Bowls | G.P.C.A. SUNDAY History It has been traced certainly to the 13th century, and conjecturally to the 12th. William Fitzstephen (d. about 1190), in his biography of Thomas Becket, gives a graphic sketch of the London of his day and, writing of the summer amusements of the young men, says that on holidays they were “exercised in Leaping, Shooting, Wrestling, Casting of Stones [in jactu lapidum], and Throwing of Javelins fitted with Loops for the Purpose, which they strive to fling before the Mark; they also use Bucklers, like fighting Men.” It is commonly supposed that by jactus lapidum, Fitzstephen meant the game of bowls, but though it is possible that round stones may sometimes have been employed in an early variety of the game – and there is a record of iron bowls being used, though at a much later date, on festive occasions at Nairn, – nevertheless the inference seems unwarranted. The jactus lapidum of which he speaks may have been more akin to shotput.

It is beyond dispute, however, that the game, at any rate in a rudimentary form, was played in the 13th century. A manuscript of that period in the royal library, Windsor (No. 20, E iv.), contains a drawing representing two players aiming at a small cone instead of an earthenware ball or jack. The world’s oldest surviving bowling green is the Southampton Old Bowling Green, which was first used in 1299. Another manuscript of the same century has a crude but spirited picture which brings us into close touch with the existing game.[citation needed] Three figures are introduced and a jack. The first player’s bowl has come to rest just in front of the jack; the second has delivered his bowl and is following after it with one of those eccentric contortions still not unusual on modern greens, the first player meanwhile making a repressive gesture with his hand, as if to urge the bowl to stop short of his own; the third player is depicted as in the act of delivering his bowl. A 14th-century manuscript, Book of Prayers, in the Francis Douce collection in the Bodleian Library at Oxford contains a drawing in which two persons are shown, but they bowl to no mark.

Strutt (Sports and Pastimes) suggests that the first player’s bowl may have been regarded by the second player as a species of jack; but in that case it is not clear what was the first player’s target. In these three earliest illustrations of the pastime it is worth noting that each player has one bowl only, and that the attitude in delivering it was as various five or six hundred years ago as it is to-day. In the third he stands almost upright; in the first he kneels; in the second he stoops, halfway between the upright and the kneeling position. The game eventually came under the ban of king and parliament, both fearing it might jeopardise the practice of archery, then so important in battle. Statutes forbidding it and other sports were enacted in the reigns of Edward III, Richard II and other monarchs. Even when, on the invention of gunpowder and firearms, the bow had fallen into disuse as a weapon of war, the prohibition was continued. The discredit attaching to bowling alleys, first established in London in 1455, probably encouraged subsequent repressive legislation, for many of the alleys were connected with taverns frequented by the dissolute and gamesters.

The word “bowls” occurs for the first time in the statute of 1511 in which Henry VIII confirmed previous enactments against unlawful games. By a further act of 1541—which was not repealed until 1845—artificers, labourers, apprentices, servants and the like were forbidden to play bowls at any time except Christmas, and then only in their master’s house and presence. It was further enjoined that any one playing bowls outside his own garden or orchard was liable to a penalty of 6s. 8d.(6 shillings and 8 pence), while those possessed of lands of the yearly value of £100 might obtain licences to play on their own private greens. In 1864 William Wallace Mitchell (1803–1884), a Glasgow Cotton Merchant, published his “Manual of Bowls Playing” following his work as the secretary formed in 1849 by Scottish bowling clubs which became the basis of the rules of the modern game. Young Mitchell was only 11 when he played on Kilmarnock Bowling green, the oldest club in Scotland, instituted in 1740.

The patenting of the first lawn mower in 1830, in Britain, is strongly believed to have been the catalyst, world-wide, for the preparation of modern-style greens, sporting ovals, playing fields, pitches, grass courts, etc. This is turn led to the codification of modern rules for many sports, including lawn bowls, most football codes, lawn tennis and others. British bowls team visiting Canada, 1906 National Bowling Associations were established in the late 1800s. In the then Victorian Colony (now State of Victoria in Australia), the (Royal) Victorian Bowling Association was formed in 1880 and The Scottish Bowling Association was established in 1892, although there had been a failed attempt in 1848 by 200 Scottish clubs. The History of Lawn Bowls The History of Lawn Bowls THE HISTORY OF LAWN BOWLS It has been traced certainly to the 13th century, and conjecturally to the 12th. William Fitzstephen (d.

about 1190), in his biography of Thomas Becket, gives a graphic sketch of the London of his day and, writing of the summer amusements of the young men, says that on holidays they were "exercised in Leaping, Shooting, Wrestling, Casting of Stones [in jactu lapidum], and Throwing of Javelins fitted with Loops for the Purpose, which they strive to fling before the Mark; they also use Bucklers, like fighting Men." It is commonly supposed that by jactus lapidum, Fitzstephen meant the game of bowls, but though it is possible that round stones may sometimes have been employed in an early variety of the game - and there is a record of iron bowls being used, though at a much later date, on festive occasions at Nairn, - nevertheless the inference seems unwarranted. The jactus lapidum of which he speaks was probably more akin to the modern "putting the weight," once even called "putting the stone." It is beyond dispute, however, that the game, at any rate in a rudimentary form, was played in the 13th century.

A manuscript of that period in the royal library, Windsor (No. 20, E iv.), contains a drawing representing two players aiming at a small cone instead of an earthenware ball or jack. The world's oldest surviving bowling green is the Southampton Old Bowling Green, which was first used in 1299. Another manuscript of the same century has a crude but spirited picture which brings us into close touch with the existing game. Three figures are introduced and a jack. The first player's bowl has come to rest just in front of the jack; the second has delivered his bowl and is following after it with one of those eccentric contortions still not unusual on modern greens, the first player meanwhile making a repressive gesture with his hand, as if to urge the bowl to stop short of his own; the third player is depicted as in the act of delivering his bowl. A 14th century manuscript, Book of Prayers, in the Francis Douce collection in the Bodleian library at Oxford contains a drawing in which two persons are shown, but they bowl to no mark.

Strutt (Sports and Pastimes) suggests that the first player's bowl may have been regarded by the second player as a species of jack; but in that case it is not clear what was the first player's target. In these three earliest illustrations of the pastime it is worth noting that each player has one bowl only, and that the attitude in delivering it was as various five or six hundred years ago as it is to-day. In the third he stands almost upright; in the first he kneels; in the second he stoops, halfway between the upright and the kneeling position. As the game grew in popularity, it came under the ban of king and parliament, both fearing it might jeopardise the practice of archery, then so important in battle. Statutes forbidding it and other sports were enacted in the reigns of Edward III, Richard II and other monarchs. Even when, on the invention of gunpowder and firearms, the bow had fallen into disuse as a weapon of war, the prohibition was continued.

The discredit attaching to bowling alleys, first established in London in 1455, probably encouraged subsequent repressive legislation, for many of the alleys were connected with taverns frequented by the dissolute and gamesters. The word "bowls" occurs for the first time in the statute of 1511 in which Henry VIII confirmed previous enactments against unlawful games. By a further act of 1541 - which was not repealed until 1845 - artificers, labourers, apprentices, servants and the like were forbidden to play bowls at any time except Christmas, and then only in their master's house and presence. It was further enjoined that any one playing bowls outside his own garden or orchard was liable to a penalty of 6s. 8d., while those possessed of lands of the yearly value of £100 might obtain licenses to play on their own private greens. In 1864 William Wallace Mitchell (1803-1884), a Glasgow Cotton Merchant, published his "Manual of Bowls Playing" following his work as the secretary formed in 1849 by Scottish bowling clubs which became the basis of the rules of the modern game.

Young Mitchell was only 11 when he played on Kilmarnock Bowling green, the oldest club in Scotland, instituted in 1740. The Scottish Bowling Association was the very first one to be established in 1892, although there had been a failed attempt in 1848 by 200 Scottish clubs. Today the club is played in over 40 countries with more 50 member national authorities. The home of the modern game is still Scotland with the World Bowls centre in Edinburgh at Caledonia House,1 Redheughs Rigg, South Gyle, Edinburgh, History of Bowls History of Bowls Bowls From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Bowls (also lawn bowls, variants include flat-green bowls and crown-green bowls) is a sport in which the objective is to roll biased balls so that they stop close to a smaller ball called a "jack" or "kitty". It is played on a pitch which may be flat (for "flat-green bowls") or convex or uneven (for "crown-green bowls"). It is normally played outdoors although there are some indoor venues and the surface is either natural grass, artificial turf , or cotula (in New Zealand ).

It is popular in the United Kingdom , Australia , New Zealand , Canada , South Africa , Hong Kong and parts of the United States and more recently in Japan . It belongs to the boules game family and is related to bocce and pétanque . History It has been traced certainly to the 13th century, and conjecturally to the 12th. William Fitzstephen (d.

about 1190), in his biography of Thomas Becket , gives a graphic sketch of the London of his day and, writing of the summer amusements of the young men, says that on holidays they were "exercised in Leaping, Shooting, Wrestling, Casting of Stones [in jactu lapidum], and Throwing of Javelins fitted with Loops for the Purpose, which they strive to fling before the Mark; they also use Bucklers, like fighting Men." It is commonly supposed that by jactus lapidum, Fitzstephen meant the game of bowls, but though it is possible that round stones may sometimes have been employed in an early variety of the game - and there is a record of iron bowls being used, though at a much later date, on festive occasions at Nairn, - nevertheless the inference seems unwarranted. The jactus lapidum of which he speaks may have been more akin to shotput . It is beyond dispute, however, that the game, at any rate in a rudimentary form, was played in the 13th century. A manuscript of that period in the royal library, Windsor (No.

20, E iv.), contains a drawing representing two players aiming at a small cone instead of an earthenware ball or jack. The world's oldest surviving bowling green is the Southampton Old Bowling Green , which was first used in 1299. [1] Another manuscript of the same century has a crude but spirited picture which brings us into close touch with the existing game.[ citation needed ] Three figures are introduced and a jack. The first player's bowl has come to rest just in front of the jack; the second has delivered his bowl and is following after it with one of those eccentric contortions still not unusual on modern greens, the first player meanwhile making a repressive gesture with his hand, as if to urge the bowl to stop short of his own; the third player is depicted as in the act of delivering his bowl. A 14th-century manuscript, Book of Prayers, in the Francis Douce collection in the Bodleian Library at Oxford contains a drawing in which two persons are shown, but they bowl to no mark.

Strutt (Sports and Pastimes) suggests that the first player's bowl may have been regarded by the second player as a species of jack; but in that case it is not clear what was the first player's target. In these three earliest illustrations of the pastime it is worth noting that each player has one bowl only, and that the attitude in delivering it was as various five or six hundred years ago as it is to-day. In the third he stands almost upright; in the first he kneels; in the second he stoops, halfway between the upright and the kneeling position. As the game grew in popularity, it came under the ban of king and parliament, both fearing it might jeopardise the practice of archery, then so important in battle. Statutes forbidding it and other sports were enacted in the reigns of Edward III , Richard II and other monarchs. Even when, on the invention of gunpowder and firearms, the bow had fallen into disuse as a weapon of war, the prohibition was continued.

The discredit attaching to bowling alleys, first established in London in 1455, probably encouraged subsequent repressive legislation, for many of the alleys were connected with taverns frequented by the dissolute and gamesters. The word "bowls" occurs for the first time in the statute of 1511 in which Henry VIII confirmed previous enactments against unlawful games. By a further act of 1541—which was not repealed until 1845—artificers, labourers, apprentices, servants and the like were forbidden to play bowls at any time except Christmas , and then only in their master's house and presence. It was further enjoined that any one playing bowls outside his own garden or orchard was liable to a penalty of 6s. 8d., while those possessed of lands of the yearly value of £100 might obtain licences to play on their own private greens. In 1864 William Wallace Mitchell (1803–1884), a Glasgow Cotton Merchant, published his "Manual of Bowls Playing" following his work as the secretary formed in 1849 by Scottish bowling clubs which became the basis of the rules of the modern game.

Young Mitchell was only 11 when he played on Kilmarnock Bowling green, the oldest club in Scotland, instituted in 1740. National Bowling Associations were established in the late 1800s. In the then Victorian Colony (now State of Victoria in Australia), the (Royal) Victorian Bowling Association was formed in 1880 and The Scottish Bowling Association was established in 1892, although there had been a failed attempt in 1848 by 200 Scottish clubs. Today the sport is played in over 40 countries with more than 50 member national authorities. The home of the modern game is still Scotland with the World Bowls centre in Edinburgh at Caledonia House,1 Redheughs Rigg, South Gyle, Edinburgh, EH12 9DQ. Game Lawn bowls is usually played on a large, rectangular, precisely levelled and manicured grass or synthetic surface known as a bowling green which is divided into parallel playing strips called rinks .

In the simplest competition, singles, one of the two opponents flips a coin to see who wins the "mat" and begins a segment of the competition (in bowling parlance, an "end"), by placing the mat and rolling the jack to the other end of the green to serve as a target. Once it has come to rest, the jack is aligned to the centre of the rink and the players take turns to roll their bowls from the mat towards the jack and thereby build up the "head". A bowl may curve outside the rink boundary on its path, but must come to rest within the rink boundary to remain in play. Bowls falling into the ditch are dead and removed from play, except in the event when one has "touched" the jack on its way. "Touchers" are marked with chalk and remain alive in play even though they are in the ditch. Similarly if the jack is knocked into the ditch it is still alive unless it is out of bounds to the side resulting in a "dead" end which is replayed, though according to international rules the jack is "respotted" to the centre of the rink and the end is continued.

After each competitor has delivered all of their bowls (four each in singles and pairs, three each in triples, and two bowls each in fours), the distance of the closest bowls to the jack is determined (the jack may have been displaced) and points, called "shots", are awarded for each bowl which a competitor has closer than the opponent's nearest to the jack. For instance, if a competitor has bowled two bowls closer to the jack than their opponent's nearest, they are awarded two shots. The exercise is then repeated for the next end, a game of bowls typically being of twenty one ends. Lawn bowls is played on grass and variations from green to green are common. Greens come in all shapes and sizes, fast, slow, big crown, small crown and so on. Scoring Scoring systems vary from competition to competition. Games can be decided when: §a player in a singles game reaches a specified target number of shots (usually 21 or 25). §a team (pair, triple or four) has the higher score after a specified number of ends. Games to a specified number of ends may also be drawn. The draw may stand, or the opponents may be required to play an extra endto decide the winner.

These provisions are always published beforehand in the event's Conditions of Play. In the Laws of the Sport of Bowls [2] the winner in a singles game is the first player to score 21 shots. In all other disciplines (pairs, triples, fours) the winner is the team who has scored the most shots after 21/25 ends of play. Often local tournaments will play shorter games (often 10 or 12 ends). Some competitions use a "set" scoring system, with the first to seven points awarded a set in a best-or-three or best-of-five set match. As well as singles competition, there can be two (pairs), three (triples) and four-player (fours) teams. In these, teams bowl alternately, with each player within a team bowling all their bowls, then handing over to the next player. The team captain or "skip" always plays last and is instrumental in directing his team's shots and tactics. The current method of scoring in the professional tour ( World Bowls Tour ) is sets. Each set consists of nine ends and the player with the most shots at the end of a set wins the set. If the score is tied the set is halved.

If a player wins two sets, or gets a win and a tie, that player wins the game. If each player wins a set, or both sets end tied, there is a 3-end tiebreaker to determine a winner. Bias of Bowls Two bowls with club stickers. The jack/kitty is sitting in front of the bowls. Bowls are designed to travel a curved path because of a weight bias which was originally produced by inserting weights in one side of the bowl. This is no longer permitted by the rules and bias is now produced entirely by the shape of the bowl. A bowler determines the bias direction of the bowl in his hand by a dimple or symbol on one side. Regulations determine the minimum bias allowed, and the range of diameters (11.6 to 13.1 cm), but within these rules bowlers can and do choose bowls to suit their own preference. They were originally made from lignum vitae , a dense wood giving rise to the term "woods" for bowls, but are now more typically made of a hard plastic composite material. Bowls were once only available coloured black or brown but they are now available in a variety of colours. They have unique symbol markings engraved on them for identification.

Since many bowls look the same, coloured, adhesive stickers or labels are also used to mark the bowls of each team in bowls matches. Some local associations agree on specific colours for stickers for each of the clubs in their area. Provincial or national colours are often assigned in national and international competitions. These stickers are used by officials to distinguish teams. Bowls have symbols unique to the set of four for identification. The side of the bowl with a larger symbol within a circle indicates the side away from the bias. That side with a smaller symbol within a smaller circle is the bias side toward which the bowl will turn. It is not uncommon for players to deliver a "wrong bias" shot from time to time and see their carefully aimed bowl crossing neighbouring rinks rather than heading towards their jack. When bowling there are several types of delivery. "Draw" shots are those where the bowl is rolled to a specific location without causing too much disturbance of bowls already in the head. For a right-handed bowler, "forehand draw" or "finger peg" is initially aimed to the right of the jack, and curves in to the left.

The same bowler can deliver a "backhand draw" or "thumb peg" by turning the bowl over in his hand and curving it the opposite way, from left to right. In both cases, the bowl is rolled as close to the jack as possible, unless tactics demand otherwise. A "drive" or "fire" or "strike" involves bowling with force with the aim of knocking either the jack or a specific bowl out of play - and with the drive's speed, there is virtually no noticeable (or, at least, much less) curve on the shot. An "upshot" or "yard on" shot involves delivering the bowl with an extra degree of weight (often referred to as "controlled" weight or "rambler"), enough to displace the jack or disturb other bowls in the head without killing the end. A "block" shot is one that is intentionally placed short to defend from a drive or to stop an oppositions draw shot. The challenge in all these shots is to be able to adjust line and length accordingly, the faster the delivery, the narrower the line or "green".

Variations of play Particularly in team competition there can be a large number of bowls on the green towards the conclusion of the end, and this gives rise to complex tactics. Teams "holding shot" with the closest bowl will often make their subsequent shots not with the goal of placing the bowl near the jack, but in positions to make it difficult for opponents to get their bowls into the head, or to places where the jack might be deflected to if the opponent attempts to disturb the head. A crown green at Edgworth, Lancashire . There are many different ways to set up the game. Crown Green Bowling utilises the entire green. A player can send the jack anywhere on the green in this game and the green itself is more akin to a golf green, with lots of undulation. It is only played with two bowls each, the Jack also has a bias and is only slightly smaller than the Bowls. Crown Green Bowls is very popular mostly in the North of England but also in Wales, West Midlands and Shropshire. The game is played usually to 21-up in Singles and Doubles format with some competitions playing to 31-up.

The Panel (Professional Crown Green Bowls) is played at the Red Lion, Westhoughton daily and is played to 41-up with greenside betting throughout play. The game of Crown Green Bowls is looking to grow with the introduction of the Portuguese Masters in October[ when? ] and recent interest from Sky TV to re-televise the sport.[ citation needed ] Singles, triples and fours and Australian pairs are some ways the game can be played. In singles, two people play against each other and the first to win to either 21, 25 or 31 shots (how many bowls of ones are closest to the jack or kitty are shots). The controlling body sets the game to either 21, 25 or 31. An additional scoring method is set play. This comprises two sets over nine ends, an end being the completion of both players delivering all their bowls. Should a player win a set each, they then play a further 3 ends that will decide the winner. Pairs allows both people on a team to play Skip and Lead. The lead throws two bowls, the skip delivers two, then the lead delivers his remaining two, the skip then delivers his remaining two bowls.

Each end, the leads and skips switch positions. This is played over 21 ends or sets play. Triples is with three players while Fours is with four players in each team and is played over 21 ends. Another pairs variation, popular in New Zealand, is 242 pairs. In the first end of the game the A players lead off with 2 bowls each, then the B players play 4 bowls each, before the A players complete the end with their final 2 bowls. The A players act as lead and skip in the same end. In the second end the roles are reversed with the A players being in the middle. This alternating pattern continues through the game which is typically over 15 ends. Short Mat Bowls is an all-year sport unaffected by weather conditions and it does not require a permanent location as the rink mats can be rolled up and stowed away. This makes it particularly appropriate for small communities as it can be played in village halls, schools, sports and social clubs, hotels and so on. where space is restricted and is also required for other purposes: it is even played on North Sea oil rigs where space is really at a premium.

Bowls are played by the blind and paraplegic. Blind bowlers are extremely skilful. A string is run out down the centre of the lane & wherever the jack lands it is moved across to the string and the length is called out by a sighted marker, when the woods are sent the distance from the jack is called out, in yards, feet and inches-the position in relation to the jack is given using the clock,12.00 is behind the jack. The world's best are a match for the best club level sighted bowlers[ citation needed ]. Competitions ABC Bowls About Bowls Bowls According to Wikipedia It has been traced certainly to the 13th century , and conjecturally to the 12th . William Fitzstephen (d.

about 1190), in his biography of Thomas Becket , gives a graphic sketch of the London of his day and, writing of the summer amusements of the young men, says that on holidays they were "exercised in Leaping, Shooting, Wrestling, Casting of Stones [in jactu lapidum], and Throwing of Javelins fitted with Loops for the Purpose, which they strive to fling before the Mark; they also use Bucklers, like fighting Men." It is commonly supposed that by jactus lapidum, Fitzstephen meant the game of bowls, but though it is possible that round stones may sometimes have been employed in an early variety of the game - and there is a record of iron bowls being used, though at a much later date, on festive occasions at Nairn, - nevertheless the inference seems unwarranted. The jactus lapidum of which he speaks was probably more akin to the modern "putting the weight," once even called "putting the stone." It is beyond dispute, however, that the game, at any rate in a rudimentary form, was played in the 13th century.

A manuscript of that period in the royal library, Windsor (No. 20, E iv.), contains a drawing representing two players aiming at a small cone instead of an earthenware ball or jack. Another manuscript of the same century has a crude but spirited picture which brings us into close touch with the existing game. Three figures are introduced and a jack. The first player's bowl has come to rest just in front of the jack; the second has delivered his bowl and is following after it with one of those eccentric contortions still not unusual on modern greens, the first player meanwhile making a repressive gesture with his hand, as if to urge the bowl to stop short of his own; the third player is depicted as in the act of delivering his bowl. A 14th century manuscript, Book of Prayers, in the Francis Douce collection in the Bodleian library at Oxford contains a drawing in which two persons are shown, but they bowl to no mark. Strutt (Sports and Pastimes) suggests that the first player's bowl may have been regarded by the second player as a species of jack; but in that case it is not clear what was the first player's target.

In these three earliest illustrations of the pastime it is worth noting that each player has one bowl only, and that the attitude in delivering it was as various five or six hundred years ago as it is to-day. In the third he stands almost upright; in the first he kneels; in the second he stoops, halfway between the upright and the kneeling position. As the game grew in popularity, it came under the ban of king and parliament, both fearing it might jeopardise the practice of archery, then so important in battle. Statutes forbidding it and other sports were enacted in the reigns of Edward III , Richard II and other monarchs. Even when, on the invention of gunpowder and firearms, the bow had fallen into disuse as a weapon of war, the prohibition was continued. The discredit attaching to bowling alleys, first established in London in 1455, probably encouraged subsequent repressive legislation, for many of the alleys were connected with taverns frequented by the dissolute and gamesters. The word "bowls" occurs for the first time in the statute of 1511 in which Henry VIII confirmed previous enactments against unlawful games.

By a further act of 1541 - which was not repealed until 1845 - artificers, labourers, apprentices, servants and the like were forbidden to play bowls at any time except Christmas , and then only in their master's house and presence. It was further enjoined that any one playing bowls outside his own garden or orchard was liable to a penalty of 6s. 8d., while those possessed of lands of the yearly value of £100 might obtain licenses to play on their own private greens. In 1864 William Wallace Mitchell (1803-1884), a Glasgow Cotton Merchant, published his "Manual of Bowls Playing" following his work as the secretary formed in 1849 by Scottish bowling clubs which became the basis of the rules of the modern game. Young Mitchell was only 11 when he played on Kilmarnock Bowling green, the oldest club in Scotland, instituted in 1740. The Scottish Bowling Association was the very first one to be established in 1892, although there had been a failed attempt 1n 1848 by 200 Scottish clubs.

Today the club is played in over 40 countries with more 50 member national authorities. The home of the modern game is still Scotland with the World Bowls centre in Edinburgh at Caledonia House,1 Redheughs Rigg, South Gyle, Edinburgh, EH12 9DQ. Game Lawn bowls is usually played on a large, rectangular, precisely leveled and manicured grass or synthetic surface known as a bowling green which is divided into parallel playing strips called rinks . An indoor variation on carpet is also played. In the simplest competition, singles, one of the two opponents flips a coin to see who wins the "mat" and begins a segment of the competition (in bowling parlance, an "end"), by placing the mat and rolling the jack to the other end of the green to serve as a target. Once it has come to rest, the jack is aligned to the center of the rink and the players take turns to roll their bowls from the mat towards the jack and thereby build up the "head". A bowl may curve outside the rink boundary on its path, but must come to rest within the rink boundary to remain in play.

Bowls falling into the ditch are dead and removed from play, except in the event when one has "touched" the jack on its way. "Touchers" are marked with chalk and remain alive in play even though they are in the ditch. Similarly if the jack is knocked into the ditch it is still alive unless it is out of bounds to the side resulting in a "dead" end which is replayed though according to international rules the jack is "respotted" to the center of the rink and the end is continued. After each competitor has delivered all of their bowls (four each in singles and pairs, three each in triples, and two bowls each in fours), the distance of the closest bowls to the jack is determined (the jack may have been displaced) and points, called "shots", are awarded for each bowl which a competitor has closer than the opponent's nearest to the jack. For instance, if a competitor has bowled two bowls closer to the jack than their competitor's nearest, they are awarded two shots. The exercise is then repeated for the next end, a game of bowls typically being of twenty one ends. Lawn bowls is played on grass and variations from green to green are common.

Greens come in all shapes and sizes, fast, slow, big crown, small crown etc. Scoring Scoring systems vary from competition to competition. Games can be decided when: a player in a singles game reaches a specified target number of shots (usually 21 or 25). a team (pair, triple or four) has the higher score after a specified number of ends. Games to a specified number of ends may also be drawn. The draw may stand, or the opponents may be required to play an extra end to decide the winner. These provisions are always published beforehand in the event's Conditions of Play. In the Laws of the Sport of Bowls the winner in a singles game is the first player to score 21 shots. In all other disciplines (pairs, triples, fours) the winner is the team who has scored the most shots after 18 ends of play. Often local tournaments will play shorter games (often 10 or 12 ends). Some competitions use a "set" scoring system, with the first to seven points awarded a set in a best-or-three or best-of-five set match.

As well as singles competition, there can be two (pairs), three (triples) and four-player (fours) teams. In these, teams bowl alternately, with each player within a team bowling all their bowls, then handing over to the next player. The team captain or "skip" always plays last and is instrumental in directing his team's shots and tactics. The current method of scoring in the professional tour ( World Bowls Tour ) is sets. Each set consists of nine ends and the player with the most shots at the end of a set wins the set. If the score is tied the set is halved. If a player wins two sets, or gets a win and a tie, that player wins the game. If each player wins a set, or both sets end tied, there is a 3-end tiebreaker to determine a winner. Bias of bowls Bowls are designed to travel a curved path because of a weight bias which was originally produced by inserting weights in one side of the bowl. This is no longer permitted by the rules and bias is now produced entirely by the shape of the bowl. A bowler determines the bias direction of the bowl in his hand by a dimple or symbol on one side.

Regulations determine the minimum bias allowed, and the range of diameters (11.6 to 13.1 cm), but within these rules bowlers can and do choose bowls to suit their own preference. They were originally made from lignum vitae , a dense wood giving rise to the term "woods" for bowls, but are now more typically made of a hard plastic composite material. Bowls were once only available coloured black or brown but they are now available in a variety of colours including a range of fluorescent hues. They have unique symbol markings engraved on them for identification. Since many bowls look the same, coloured, adhesive stickers or labels are also used to mark the bowls of each team in bowls matches. Some local associations agree specific colours for stickers for each of the clubs in their area. Provincial or national colors are often assigned in national and international competitions. These stickers are used by officials to distinguish teams . Bowls have symbols unique to the set of four for identification. The side of the bowl with a larger symbol within a circle indicates the side away from the bias. That side with a smaller symbol within a smaller circle is the bias side toward which the bowl will turn.

It is not uncommon for players to deliver a "wrong bias" shot from time to time and see their carefully aimed bowl crossing neighbouring rinks rather than heading towards their jack. When bowling there are several types of delivery. "Draw" shots are those where the bowl is rolled to a specific location without causing too much disturbance of bowls already in the head. For a right-handed bowler, "forehand draw" or "finger peg" is initially aimed to the right of the jack, and curves in to the left. The same bowler can deliver a "backhand draw" or "thumb peg" by turning the bowl over in his hand and curving it the opposite way, from left to right. In both cases, the bowl is rolled as close to the jack as possible, unless tactics demand otherwise. A "drive" or "fire" or "strike" involves bowling with force with the aim of knocking either the jack or a specific bowl out of play - and with the drive's speed, there is virtually no noticeable (or, at least, much less) curve on the shot.

An "upshot" or "yard on" shot involves delivering the bowl with an extra degree of weight (often referred to as "controlled" weight or "rambler"), enough to displace the jack or disturb other bowls in the head without killing the end. A "block" shot is one that is intentionally placed short to defend from a drive or to stop an oppositions draw shot. The challenge in all these shots is to be able to adjust line and length accordingly, the faster the delivery, the narrower the line or "green". Variations of play Particularly in team competition there can be a large number of bowls on the green towards the conclusion of the end, and this gives rise to complex tactics. Teams "holding shot" with the closest bowl will often make their subsequent shots not with the goal of placing the bowl near the jack, but in positions to make it difficult for opponents to get their bowls into the head, or to places where the jack might be deflected to if the opponent attempts to disturb the head. There are many different ways to set up the game. Crown Green Bowling utilises the entire green.

A player can send the jack anywhere on the green in this game and the green itself is more akin to a golf green, with lots of undulation. Singles, triples and fours and Australian pairs are some ways the game can be played. In singles, two people play against each other and the first to win to either 21, 25 or 31 shots (how many bowls of ones are closest to the white jack or kitty are shots). The controlling body sets the game to either 21, 25 or 31. An additional scoring method is set play. This comprises two sets over nine ends, an end being the completion of both players delivering all their bowls. Should a player win a set each, they then play a further 3 ends that will decide the winner. Pairs allows both people on a team to play Skip and Lead. The lead throws two bowls, the skip delivers two, then the lead delivers his remaining two, the skip then delivers his remaining two bowls. Each end, the leads and skips switch positions. This is played over 21 ends or sets play. Triples is with three players while Fours is with four players in each team and is played over 21 ends.

Bowls are played by the blind and Paraplegic. Blind bowlers are extremely skilful due to their extreme sense of hearing and feel[ citation needed ]. The world's best are a match for the best club level sighted bowlers[ citation needed ]. Glossary Lawn bowlers use a variety of terms to describe certain aspects of play. Most of these terms are recognised by lawn bowlers in countries where the game is played. The Absolute: A draw shot which finishes close to the jack and then rolls over to touch it. It is also used to describe a bowl which undoubtedly the closest to the jack. Popularity Bowls is popular in the United Kingdom , Australia , New Zealand , Canada , South Africa and parts of the United States . It is also gaining momentum in Japan . Because of its competitiveness, skill and the fact that it is a non-contact sport, the game suits people from teen years through to their nineties. However, there is a considerable professional competition with many younger men and women playing. Since the early 2000s, the sport has developed in Denmark as well.

The World Championships held in the UK annually is a £100,000 competition and is watched by 3 million viewers via BBC TV. Another phenomenon is barefoot or corporate bowls, where established clubs in Australia open their greens to paying customers who are organised into teams for a social few hours on the green. Bowls is played at the Commonwealth Games ; the last being held in Melbourne Australia, where Kelvin Kerkow (Australia) and Siti Zalina Ahmad (Malaysia) won the singles Gold Medals. 2010 sees the Games in Delhi , India . JEU DU BOULINGRIN - BOWLING GREEN - LAWN BOWLING VIDEO JEU DU BOULINGRIN - BOWLING GREEN - LAWN BOWLING Le boulingrin (de l'anglais bowling green, qui fait référence au terrain gazonné sur lequel le jeu est pratiqué. Aujourd'hui il est appelé lawn bowling) est un jeu de boules originaire d'Angleterre.

Couramment pratiqué dans l'ensemble du Commonwealth (en particulier dans les îles Britanniques, en Australie et en Nouvelle-Zélande), il est pratiquement inconnu dans les autres pays. Principes généraux du boulingrin Par ses principes généraux, le boulingrin s'apparente à la pétanque, à la boule lyonnaise, aux bocce, à la boule bretonne et à plusieurs autres jeux de boule : le but du jeu consiste à lancer des boules de manière à les placer le plus près possible d'une cible. Il se distingue cependant des autres jeux de boule par la forme des boules (qui le rapproche de la boule de fort angevine) et par le type de terrain. Les boules Les boules de boulingrin (bowls en anglais) ne sont pas sphériques, mais légèrement écrasées aux deux pôles. De plus, leur forme est asymétrique, c'est-à-dire qu'un des pôles est plus écrasé que l'autre.

Cette caractéristique leur donne une trajectoire elliptique, particulièrement marquée lorsque leur vitesse est faible. Pour atteindre la cible, le joueur doit donc doser sa force et sa ligne de tir. Au Moyen Âge, les boules de boulingrin étaient fabriquées en bois d'if, de frêne ou de chêne. Depuis le XVIe ou le XVIIe siècle, c'est le gaïac, un bois très dur et très lourd, qui est utilisé. Chaque boule pèse environ 1,5 kg. Le terrain Le boulingrin se joue sur une surface gazonnée (le vert, ou green en anglais) de 120 pieds (environ 37 mètres) de côté, divisée en six pistes de 20 pieds de largeur (6 mètres). Bien que ce soit essentiellement un jeu d'extérieur, il existe des terrains intérieurs (sur tapis). Le tapis Les joueurs lancent leur boule en se tenant sur un petit tapis (mat en anglais) mesurant 35 cm sur 60 cm.

Le cochonnet Au boulingrin, le cochonnet (jack ou kitty en anglais) est une petite boule sphérique blanche qui est placée au centre du vert, à une distance du tapis d'au moins 23 mètres. Pendant la partie, le cochonnet peut être déplacé s'il est frappé par une boule. Règles du jeu Le boulingrin peut se jouer en simples ou par équipes de deux, trois ou quatre joueurs (mixtes ou non). La partie est divisée en mènes (ends en anglais) : une mène s'achève lorsque tous les joueurs ont lancé (à tour de rôle) toutes leurs boules. Les points sont alors comptés : chaque boule placée plus près que celles de l'adversaire donne un point. Pour la mène suivante, le sens de jeu est inversé (le tapis est déplacé). Les parties en équipes se déroulent en 18 mènes et les joueurs jouent trois ou quatre boules chacun.

En simples, la partie s'achève lorsqu'un joueur obtient 21 points. Chaque joueur dispose de quatre boules. Histoire Il est probable que le boulingrin existait déjà en Angleterre au XIIe siècle. Il a pu être introduit dans les îles britanniques par les Romains, qui le tenaient peut-être des Égyptiens, par l'intermédiaire des Grecs. Chose certaine, les boules étaient connues dans l'Antiquité. Par ailleurs, des études ont montré que les Aztèques, les Amérindiens, les Chinois et les Polynésiens jouaient eux aussi à différents jeux de boules. Bien qu'aucune parenté directe ne puisse être imaginée, le jeu pratiqué par les Polynésiens d'Hawaï et par les Maoris de Nouvelle-Zélande présentait des similarités avec le boulingrin, puisque leurs boules (en pierre) étaient elles aussi elliptiques.

La forte popularité du boulingrin en Angleterre pendant le Moyen Âge a fait craindre aux autorités qu'elle entraîne l'abandon de la pratique du tir à l'arc et que, par conséquent, l'habileté des archers du royaume s'en trouve réduite. Cette crainte mena à l'adoption de plusieurs lois successives limitant ou interdisant la pratique du boulingrin à partir du XIVe siècle. La dernière de ces lois, votée en 1541 sous le règne de Henri VIII, ne fut pas abrogée avant 1845, ce qui n'empêcha cependant pas le jeu de se développer. Il semble qu'à l'origine, les boules utilisées en Angleterre aient été sphériques. La forme particulière des boules de boulingrin serait apparue en 1522 : le duc de Suffolk, ayant brisé sa boule, aurait décroché la boule ornementale d'un escalier (de forme non sphérique) pour poursuivre sa partie.

La normalisation des règles du boulingrin remonte à 1848, lorsque 200 clubs écossais se réunirent à Glasgow et qu'ils harmonisèrent leurs pratiques. En 1893, la Scottish Bowling Association, créée l'année précédente, publia un ensemble de règles et un code d'éthique qui sont encore suivis de nos jours. La fédération « English Bowling Association » est fondée en 1903. Son premier président fut le Dr W. G. Grace, célèbre joueur de cricket de son époque. Les règles modernes de ce sport datent de 1848. En 1905, une fédération internationale de boulingrin (l'International Bowling Board) fut créée. Les premiers membres en étaient l'Écosse, l'Angleterre, l'Irlande et le Pays de Galles, auxquels se joignirent l'Australie, le Canada, la Nouvelle-Zélande, l'Afrique du Sud et les États-Unis en 1928.

Aujourd'hui, la fédération internationale regroupe 52 associations nationales disséminées dans le monde entier : Europe, Amérique du Nord, Amérique du Sud, Moyen-Orient, Afrique, Asie, Océanie. --------------------------------------------- Bowls or lawn bowls is a sport in the boules game family and is related to bocce and pétanque which the objective is to roll biased balls so that they stop close to a smaller ball called a "jack" or "kitty". It is played on a pitch which may be flat (for "flat-green bowls") or convex or uneven (for "crown-green bowls"). It is normally played outdoors although there are some indoor venues and the surface is either natural grass, artificial turf, or cotula (in New Zealand). History It has been traced certainly to the 13th century, and conjecturally to the 12th. William Fitzstephen (d.

about 1190), in his biography of Thomas Becket, gives a graphic sketch of the London of his day and, writing of the summer amusements of the young men, says that on holidays they were "exercised in Leaping, Shooting, Wrestling, Casting of Stones [in jactu lapidum], and Throwing of Javelins fitted with Loops for the Purpose, which they strive to fling before the Mark; they also use Bucklers, like fighting Men." It is commonly supposed that by jactus lapidum, Fitzstephen meant the game of bowls, but though it is possible that round stones may sometimes have been employed in an early variety of the game - and there is a record of iron bowls being used, though at a much later date, on festive occasions at Nairn, - nevertheless the inference seems unwarranted. The jactus lapidum of which he speaks may have been more akin to shotput. It is beyond dispute, however, that the game, at any rate in a rudimentary form, was played in the 13th century. A manuscript of that period in the royal library, Windsor (No.

20, E iv.), contains a drawing representing two players aiming at a small cone instead of an earthenware ball or jack. The world's oldest surviving bowling green is the Southampton Old Bowling Green, which was first used in 1299. Another manuscript of the same century has a crude but spirited picture which brings us into close touch with the existing game. Three figures are introduced and a jack. The first player's bowl has come to rest just in front of the jack; the second has delivered his bowl and is following after it with one of those eccentric contortions still not unusual on modern greens, the first player meanwhile making a repressive gesture with his hand, as if to urge the bowl to stop short of his own; the third player is depicted as in the act of delivering his bowl. A 14th-century manuscript, Book of Prayers, in the Francis Douce collection in the Bodleian Library at Oxford contains a drawing in which two persons are shown, but they bowl to no mark. Strutt (Sports and Pastimes) suggests that the first player's bowl may have been regarded by the second player as a species of jack; but in that case it is not clear what was the first player's target.

In these three earliest illustrations of the pastime it is worth noting that each player has one bowl only, and that the attitude in delivering it was as various five or six hundred years ago as it is to-day. In the third he stands almost upright; in the first he kneels; in the second he stoops, halfway between the upright and the kneeling position. The game eventually came under the ban of king and parliament, both fearing it might jeopardise the practice of archery, then so important in battle. Statutes forbidding it and other sports were enacted in the reigns of Edward III, Richard II and other monarchs. Even when, on the invention of gunpowder and firearms, the bow had fallen into disuse as a weapon of war, the prohibition was continued. The discredit attaching to bowling alleys, first established in London in 1455, probably encouraged subsequent repressive legislation, for many of the alleys were connected with taverns frequented by the dissolute and gamesters. The word "bowls" occurs for the first time in the statute of 1511 in which Henry VIII confirmed previous enactments against unlawful games.

By a further act of 1541—which was not repealed until 1845—artificers, labourers, apprentices, servants and the like were forbidden to play bowls at any time except Christmas, and then only in their master's house and presence. It was further enjoined that any one playing bowls outside his own garden or orchard was liable to a penalty of 6s. 8d., while those possessed of lands of the yearly value of £100 might obtain licences to play on their own private greens. In 1864 William Wallace Mitchell (1803–1884), a Glasgow Cotton Merchant, published his "Manual of Bowls Playing" following his work as the secretary formed in 1849 by Scottish bowling clubs which became the basis of the rules of the modern game. Young Mitchell was only 11 when he played on Kilmarnock Bowling green, the oldest club in Scotland, instituted in 1740.

The patenting of the first lawn mower in 1830, in Britain, is strongly believed to have been the catalyst, world-wide, for the preparation of modern-style greens, sporting ovals, playing fields, pitches, grass courts, etc. This is turn led to the codification of modern rules for many sports, including lawn bowls, most football codes, lawn tennis and others. National Bowling Associations were established in the late 1800s. In the then Victorian Colony (now State of Victoria in Australia), the (Royal) Victorian Bowling Association was formed in 1880 and The Scottish Bowling Association was established in 1892, although there had been a failed attempt in 1848 by 200 Scottish clubs. Today the sport is played in over 40 countries with more than 50 member national authorities. The home of the modern game is still Scotland with the World Bowls centre in Edinburgh at Caledonia House,1 Redheughs Rigg, South Gyle, Edinburgh, EH12 9DQ.

Game Lawn bowls is usually played on a large, rectangular, precisely levelled and manicured grass or synthetic surface known as a bowling green which is divided into parallel playing strips called rinks. In the simplest competition, singles, one of the two opponents flips a coin to see who wins the "mat" and begins a segment of the competition (in bowling parlance, an "end"), by placing the mat and rolling the jack to the other end of the green to serve as a target. Once it has come to rest, the jack is aligned to the centre of the rink and the players take turns to roll their bowls from the mat towards the jack and thereby build up the "head". A bowl may curve outside the rink boundary on its path, but must come to rest within the rink boundary to remain in play. Bowls falling into the ditch are dead and removed from play, except in the event when one has "touched" the jack on its way. "Touchers" are marked with chalk and remain alive in play even though they are in the ditch.

Similarly if the jack is knocked into the ditch it is still alive unless it is out of bounds to the side resulting in a "dead" end which is replayed, though according to international rules the jack is "respotted" to the centre of the rink and the end is continued. After each competitor has delivered all of their bowls (four each in singles and pairs, three each in triples, and two bowls each in fours), the distance of the closest bowls to the jack is determined (the jack may have been displaced) and points, called "shots", are awarded for each bowl which a competitor has closer than the opponent's nearest to the jack. For instance, if a competitor has bowled two bowls closer to the jack than their opponent's nearest, they are awarded two shots. The exercise is then repeated for the next end, a game of bowls typically being of twenty-one ends. Lawn bowls is played on grass and variations from green to green are common. Greens come in all shapes and sizes, fast, slow, big crown, small crown and so on. Scoring Scoring systems vary from competition to competition.

Games can be decided when: a player in a singles game reaches a specified target number of shots (usually 21 or 25). a team (pair, triple or four) has the higher score after a specified number of ends. Games to a specified number of ends may also be drawn. The draw may stand, or the opponents may be required to play an extra end to decide the winner. These provisions are always published beforehand in the event's Conditions of Play. In the Laws of the Sport of Bowls the winner in a singles game is the first player to score 21 shots. In all other disciplines (pairs, triples, fours) the winner is the team who has scored the most shots after 21/25 ends of play. Often local tournaments will play shorter games (often 10 or 12 ends). Some competitions use a "set" scoring system, with the first to seven points awarded a set in a best-or-three or best-of-five set match. As well as singles competition, there can be two (pairs), three (triples) and four-player (fours) teams.

In these, teams bowl alternately, with each player within a team bowling all their bowls, then handing over to the next player. The team captain or "skip" always plays last and is instrumental in directing his team's shots and tactics. The current method of scoring in the professional tour (World Bowls Tour) is sets. Each set consists of nine ends and the player with the most shots at the end of a set wins the set. If the score is tied the set is halved. If a player wins two sets, or gets a win and a tie, that player wins the game. If each player wins a set, or both sets end tied, there is a 3-end tiebreaker to determine a winner. Bias of bowls Bowls are designed to travel a curved path because of a weight bias which was originally produced by inserting weights in one side of the bowl. This is no longer permitted by the rules and bias is now produced entirely by the shape of the bowl. A bowler determines the bias direction of the bowl in his hand by a dimple or symbol on one side.

Regulations determine the minimum bias allowed, and the range of diameters (11.6 to 13.1 cm), but within these rules bowlers can and do choose bowls to suit their own preference. They were originally made from lignum vitae, a dense wood giving rise to the term "woods" for bowls, but are now more typically made of a hard plastic composite material. Bowls were once only available coloured black or brown but they are now available in a variety of colours. They have unique symbol markings engraved on them for identification. Since many bowls look the same, coloured, adhesive stickers or labels are also used to mark the bowls of each team in bowls matches. Some local associations agree on specific colours for stickers for each of the clubs in their area. Provincial or national colours are often assigned in national and international competitions. These stickers are used by officials to distinguish teams. Bowls have symbols unique to the set of four for identification. The side of the bowl with a larger symbol within a circle indicates the side away from the bias. That side with a smaller symbol within a smaller circle is the bias side toward which the bowl will turn.

It is not uncommon for players to deliver a "wrong bias" shot from time to time and see their carefully aimed bowl crossing neighbouring rinks rather than heading towards their jack. When bowling there are several types of delivery. "Draw" shots are those where the bowl is rolled to a specific location without causing too much disturbance of bowls already in the head. For a right-handed bowler, "forehand draw" or "finger peg" is initially aimed to the right of the jack, and curves in to the left. The same bowler can deliver a "backhand draw" or "thumb peg" by turning the bowl over in his hand and curving it the opposite way, from left to right. In both cases, the bowl is rolled as close to the jack as possible, unless tactics demand otherwise. A "drive" or "fire" or "strike" involves bowling with force with the aim of knocking either the jack or a specific bowl out of play - and with the drive's speed, there is virtually no noticeable (or, at least, much less) curve on the shot.

An "upshot" or "yard on" shot involves delivering the bowl with an extra degree of weight (often referred to as "controlled" weight or "rambler"), enough to displace the jack or disturb other bowls in the head without killing the end. A "block" shot is one that is intentionally placed short to defend from a drive or to stop an oppositions draw shot. The challenge in all these shots is to be able to adjust line and length accordingly, the faster the delivery, the narrower the line or "green". Variations of play Particularly in team competition there can be a large number of bowls on the green towards the conclusion of the end, and this gives rise to complex tactics. Teams "holding shot" with the closest bowl will often make their subsequent shots not with the goal of placing the bowl near the jack, but in positions to make it difficult for opponents to get their bowls into the head, or to places where the jack might be deflected to if the opponent attempts to disturb the head. There are many different ways to set up the game. Crown Green Bowling utilises the entire green.

A player can send the jack anywhere on the green in this game and the green itself is more akin to a golf green, with lots of undulation. It is only played with two bowls each, the Jack also has a bias and is only slightly smaller than the Bowls. The game is played usually to 21-up in Singles and Doubles format with some competitions playing to 31-up. The Panel (Professional Crown Green Bowls) is played at the Red Lion, Westhoughton daily and is played to 41-up with greenside betting throughout play. The game of Crown Green Bowls is looking to grow with the introduction of the Portuguese Masters in October and recent interest from Sky to re-televise the sport. Singles, triples and fours and Australian pairs are some ways the game can be played. In singles, two people play against each other and the first to win to either 21, 25 or 31 shots (how many bowls of ones are closest to the jack or kitty are shots). The controlling body sets the game to either 21, 25 or 31. An additional scoring method is set play.

This comprises two sets over nine ends, an end being the completion of both players delivering all their bowls. Should a player win a set each, they then play a further 3 ends that will decide the winner. Pairs allows both people on a team to play Skip and Lead. The lead throws two bowls, the skip delivers two, then the lead delivers his remaining two, the skip then delivers his remaining two bowls. Each end, the leads and skips switch positions. This is played over 21 ends or sets play. Triples is with three players while Fours is with four players in each team and is played over 21 ends. Another pairs variation is 242 pairs. In the first end of the game the A players lead off with 2 bowls each, then the B players play 4 bowls each, before the A players complete the end with their final 2 bowls. The A players act as lead and skip in the same end. In the second end the roles are reversed with the A players being in the middle. This alternating pattern continues through the game which is typically over 15 ends.

Short Mat Bowls is an all-year sport unaffected by weather conditions and it does not require a permanent location as the rink mats can be rolled up and stowed away. This makes it particularly appropriate for small communities as it can be played in village halls, schools, sports and social clubs, hotels and so on. where space is restricted and is also required for other purposes: it is even played on North Sea oil rigs where space is really at a premium. Bowls are played by the blind and paraplegic. Blind bowlers are extremely skilful. A string is run out down the centre of the lane & wherever the jack lands it is moved across to the string and the length is called out by a sighted marker, when the woods are sent the distance from the jack is called out, in yards, feet and inches-the position in relation to the jack is given using the clock,12.00 is behind the jack. The world's best are a match for the best club level sighted bowlers. An Indoor Year-Round Rec Facility for Seniors | Scripturient An Indoor Year-Round Rec Facility for Seniors and More This post has already been read 1018 times!

Monday night, I asked for a staff report on covering our lawn bowling rinks, and making it into a year-round facility for Collingwood. This facility would provide recreational opportunities for seniors and older adults. It could include other sports like horseshoes, shuffleboard and croquet. Perhaps badminton and a walking area (since we will lose our mall and its opportunities for indoor walking). The pitch would use an artificial turf developed for the sport. I believe this was developed in Australia, where, as I understand it, indoor lawn bowling on artificial turf was pioneered. Wherever it was developed, it has spread worldwide. Right now, our lawn bowling site is dependent on the weather, and vulnerable to inclement changes, rain, heat, etc. The grass requires considerable maintenance and care to meet the sport’s standards, too. Covering it and moving to artificial turf would make the sport available all year, in all kinds of weather, as well as create a new venue for events and activities. The new facility could be managed in conjunction with the current lawn bowling club, and perhaps other organizations, especially if we create more recreational opportunities inside. The model could be like the cooperative one we already have with the Curling Club.

It could be a very popular facility. As one Australian newspaper announced: The Pattaya / Banglamung district now has at its disposal a new indoor lawn bowls arena with a synthetic Astra turf surface. It is my belief that this is probably the first full artificial indoor bowls facility in Thailand. It is officially being opened with a private party on the 15th July. There is also indoor lawn bowling in the UK . I’m not sure from the photos if they are using natural or artificial turf, but I suspect the latter. The lawnbowls.com site notes: You have to come to the UK to see the lawn bowls game played in full size permanent Indoor greens of anything from one to 12 rinks, the norm being 6 or 8. Although these larger Indoor’s are beginning to be erected all over the World, there are 333 at the time of writing in the UK. Some of the comments about indoor lawn bowls online include this : As Indoor Lawn Bowls Champion, Andy Thomson, probably once said: “there are some key advantages to indoor bowls…” This rang true last night when, after a weekend of sunshine, the heavens opened and Melbourne was drenched in rain.

This didn’t stop Aspect’s budding lawn bowls team from attending the Property Council’s inaugural Lawn Bowls event at Flagstaff Gardens. With raincoats on and bowls in hand (and a beer in the other) we took to the astroturf. At the night progressed, the pursuit of witty sledges seemed to take priority of the pursuit of good bowling. The competition was cut short as the rain intensified (just as we were poised to strike and claim victory). Lawn bowling is a popular sport for all ages in many countries, including the UK and Australia. Here in Canada, it tends to be played by seniors, but that’s not its heritage. That’s odd because related sports bowling and curling are not regarded as seniors’ sports. Perhaps an indoor facility would encourage younger players to sign up. You can read an amusing story about a young woman’s experience at lawn bowling in Toronto. I have only had the experience playing bowls twice, but both times was amazed by the skill of the older players. Perhaps I need to sign up next year so I can hone what few motor skills I still have. The Collingwood Lawn Bowling Club wants younger members (and see this ): Adults of any age are welcome to join the club.

The club is seeking younger adults for membership. The Ontario Lawn Bowls Association already has a manual for indoor bowling, and there are already indoor bowls facilities in Ontario (here’s one in Richmond Hill and another in Newmarket ). So it’s not a new idea. Just not one raised in Collingwood (as far as I know). The sport has a long pedigree. According to Wikipedia , bowls, …has been traced certainly to the 13th century, and conjecturally to the 12th… In 1864 William Wallace Mitchell (1803–1884), a Glasgow Cotton Merchant, published his “Manual of Bowls Playing” following his work as the secretary formed in 1849 by Scottish bowling clubs which became the basis of the rules of the modern game. Young Mitchell was only 11 when he played on Kilmarnock Bowling green, the oldest club in Scotland, instituted in 1740. The patenting of the first lawn mower in 1830, in Britain, is strongly believed to have been the catalyst, world-wide, for the preparation of modern-style greens, sporting ovals, playing fields, pitches, grass courts, etc.

This is turn led to the codification of modern rules for many sports, including lawn bowls, most football codes, lawn tennis and others. National Bowling Associations were established in the late 1800s. In the then Victorian Colony (now State of Victoria in Australia), the (Royal) Victorian Bowling Association was formed in 1880 and The Scottish Bowling Association was established in 1892, although there had been a failed attempt in 1848 by 200 Scottish clubs. Today the sport is played in over 40 countries with more than 50 member national authorities. The home of the modern game is still Scotland… The Santa Anita Lawn Bowling club is a bit more enthusiastic about the history: Lawn bowling, or “bowling on the green,” is an outdoor game that has fascinated both young and old for centuries. The actual origin of the game is hidden in the haze of antiquity. We do, however, have authentic records of well over seven hundred years of bowling history. Sculptured vases and ancient plaques show the game being played some four thousand years ago, and archaeologists have uncovered biased stone bowls from 5,000 B.C.

which indicate our ancestors enjoyed the game of bowling more than seven thousand years ago. When Caesar rules Rome, the game was known as “Bocce,” and the conquering Roman Legions may well have carried the game to Europe and the British Isles. By the thirteenth century, bowling had spread to France, Switzerland, Italy, Spain, Belgium, Germany, and England. Bowling was so well established in England by 1299 A.D. that a group of players organized the Southhamptom Old Bowling Green Club, the oldest established bowling club in the world that is still active. The game became so popular in England and in France it was prohibited by law because archery, essential to the national defense, was being neglected. The French king, Charles IV, prohibited the game for the common people in 1319, and King Edward III issued a similar edict in England in 1361. And the Palo Alto club adds this: The history of bowls has been traced back to the ancient Egyptians. It is believed they played with stones – probably selecting the small round ones that weren’t any good for building pyramids with anyway.

The English, of course, wanted to machine perfectly spherical ones from fine lumber they obtained from remote parts of the empire. Until one day someone’s bowl split in two. And he put a simple knob to replace the broken half which lead him to immediately discover he could bowl curved shots and sneak around other bowls near the jack. Today all bowls have a certain built in bias. In Italy it became Bocce Balls. In France it became Boile. In England it became Lawn Bowls or simply Bowling. In the USA it became ten pin bowling after someone lost the instructions and rules on the way over. But we do know Sir Francis Drake played bowls – and in one famous game – told his men not to worry – he would finish the game before taking up arms against the invaders. There are many options for indoor play. This photo shows another use, apparently with mats that can be moved so the space can be used for other recreational activities and sports: This also seems to be called “carpet bowls, as this site suggests. Zommershow.ca says: Carpet Bowling is becoming an increasingly popular activity of choice for those managing Community Centers & Retirement Residences for seniors. It offers great social and physical activity requiring little supervision and little money to get started.

All you really need is a special carpet and a set of carpet bowls. Other accessories are optional. One set-up can accommodate up to 8 players. This document introduces the 2 most popular forms of this sport: Carpet Bowls, played on a 30ft carpet with carpet bowls, and Short Mat Bowls, played on a 45ft carpet with carpet bowls or regular outdoor bowls. There are many bowling clubs and organizations across Canada and many for indoor bowling . Our new recreational facilities are an inspiration for what we can do with our other facilities. A covered lawn bowling pitch, with additional uses specifically aimed at seniors, would improve our standing as an age-friendly community and offer many extra opportunities for exercise, socializing and engagement. It could also develop a roster of younger players if schools get into the act and encourage student leagues and participation. I look forward to the staff report to learn how viable this idea is, and what it might cost. Even if not an immediate priority, I believe we should investigate the options and engage the community in the debate. Post Stats

Question: What book published in 1864 by William Wallace Mitchell, a Glasgow Cotton Merchant, became the basis of the rules of a modern game?
Answer: """Manual of Bowls Playing"""