is suspected by the ACC, in a number of professional sporting codes in Australia. In addition, the level of use of illicit drugs within some sporting codes is considered to be significantly higher than is recorded in official statistics.
The ACC has also identified that organised crime identities and groups are involved in the domestic distribution of PIEDs, which includes peptides and hormones. ".

So all in all it is a very sad indictment on what sport as we once knew it has become; hardly the motivation to encourage youngsters to take up a physical challenge in a field of their choice.

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The Gloves Are Off And So Are The Maids

With the Formula One season fast approaching the call has gone out for volunteers in Singapore. Although the race itself is some off, in late September, these hardy souls are expected to undertake at least 32 hours of training if they hope to qualify as marshals on the big day. For newbies there is an additional 10 hours of theory.

No doubt this will appeal to 'petrol heads'; those who cannot afford their own Ferrari or Lamborghini. It has to be said that there quite a few owners of vehicles such as these and it sure beats travelling in a battered Comfort diesel cab around town.

Part of the training is learning to decipher the various track and flag signals. No excuses for stepping on to the track at the wrong time.

Formula One has been a mixed blessing for Singaporeans but is part of a broader strategy of using key events to attract tourists and sports fans to the country. As the Wall Street Journal puts it, Singapore's desire to be the hub of everything is greeted as "a source of amusement to many residents of the tiny city-state".

The latest 'hub' to be promoted is Boxing, a very popular sport in many parts of South East Asia. A Championship Boxing Event Night is to be held at Marina Bay Sands with regional fighters. According to the Australian promoter his ambition is to "combine Singapore’s world-class hospitality facilities with the region’s world-class fighters, and wait for the rest of the boxing world to respond."

Of course one the most famous pugilists to emerge from these parts is the Philippine's boxer, Manny Pacquiao. Fortunately for him, and any other boxer from that country, they will now be guaranteed a good deal of local crowd support as the Singaporean Maids have at last been granted a statutory day off in the week.

There are some 200,000 maids working in the Republic although not all of them are Filipinos.  The move to provide the maid with a a day off was of concern for some employees who fear that "their domestic workers will socialize or use their time off to develop relationships and become pregnant, and have to be sent home".

Such an event can have quite major consequences for Singaporean families who frequently have both partners working to make ends meet and rely on their maids for care-taking, cleaning and cooking, amongst other duties.

With the prospect of boxing looming on the horizon it will be interesting to see what effect this has on the pregnancy rate of domestic servants (if you follow the misguided belief that all domestics have loose morals); if you are busy cheering on your champion in the ring, you can't be doing the same in the bedroom!

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Going Around In Circles

Image via WikipediaThere is an old saying about going around in circles but apparently a power fault shut down the Circle Line in Singapore early this morning.  This stranded many commuters and school children who had planned to get in early.

However with usual MRT efficiency the line was operative by 9:15 am.  Compare this speed of recovery to the disaster that was Auckland's public transport on the opening day of the Rugby World Cup.

Twice as many as planned for turned up to take the train on that day and the public transport simply couldn't cope.

Determined that this fiasco should not happen again, the government commandeered the waterfront for the duration of the RWC event and of course all of those who are accountable are blaming each other!

One journalist has described it as a 'can of worms' which indeed it has been.  So in the context of Auckland's transport failures a four hour breakdown on Singapore's Circle Line doesn't seem that bad.

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The Times They Have Changed

With the Rugby World Cup starting this week in New Zealand it is easy to forget just how ingrained the sport is in New Zealand culture.

Here is an image of an early rugby team in the 1890's.  These come from the area that I now live in, although the playing jerseys have changed somewhat from what they were more than a century ago.

Howick Rugby Team circa 1890's

The playing fields have also improved vastly, judging by the foliage in this picture.

And Botany Road which fronts our mews development once looked like this:

The Hattaway family outside Hawthorn Dene, Botany Road, south of Howick, ca 1880

By 1988 the gardens of this historic cottage were overgrown (below) but the site and house has since been renovated and is now a restaurant run by a Mr Song.

Overgrown gardens in 1988

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Their Cup Runneth Over



President Putin working out

We all knew that Australia's bid to host a future World Cup was doomed when they trotted out a severely plasticised Crocodile Dundee as part of their promotion. Most people could understand Elle McPherson's presence but a botoxed Paul Hogan was a step too far.

By comparison, the 'Alpha Male' remained in his Moscow lair, secure in the knowledge that Russia had its bid in the bag.

There was no need for Mr Putin to follow the steady stream of ex-Presidents, Prime Ministers and nuptial-contemplating Royals to FIFA's European headquarters.

Money talks when it comes to football's governing board and little else matters. Recent corruption allegations should have reinforced this understanding and people delude themselves if they think otherwise.

It is not just football; witness the recent debacle of the Commonwealth Games in India.

The reality of all of these global sporting events is that it is a select number of multi-nationals who make money out of them and these corporations and individuals are not really worried where an event is staged.

Sure, there is political kudos for those who win the right to stage a world sporting event but the real financial returns are few and far between, if at all.

It is highly debatable that the common man reaps any economic benefit at all from global events being staged in their country.

Usually there is a huge PR spin during the bidding process to sell the idea to the country and an equal amount of professional justification to cover up the real financial numbers at an event's conclusion.


 

Those countries such as China and Russia who can marshall the resources of a nation with little fear of a public backlash, will continue to stage "successful" sporting events.

 

Others should count themsleves lucky that, in these times of economic uncertainty, their bids for the FIFA world cup hosting were unsuccessful.

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Heat and Dust

Heat and Dust - Roger Smith  11/2010
Click on image to see larger photo

Yesterday I could hear the roar of a crowd echoing around our neighbourhood. This is a rare occurrence and I decided to investigate.

Three blocks away is a park and it transpired that two enthusiastic gridiron teams were slugging it out in the heat and dust.

Gridiron has a small following in New Zealand where the predominant codes are rugby and rugby league.  Most of the practicioners are Polynesians with a few displaced Yanks making up the team.

The ground is already rock hard as summer has come early to Auckland.and their protective gear was put to good use in every bone-crunching tackle.

The rules of the Amercian game remain a mystery to me, and to most of those on the sideline.

The Running Bug

Iron Man

A couple of my Singaporean friends have caught the running bug; an infestation of the mind that quickly consumes all other waking passions.

It usually starts innocuously enough. A glance in a  slimming magazine. a cycle down one of the new scenic walkways or an early evening jog, when the air has been freshened after the tropical rains.

Regrettably though this habit soon escalates to 10 kilometre races, full marathons and eventually ironman events.  To achieve these more lofty goals these hardy souls take to running around McRitchie Reservoir.

A blame this malady firmly at the feet of Expats who have brought this habit to Singapore with them.   They have been known to congregate in groups with names such as Hash House Harriers.

Don't be put off by the florid red faces of such individuals as once the endorphins have kicked in all sanity goes out the window. You may think that all of this activity is healthy; not so.

Singapore's National Servicemen in training were dropping like flies due to the heat and motor exertion, much to the consternation of their parents.  If there basic training was like mine from early days then they would have been running from dawn till dusk.

The government has heeded parental concern and acknowledged the rise of the couch potato by recently announcing that they would be tweaking the Individual Physical Proficiency Test (IPPT).  The voluntary five week fitness programme has been expanded to nine months.

Bugs of a different kind have been occupying the minds of US hoteliers as they face an increasing number of lawsuits.  The bug in question is the bed bug, which has even taken up residence in New York's Waldorf Astoria.

Singapore and Malaysia can lay claim to a more edifying honour.  They have the largest bug in the world.  In terms of length the South East Asian female Walking Stick bug with the largest recorded being a staggering 21.8".

And speaking of staggering, its time to contemplate the possibility of an evening run.

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Up The Creek Without A Paddle

It is not uncommon to see young Singaporeans getting on the bus or MRT clutching a paddle.

I was of the belief that this item was to do with dragon boat racing or some other water sport, but given the recent spate of flooding in Singapore perhaps mine was an incorrect assumption?

Maybe they are simply preparing for the Great Flood?




In the above video MM once again makes an astute observation; it is simply not possible for Singapore to become flood free.

One only has to look at the enormous volume of water that roars through the canals during a heavy tropical rainstorm to realise that it is impossible to engineer for every eventuality.

Environment Minister Yaacob Ibrahim (pictured above) is getting a lot of stick in the blogosphere regarding his previous statement that Orchard Road flooding was a "once in 50 year" event.

If you think things are bad in Singapore spare a thought for China where more than 6 million people have been displaced by recent flooding.

No doubt the authorities are keeping their fingers crossed that the next deluge does not coincide with the soon to be staged Youth Olympics. The highways are already being prepared for the YOG and motorists will be expected to be especially observant of blinking lights and YOG number plates.

There is evidently a Plan B according to the chairman of bus operations at the Singapore Youth Olympic Games Organising Committee (Syogoc). Here's hoping they won't need to use it.

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Football Fever

Image by iccsports via Flickr

There is somewhat of a malaise inflicting Singapore, indeed the whole of Asia.

World Cup fever has struck even the most balanced individuals and there  appear to be only a few exceptions.  I am one of the latter as I have not mortgaged my condo to take out a premium cable package with Singtel or Starhub.

I  have very little interest in soccer as most of the players seem to spend inordinate amounts of time writhing of the ground and faking injuries trying to incur a penalty. 

The local S League takes this masquerade one step further with players being carried off on stretchers at regular intervals, only to rise Lazarus-like as they reach the sidelines.

Give me a real man's game anytime.  Rugby is the code I and most New Zealanders were brought up with and it the one that I still follow.  The 'real' world cup will take place next year in New Zealand.

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A Sporting Chance

I enjoy sport, or at least I used to before the era of professional sport killed most of the codes I enjoyed.

Rugby was a much better game as an amateur code and I played a lot of it. It also used to appear on free to air television in New Zealand but rarely does so now.

Win at all costs seems to be the prevailing sporting ethic and it is a sad indictment on htose who play and administer games.

The South African Caster Semenya is the latest victim, with that country's senior track official now admitting he lied about gender tests being carried our prior to the runner's winning performance in Europe.

Then we have the Formula 1 fiasco which demonstrated that Renault cheated to ensure they won last year's Singapore Night Grand Prix.

This is not the sort of publicity that Singapore wants at this crucial time before the next Grand Prix, scheduled to start in a fortnight's time, as it takes the gloss off the event.

In the aftershock of a major recession event ticket sales have been hard hit and sports cheats make life even harder for organisers to attract support.

A few months ago Singapore hosted the Asian Youth Games.

Yes, there were a few teething problems and home support was disappointing. The refreshing thing was that it was about gifted amateur athletes doing their best - the true ethos of sport.

I expect next year's Youth Olympics will be held in Singapore in the same spirit and the country will the better for it.

Ultimately as the saying goes "Cheats never prosper" and long may this remain so.

Cramping One's Style

Here in Singapore the sport of choice is soccer, or football as it is termed by all concerned. Coming as I do from a rugby loving nation, the term 'football' applies to the New Zealand national game and that is not soccer.

It is the S league that dominates in these parts and it is about the only thing worth watching on local television.

There has been a bevy of scantily clad young women that have recently appeared on our small screens mid week, but I expect their tenure will be short lived as their 'show' S factor has been universally panned.

I digress. The S league is lively and it is noticeable that there are large numbers of imports in all teams; aging Europeans, wiry Koreans and the odd Australian (and I do not mean this in the literal sense). There are a good smattering of Malay and Indian players but very few Singaporean Chinese.

Inter country rivalry is also to the fore when Singapore plays other countries such as Myanmar or Indonesia. It is not uncommon for players from the opposing team to violently object to a refereeing decision, manhandle the Ref and watch off the pitch en masse.

Playing at altitude is not a problem in Singapore, although the same cannot be said for a local Brazilian team. Their team doctor has decided to prescribe viagra for all players in the belief that the little blue pill will improve blood circulation.

One can only imagine that this well meaning prescription would very much cramp their style and their stride.

The other thing that is cramping everyone's style here in Singapore at the moment is the return of the heat. The past week has brought brain-curdling heat with little respite. We must just hope for a refreshing thunder storm or two to drop the temperatures a couple of degrees.

Queenstown Bowl

There is an old building that is due for demotion in in our neighbourhood - Queenstown Bowl. As the name suggests it was once a bowling alley.

I find a lot of beauty and interest in old buildings such as these with their rusty textures and muted colours of past glory.

Yellow Heart - Roger Smith 1/2008

Singapore reportedly has 20 bowling centres and although this one is now derelict, it used to have a KTV Lounge, a Kentucky Fried Chicken outlet, a cybercafe, and arcade games centre, pool & snooker and a cinema.

A couple more images can be viewed by clicking here