The Sport
Today, World Bowls regulates the sport. Lawn bowling is part of the Commonwealth Games and the sport is played in all 5 continents, in over 50 countries.
Lawn bowling is widespread throughout Canada and is played outside during the summer, although for the last few years, lawn bowling has been played in different formats indoors, in various venues and is called Short Mat Lawn Bowling. There are over 18,000 lawn bowlers in Canada, registered with 271 clubs across the country. Provincial and national competitions are organized in men’s, women’s, junior, senior and mixed categories.
Canada is improving the world scene as several talented players move to Asia and Australia. Both men’s and women’s teams are in the top 5 of the world!
In Australia and New Zealand, the sport is very popular. Large media coverage of championships, leagues, and professional events attracts a young clientele to lawn bowling which brings positive changes to the game.
What is Lawn Bowling?
Lawn bowling is a strategic, challenging, and fun game that can be enjoyed by anyone.
It is played on a large smooth playing surface called a “green”. It can be natural grass or artificial. The green is divided into rinks to allow up to eight games to be played at the same time.
The object of the game is to roll your bowls closer to the target than your opponents. The target is a small white ball called a “jack”. The jack is rolled the length of the green to start each end. Players from each team take turns rolling their bowls down the green toward the jack until all the bowls have been played.
Lawn bowling involves offensive and defensive strategy. An added challenge is the jack may be displaced within the confines of the rink by the movement of any bowl.
Who Can Play?
Being a low impact sport, it is accessible for all ages and is adaptable to all levels of fitness. Anyone can play, no matter their skill level and everyone can play at the same time, even on the same team, as team positions are allotted according to skill and
experience.
Lawn Bowls
Bowls come in sets of four and are offered in different sizes to fit comfortably in the hand. Each set is unique with its own serial number and special symbol. All bowls are made of a hard plastic composite material which makes them very strong and durable.
Lawn bowls are biased, not perfectly round, so they travel in an elliptical path, rather than in a straight line.
The Club lends to first-year players and guests. After that, members can rent or buy them. Some enthusiasts own several sets of bowls.
Basic Shots
The Draw: a slow, measured, refined bowl, trying to finish as close to the target as possible.
The Drive: a stronger, faster bowl used to move and/or eliminate bowls out of the rink.
The challenge for each player is to adjust the line of sight with the right amount of force to get the desired shot.
The key action: The Delivery