Father and son bowl the competition over to win European Open title
Fortrose and Rosemarkie Bowling Club father and son duo Mike and Kyle Ross bowled over the competition to win a top European tournament.
The pair were crowned Bowls Scotland 2024 European Open champions at the National Bowling Centre in Ayr last weekend.
They came out on top in a field of 120 pairs from across the world to win the biggest title of their careers so far, winning 10-7 in the final.
During the competition, they beat top pairs from across Europe, as well as Canada and the United States who were competing in the tournament.
They had to do it the hard way as they came back from three shots down with two ends remaining in the final to eventually take the title.
Kyle from Inverness, says it was a tremendous comeback by him and his dad, who is from Alness, to take the crown.
“We were 5-1 down at one point and then 7-4 down with two ends remaining,” he recalled.
“We then managed to score four in the second last end to make it 8-7 and then got two in the last end to win the title.
“Before we managed to score four in the second last end, I thought that we were goosed.
“We hadn’t played in the competition before so we thought that we would give it a crack.
“As it was an Open, anyone was able to enter.
“It is definitely the biggest win of our careers, I have had a Scotland trial previously, but I would say this is the pinnacle for me.”
Bowls has been a big part in the lives of the Ross family, with Kyle saying it was Mike who introduced him to the sport as a youngster.
Kyle (33) has been playing the sport for 25 years, with Mike (60), achieving success in the past and being a former Scottish Top Ten champion in 2005.
The pair have won a number of competitions together in the past, as they have proved to make a successful partnership.
He said: “My grandfather played bowls and it was my dad that introduced me to the sport.
“I have been playing bowls since I was eight.
“As well as playing in pairs, we have also both won a number of individual competitions and we both play for Northern Counties.
“We have won quite a lot of open competitions across the north together, but this is definitely the biggest win that we have had together.”
