The Indianapolis journal., 1893-09-19
IVES LEADS ROBERTS
Great Match Between the Billiard
Champions at Chicago.
The Englishman Led Until the Last Inn
ing When Ives Ran 304 on the An
Choir Nurse-SpOrting News.
CHICAGO Sent 1s-In the 6rst nights

CHICAGO, Sept. 1S.-ln the first nights
billiard game between Frank T.. Ives. OF
Chicago, aad John Roberts, jr.. of En- gland.
at 5000 points up. LEGO a night, modified
English billiards for S2.500 side. Ives
led, with the score ], ,000 to .S3. It looked
like Roberts's game all through, until the
last inning. when Ives beat him by mas
terly nursing and beautiful run
of S04 1t has already become
apparent that the game will be a duel be-
tween the two distinct styles, Roberts
playing English billiards wholly and Ives
depending on the well-known American
system of nursiDg Each man Is champion
In his respective country. and they met to-
night in Central Music Hall to begin the
series. The game Is being played with two
and-one-quarter-inch balls. on six
pocket table. six by twelve feet.
and brought from London for the
occasion. IL was the second encounter OF
these players, the first match being played
in London last May. having been won by
Ives by score of 5000 TO 3.S2l. Roberts
America. The attendance was quite
large and included many Englishmen
and liberal number of local
billiard celebrities. Prior TO opening play
IL was announced that Roberts would play
any man In the world 2i. 900 points, regular
English game. for Il 900 side. Roberts TO
give odds OF eight thousand points. tn
siringing for lead Ives won. but missed his
shot. Roberts seemed not TO get on good
-erIns with the balls for the first few OPEN
iDgs, while Ives was rough and uncertain
in his strokes.
The Englishman was the first to get un-
der heedway. He quickly gauged the
speed of the cushions and with line COM
L 4-.-- .st
great facility III using the winning and
losing hazards. he rapidly drew TO tho
front. His run of III In the twelfta inning
was n fine example OF delicate nnrsing and
accurate position play. He was not
afraid to take the cushions freely
for his carrOms and did all his
work like thorough billiard player. He
finally closed the inning with the miss of d
masse shot. which Ives or Shaeffer would
not miss once In . thousand times. Runs
OF 45 and 3S for the BritOn brought bis
score MP TO 364 at the end of the fourteen ID
inning. against total OF 73 for lvee. But
the Chicago boys turn came In the seven
teenth inning. when be- found the balls
short rail, about midway. BY the
time he had reached the corner
he had clicked off l06 points. Now
came the new restriction i'm osed in cODse-
9uence OF his big jaw run IN the London
match. This time the jaw as barred, 10
IL made no difference. lie tur.e. the cor
ner with one strok-. and lid it win abso-
lutte perfection. 30 that the balls were on
the long ralI III perfect shape AT lsS came
an unlucky freeze and the balls were
spotted. ives missed from the lay off. His
score WAS now 342 against 37S for Roberts.
During the rail nurslng Roberts. for the
iirst time. stood up near the table watch u <
every shot made by his opponent. Moder-
ate resulte were the rule for the next few
innings, but Ives gradually closed the
gap. so that the end of the twenSy-fOurth
saw him but % points behind. tie now
missed several times. and Roberts opened
his lead to nearly hundred. the calling
being 5i0 and 455 at the end OF the twenty
ninth. It was along here that Roberts
made clear tiuke, and gracefully &C.
knowledged it By a smile and bow. Here,
too. Ives astOnIshed the Britisher and won
q big round of applause by jumping over
the white and pocketiug the red bail. /,
was the only way he could overcome n
hard line break. and was an extraordinary
shot
In his thirty sixth inning Roberts sho we'd
,some steady billiards. and with we'll
| played run of 81 brought his score to 66S.
| against lves's 1896 The American WAS now
meeting with some tough breaks. the re-
suit of strong safety play by his opponent.
| and was not dong we'll with them. In tho
fortieth inning Roberts got in very good
left-hsnd rail opening, but he oould only
| get II out OF 1t. Again in tho forty-frsi
the balls were ideal in shape on the
| nbtuThl cuu rail-. out Db Du0LeO
| them into a line and missed at 20.
| All THE time. however. Ives was
| averaging less than four, and at the oloss
| OF the forty fourth inning Roberts was PSI
| points In the lead. In the forty -seventh b
| the Chicago man had worked hard for the
rail, and finally cot 1t right-handed. He
rounded the jaw at fifty eight and started
down tho long cushion. At 12i he froze
| again. and again missed the lay-off shot.
For his tiftieth inning after success.
| sion of ciphsrs, Roberts put in a
| neat collection of losing hazards
using follows, draws and the dead stroke
| with great proficiency. In this way he
| soon drew away from his opponent and
had lead of nearly two hundred at the
| end of the tifty-third inning In miesi q .
| he lott Ives fine opening. and. with "A dar-
| ing Inasse shot ne rallied the balls on th 4
| end. clicked them around the corner pock-
| ct TO the long rail at 130 and went on with
rapid play. this tine keeping the balls q
| little further apart To avoid freezing
! As he reached 200 and was in advance OF
| his opponent a mighty shout went up from
| the audience. At 2S6 he drove the bail,
| pass the middle pocket and ran out hi.
thousand. with the balls IN perfect posl
| ton To renew the play tomorrow evening
| Roberts score was S93. Average Ives
1S?SI54; Roberts 10 1853. Highest runs
| Rah