GREAT chess contests of the past have been decided by prodigious feats of calculation or imagination — before last weekend, however, an international chess tournament had never been decided by the throw of a ball in bar skittles.
Yet it was skill at skittles that won first prize for the 'Little Acorns' team from Dolton in the eighth Devonshire Inn International at Sticklepath.
The event dates back to 1993 when, in the face of competition from national governments and multi-nationals, the Devonshire Inn put in a cheeky bid to host the World Chess Championship.
Snubbed by the grandmasters, the Devonshire went on to organise its own 'world championship' for pub teams and the event has continued every year since then.
This time six teams entered and after an afternoon's tense competition on the lawns of the Finch Foundry the 'Potboilers' from the Duke of York and the 'Little Acorns' had both scored nine points out of a possible 12.
There had never before been a tie for first place, which sent the organisers scurrying back for the rules that were drawn up in 1993. A close examination of the small print revealed: 'In the event of two or more teams sharing first, the prize of a Walter Hicks 125 rum shall be shared among the winners in equal measures, but the title of the Devonshire Inn International Champion shall be resolved by a spin on the bar skittles game.
And so it was that the captain of the 'Little Acorns' who lost the toss, threw first, and executed a standard clockwise throw of the ball which resulted in four of the skittles being knocked down.
The experienced captain of the 'Potboilers' succeeded only in snagging the ball on the first corner, knocking down no skittles at all. The title went to the Little Acorns.
The full scores were : Little Acorns (Dolton) and Potboilers (Duke of York A) 9, West Devon Raiders (Duke of York B) 6, The Aunt Mables (Bullers Arms, Chagford) and Cavaliers (Torrington) 5 and a half, Waifs and Strays (nowhere in particular ) 1.