GREAT PLAYERS OF THE PAST. CHARLES DAWSON.
By Riso Levi, Author of “Billiards: The Strokes of the Game”
Charles Dawson was born in Huddersfield. December 20th, 1866. He began his billiards at an hotel in his native town, where he was a marker at the age of 15. A year later he was put to learn a trade, and in the evenings he used to play bagatelle. Later on, when he was old enough to frequent billiards rooms, he was continually playing pool —snooker pool was unknown in those days, and he soon became so good at potting that, he could hold his own with the best players in the town.
DAWSON’S FIRST MATCHES.
The first billiards handicap he played in was at a billiards hall which was opened in Westgate, Huddersfield, in 1886. The heats were only 200 up, the limit man being in receipt of 100, but though Dawson owed 50 he had the satisfaction of winning the first prize, a handsome marble timepiece, which in after years he always used to regard with great pride. Although up to that time. Dawson’s record break was only 85, he made a great name locally by winning this handicap. So much so was this the case that a well-known Huddersfield sporting man named Jackson backed Dawson for £100 to beat John Roberts in a spot-barred match of 12,000, the terms being that the great master had to concede Dawson 9,000 start on a new table to be specially put up for the match. The match was played at the Gymnasium Hall, Ramsden Street, Huddersfield, in March, 1887. To the delight of his backer and friends. Dawson not only succeeded in setting up a new personal record with a break of 116, but also won the game with the greatest case, as Roberts only succeeded in scoring 6,780 points, whilst, Dawson scored the 5,000 necessary to win. Incidentally, this match throws some light, on the difference between our top-notches of to-day, and John Roberts. Supposing that, a match were to be arranged to-day between, say, Willie Smith and some amateur who has never made a hundred break the conditions to be the same as those arranged for the Roberts-Dawson match, to which reference has just been made. Does any billiards player who knows anything at all about Smith’s capabilities believe that any amateur who has never made a hundred break could score 3.000 points, whilst Smith was collecting 6,780. With Smith really out to win no amateur in the country, not even an Earlam or a Sidney Fry, would do anything approaching this. What Earlam may do in the future is, of course, another matter, but I am writing of today.
As a result of Dawson’s victory over Roberts, pool players and billiards players in Huddersfield fought shy of him. Pool players barred him from their game and billiards players left him severely alone, and as a result of this he determined to take up billiards as a profession. During the next, few years he was always playing money matches and taking part in handicaps, Sometimes he won and sometimes he won and sometimes he lost, but he was always advancing as a player, and on February 17th, 1890, in an exhibition game with Mr Guy Crossland at the Borough Club, Huddersfield, he had the satisfaction of making his first four-figure break, viz., 1,001 unfinished—it contained a series of 331 spot strokes. In the autumn of 1890 Dawson won a great game against Peall. He was in receipt of 2.000 in a spot barred match of 9,000 up, and Peall passed him shortly after entering the last thousand, and later on the score was called 8.607— 8,306 in Peall’s favour, Dawson then began to do most of the scoring, but when he went to the table the last time Peall only wanted 15 for game, whereas he wanted 169. Playing, however, with the dogged determination which was so characteristic of the Yorkshireman, he ran to game with the 169 required to win. The following week Peall and Dawson played an all-in match, and Peall had bis revenge, for it was in this match that he made his great, record of 3,304. in addition to breaks 1,637, 1,494, 1,332, and numerous others from 500 to 700 odd.
A SURPRISING FINISH.
One of the most surprising finishes to a game occurred in a match between Dawson and J. Watson, which was played in Newcastle in April, 1890. The game was 6,000 up for £100 aside, and the score board showed 5.805—4.915 in Dawson’s favour when Watson went to the table. The game seemed practically over, but Watson playing the game of his life, actually made a break of 1,075— his record—and got within 10 points of game. So great was the applause and even uproar at this great performance of Watson’s that it was several minutes before Dawson could begin the break which look him to game.
At the spot-barred game Dawson reached four figures on four occasions, the breaks living 1,001, 1,201, 1,207, and 1.848, the latter containing 613 consecutive spot strokes. His record break at the spot barred game was 722 made in 1899—in those days a 500 break was considered a heat performance—and his biggest red-ball break at the in-off game was 279.
Alderley & Wilmslow Advertiser, Friday 17 September 1926