Duncan’s Lindsay Hodgins collected her fourth straight B.C. women’s horseshoes championship during the summer of 2018, and added her first-ever Canadian title.
Hodgins, 21, won her fourth provincial championship in Kamloops over the Labour Day long weekend, just weeks after capturing the national championship in Whitewood, Saskatchewan. Hodgins went a combined 25-0 over the two tournaments, winning 15 straight games at the Canadians and 10 at the B.C.’s. On the season, Hodgins went 90-3 over 15 tournaments.
“The three games she lost were at a local tournament,” Lindsay’s grandfather and coach, Wayne Hodgins pointed out. “And they handicapped it.”
The provincial and national tournaments each featured about 90 competitors in the top women’s division, and the variety of playing against different opponents is a big part of the appeal.
“When she plays around here, it’s the same people all the time,” Wayne said.
“The B.C.’s are more competitive, usually, than the local tournaments,” Lindsay added.
Last year, Lindsay finished second at the national championships in Guelph, Ont., losing a playoff to her nemesis, Sylvianne Moisan of Quebec, who went on to finish second at the 2018 world championships. Moisan does have a little more experience, Lindsay points out.
“She’s been playing for 43 years,” she said. “And I’ve been playing for eight.”
Hodgins actually had a slightly higher ringer percentage than Moisan at the nationals last year. This year, her ringer percentage never dipped below 70 per cent, with a high-water mark of 95 per cent. Overall, she has the second-highest ringer percentage in Canada, including women and men, and she is ranked No. 6 in the world.
For the most part, she doesn’t worry about her opponents.
“I’m trying to make myself better. I’m not really playing the people I play. I’m trying to improve my average.”
A member of the Ladysmith Horseshoe Club, Lindsay practices at least an hour each day.
In addition to her national and provincial titles, Lindsay also won the Vancouver Island championship in June, and won the International Highwayman Open in Abbotsford. She was also the first woman from B.C. to win the Canadian championship.
“It’s mostly people from Quebec who win it,” she explained.
Lindsay’s next goal is to win a world championship. She won world junior titles in 2013 and 2014, but hasn’t competed at worlds as a senior. Qualification is based on ringer percentage, which shouldn’t be a problem. It’s just an expensive prospect to attend worlds, which will be held next year in Wichita Falls, Texas. If she doesn’t go there, she will return to the Canadian championships in 2019.
