Take your pick at Two Up in the Goldfields

Updated December 05, 2012 18:50:22

The shout of 'come in spinner' is set to become a regular sound in the Goldfields once again.

After an absence of more than 20 years, regular bush two-up games are making a comeback to Kalgoorlie-Boulder.

The game, which sees gamblers bet on whether two coins thrown into the air will fall on heads or tails, was played by miners during the region's gold rush.

Throughout the first half of last century it was the game of choice for miners, to either lose or possibly treble their earnings, after toiling in the desert heat for gold.

Local historian Tim Moore says the game provides a unique insight into the driving forces behind the gold rush that built Kalgoorlie-Boulder.

He says it was the same risk taking and adventurous spirit which saw people try to strike it rich in mining, at play while gambling in the two-up ring.

"Thousands of dollars could easily be won or lost on the toss of a coin, great fortunes were won and lost on the toss of a coin," he said.

"A lot of these people had no concept of wealth and for them it was the whole hunt for gold, that they could go out and suddenly strike it rich, and spend all the money and go out and do it again."

Goldfields play

The ring keeper at the Bush Two-Up School, Danny Sheeham, has had a close connection to the game for many years through his father.

"If you go back to the 1940s and 1950s these two-up games were played everywhere; all around Australia, in barns, in sheds, in farm houses, in warehouses," he said.

"In the 1950s, everywhere around Australia two-up was wiped out, except for a couple of places, one of which was Kalgoorlie."

The game was shut down by governments which moved to clamp down on illegal off-course betting.

Mr Sheeham says there were constant raids but his father and a mate, who ran two-up in Kalgoorlie, decided to continue holding sessions out in the bush and would let their friends know when it was on.

He says they placed a bar heater by the side of the road and players would know where to turn off.

Eventually the raids stopped and the two-up shed was erected in the late 50's.

Mr Moore says the game is closely tied to Kalgoorlie's history.

"I would say it was one of the first gambling games played on the Goldfields from day one," he said.

"It would have been just groups of miners who've got nothing better to do."

Mr Sheeham agrees the game and the city are inextricably linked.

"Kalgoorlie and two-up fit in together," he said.

"Kalgoorlie's a lovely family town but you also do get a lot of people who like gambling; because of its isolation it's retained a lot of its traditions and one of those traditions is two-up."

He says the school was a hive of activity until the early 90's, when tighter regulations and competition from larger gambling venues made it harder to run.

However, over the last few years the ring has hosted annual games during the Kalgoorlie race round.

Mr Sheeham says it's reignited enthusiasm and nostalgia for the historic game.

"A lot of people have asked us to get it back going, so we thought well let's give it a shot," he said.

"It's something special, something unique, something with a bit of character."

Following discussions with the Department of Racing, Gaming and Liquor, he's now planning to run bush two-up at the ring once a month.

Tourism attraction

The return to holding regular games is good news for local tourism says the Kalgoorlie-Boulder Pure Gold Visitors Centre's general manager, Amy Johnston.

"We get a lot of tourists that come into the centre and have actually been out to the two up shed and are really disappointed that it's just the shed, that there's no games that they can go and play and get involved and watch," she said.

"So, I think this would be a huge drawcard.

"We always try and get people to go out and experience the bush so that's a great way to get people out to experience those traditions and I'm sure that would be a very popular tour."

Ms Johnston says gambling is only a small part of the game's attraction.

"I actually think the reputation two-up has as a game, especially as a tourism perspective, isn't really focused on the gambling side," she said.

"It is much more of an experience and looking back to the history of the region rather than it being focused on the gambling side.

"The history and heritage side of the Goldfields seems to be a really big drawcard for people, especially the older generation we're seeing come through in their caravans and campervans.

"They are really keen to get out there, explore and really feel like they are experiencing something unique for themselves, and this fits in perfectly.

"The outback pubs, two-up, the bordellos, it's all part of the history of Kalgoorlie.

"We are a very vibrant family community now but we can't forget our past and that is part of what still makes Kalgoorlie unique."

Mr Sheeham hopes to have the bush two-up school up and running by the end of the year.

While he says he's mainly doing it to help keep alive an important part of Kalgoorlie-Boulder's history, he has no doubt there will be some high stakes on the line.

"There's some pretty serious money out there at time," he said.

Topics: gambling, tourism, kalgoorlie-6430

First posted December 05, 2012 17:12:02