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Show HANDBALL CHAMPION HAILS FROM GALWAY SAN FRANCISCO, March 19. Michael J. Egan, who is to play a scries of handball matches at the Olympic club with James Fitzgerald of this city to decide the rightful ownership of tho title of champion of the world, Is a native of County Galway, Ireland, where ho was born September 29, 1S78. Ho came to this country when ho was 17 years of age, and Joined his brother John In Jersey City. John Egan is tho owner of a handball court, and It was j there that tho present claimant of tho world's championship learned tho real Intricacies of the game. "To be sure, I had banged the ball up against a wall ever slnco I could remember," re-member," ho said last night, "but I had never played the scientific gamo until I came to this country." From being an apt pupil ho becamo an enthusiast, and in 1S97 won the amateur ama-teur championship of the United States. There were seventeen aspirants for this honor, but Ecan was easily the best. Tho second In the contest was Leroy. a I Canadian from Montreal, and third came Billy Smith of Brooklyn. Again In 1S98 he entered the lists to defend his title of amateur champion against all comers. Thero were twelve entries, but all were beaten by the sturdy Irishman. Irish-man. Becoming a professional, his first big match was with Jerry McMahon of , Brooklyn, for a stake, tho match to be for the best six out of eleven. Egan won by elx to his opponent's two. He I has played numerous games with tho different exponents of the game In the East, and has Invariably been successful. success-ful. Last year he played a scries of games with Louis Kecgan of Chicago, Mike Kennedy4 backing the Chicago man and Alderman Dunne, who is now In the city with Egan, being behind tho Irish lad. The game was for the best eight in fifteen Egan won the first seven straight in Jersey City on April 12th, and ten days later the scries was continued in Chicago. ICeegan won tho first game, but Egnn won the next and tho match. AN INTERNATIONAL MATCH. Later in the summer he played the famous International match with Tim Toole of KInturk. County Cork, tho champion of Ireland, the stakes being 52000 a side. The series opened in New York, where Egan again won seven straight games. Tho men then, with their adherents, crossed the Atlantic, and on July 26th they recommenced tho battle at KInturk, tho Irish champion's homo. The visitor from this side had but one game to win to land tho monoy, and he did this In tho first meeting. He I then toured Ireland, winning wherever he played. Egan bases his claim to tho championship cham-pionship on the fact that ho tried In vain to get a match with William Car-ley, Car-ley, who beat Fitzgerald In 1S9S, even going so far as to formally claim tho championship and posting a deposit with a New York paper to make good i his claim. "I'm not here to talk," he said, when asked as to what he thought of his coming com-ing contest with the San Francisco man. "If Mr. Fitzgerald is a better player than I am I'm sure he will prove It when wo meet, and If he does so It'll be me who will be first to grasp him by the hand and give him my congratulations." congrat-ulations." The match, besides settling the championship, cham-pionship, carries with It a purse of $500 given by the Olympic club. Egan Is a powerfully built young man, weighing, In condition, 165 pounds. He takes little or no special exercise to keep himself In shape, as he neither smokes nor drinks and always sticks to a plain diet. His rules for retaining form are delightfully simple. "I live as natural a life as I can," he remarked. "I never cared for either liquor or tobacco: I eat heartily and sleep soundly." |