Edwin 'Percy' Baker (1895–1990), was a lawn and indoor bowler. Throughout his career he was known as Percy Baker. Baker was regarded as the greatest English bowler until his records were broken by David Bryant.[1]
| Personal information | |||||||||||||||||||||
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| Nationality | British (English) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Born | 19 July 1895 Weston-super-Mare, England | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Died | 3 January 1990 (aged 94) Poole, England | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Sport | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Club | Poole Park, Dorset (outdoors) Bournemouth (indoors) | ||||||||||||||||||||
Medal record
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Biography
editBorn at Weston-Super-Mare in Somerset he was a photographer by trade but was persuaded to take up bowling in 1921. He joined the Poole Park Bowling Club and was to win their club singles 22 times. He won 11 county singles over a 37-year period and led Dorset in the Middleton Cup from 1927 until 1969.[2]
He won four English National Singles titles in 1932, 1946, 1952 & 1955, setting a record at the time. He also won two pairs (1950[3] & 1962[4]) and a triples (1960) at the National Bowls Championships.[5][6][7]
Capped by England in 1933,[8] it was not until 1949 that he established his place and captained England from 1950. After suffering a serious illness he recovered in time to represent England in the 1958 British Empire and Commonwealth Games[9] where he won a silver medal in the singles.[10][11]
Notably, Baker achieved victory in the Bournemouth Open pairs tournament at the age of 76 in 1971 before concluding his illustrious career due to declining vision. He died in a Poole hospital on 3 January 1990, at the age of 94.[8] His legacy extended to his son, Cecil Baker, who also engaged in lawn bowls and represented the Ryde club at the Nationals.[12]
References
edit- ^ Sullivan, Patrick (1986). Guinness Bowls Records. Guinness Superlatives Ltd. ISBN 0-85112-414-3.
- ^ Newby, Donald (1991). Percy Baker - a great bowler. Daily Telegraph. ISBN 0-330-31664-8.
- ^ "Poole Park win title". Nottingham Journal. 18 August 1950. Retrieved 14 August 2023 – via British Newspaper Archive.
- ^ "Percy 67, proves he still tops". Daily Mirror. 23 August 1962. Retrieved 15 August 2023 – via British Newspaper Archive.
- ^ "Poole Park win title, Friday 18 August". Nottingham Journal. 1950.
- ^ "Bowls Singles". Weekly Dispatch (London). 14 August 1932. Retrieved 19 August 2024 – via British Newspaper Archive.
- ^ "E.B.A. Finalist". Bexhill-on-Sea Observer. 31 August 1946. Retrieved 19 August 2024 – via British Newspaper Archive.
- ^ a b ""Percy Baker." Times, 10 Jan. 1990, p. 14". Times Digital Archives.
- ^ "Splendid tribute to bowler". Peterborough Evening Telegraph. 13 February 1958. Retrieved 28 August 2024 – via British Newspaper Archive.
- ^ "Profile". Commonwealth Games Federation.
- ^ ""Empire Games Results." Times, 26 July 1958, p. 3". Times Digital Archives.
- ^ ""Baker's son takes over." Times, 18 Aug. 1967, p. 10". Times Digital Archives.