Big bowls bash day

The game's object is simple: roll your bowls as close as possible to the little white or yellow ball called the Jack and ensure that one or more of your bowls are closer to the Jack than any of your opponent's.

BOWLS

The club provides the bowls until you are ready to purchase your own. You will eventually need a set of four bowls. 

Bowls come in varying sizes and colors and weigh up to 1.59kg. Each bowl has its own bias.  

In lawn bowls, "bias" refers to the intentional asymmetry in the shape of the bowl, causing it to curve during its roll and move towards the biased side. This curved path is crucial for strategic shots and plays.

We identify the bias side by a smaller circle on one side of the bowl. In the set below the bowl on the left has a small yellow, black, and blue sticker indicating the side with the bias. The other side has a larger ring.

It is imperative to always remember that irrespective of whether playing left or right handed, when delivering your bowl the small circle, the bias, is on the inside, closest to your little finger and the larger ring close to your thumb.

FOOTWEAR 

Bowls is a high-precision game that requires an immaculately manicured bowling green. The green must be completely flat without ridges or uneven surfaces so that the bowl can travel unhindered. Bowlers are responsible for avoiding dropping their bowls on the green, especially in the field of play. 

They also have the responsibility to wear appropriate footwear, which is a flat, smooth-soled shoe from toe to heel. 

Beginners may play barefoot until they have the appropriate footwear.

 Although bowls has traditionally been associated with older generations, it has gained popularity among younger players over the past 20 years. In fact, the average age of professional players worldwide, including the UK, is now in the low 30s, and it is not uncommon to see teenagers playing on the green.

The game of bowls is inclusive, making it ideal for families of all backgrounds. It can easily be adapted for various age groups. 

For younger players, we offer different versions of the game to make it more enjoyable. For slightly older children who can hold a bowl in one hand, we shorten the rink to just a couple of meters so they can reach the target jack.

Bowls is accessible to those who may be sight-impaired, amputees, or have other physical challenges, including being wheelchair-bound. 

A bowling green is divided up into what is called rinks.  On a standard lawn bowls green, rinks (the playing areas) are typically between 4.3 and 5.8 meters wide and run the length of the green, which is usually a square measuring between 31 and 40 meters in length.  

Players play in two directions, basically up and down the rink. Playing up is one end. Playing down is another end.

CASTING THE JACK

The first stage of the game is to cast the jack or the kitty. This is either white or yellow in colour and is the primary target in the game of bowls. 

The player who casts the jack is called a 'lead'. They first place a rubber mat on the center line of the rink in a position chosen by them. 

The game starts when the lead stands on the mat and casts the jack to the opposite end of the rink to a distance normally decided by the skip or captain of the team who is awaiting the arrival of the jack.  

One foot must remain on the mat when a jack or bowl is being delivered or over the mat as it leaves your hand. If you fail to do this, it can be judged as a foot fault.

The players take turns delivering their bowls. Once all the bowls have been delivered to the other end the "shots" are counted. The bowls are then gathered together ready to play the next end, this time from the other side. The Lead from whichever side wins the end casts the jack to start the new end.

During an end, the bowl nearest to the Jack is referred to as “the shot”. You may hear players on the mat asking, “Who is holding shot?”.

 The scoring system in bowls is straight forward. It works on the number of shots a player or team score in one end. 

In the picture above the blue player has one bowl positioned closer to the jack, than any red bowl. In this case blue player will have one shot, even though it has two other bowls placed farther from the jack. However, if the two red bowls closest to the jack were to be knocked out during play, then blue would have two shots and possibly a measure for three shots. 

A player or team scores one point for each of their bowls that is closer to the jack than their opponent's nearest bowl at the end of each "end". Only one player or team can score at any one time.

Figure 2:Periodically determining the "shot" requires precise measurement.

 

ENDING THE GAME

There are two methods for concluding the game to determine the winner. The first method ends the game when one team reaches 21 points. The second method concludes the game after either 18 or 21 ends have been played, with the winner being the team with the highest score.