How to Play

How do you play crown green bowls?

How to hold a bowl

Some people cradle the bowl in their fingers; others have their thumb and little finger along the side of the bowl; others use a sort of "claw" grip. Choose what works for you because the more important thing is how the bowl leaves your hand.

Before delivery, make sure the bowl is pointing in the direction you want and both sides are vertical.

Preparing for Delivery

It is vital that you keep your balance throughout the delivery so find a stance that is comfortable for you. Don't extend your leading leg too far (this is your left leg if you are right-handed and vice versa). Your leading leg must be on the opposite side to your bowling arm in order to be legal. Hold your leading leg with your non-bowling hand in order to steady yourself.

Aiming

You basically have two options. Some people pick a mark or reference point on the far side of the green and aim for that. Others select a point on the green about three or four metres in front of the mat and use that for alignment. Once you have sent the jack watch it carefully and try to remember the line that it took in your head.

Delivering the Bowls

Before releasing the bowl or jack make sure that your back foot is on the centre of the mat (the same side as your bowling arm). Everyone has a different action but the important thing is to try to deliver the bowl on to the green smoothly and efficiently without bouncing. The delivery is made up of the backswing; the downswing; the release and the follow through.

The backswing: Think of your arm as a pendulum and if you want the bowl to go further, swing your arm back further. For a shorter mark try a shorter swing. Keep a smooth rhythm so that the bowl feels like an extension of your arm.

The downswing: As your arm moves forward let it accelerate and keep it moving smoothly and release the bowl beside your leading foot and as parallel to the ground as possible.

The Release: Let the bowl come out of your hand naturally and without flicking your wrist: if you release too soon it will hit the ground at an angle and will not travel as far; if you release too late the bowl will travel through the air before bouncing and hitting the ground at an angle.

The Follow Through: Strange as it may seem, after you release the bowl the continuation of your arm movement seems to affect the distance that a bowl runs. Keep your action straight and avoid the temptation to swing your arm across the front of your body.

There are lots of videos to see on YouTube. Try: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YwNjbmj1Ja8

How to Improve

  1. Practice makes perfect!

  2. If you have the jack, hold your first bowl in your other hand when sending the jack so you don't have to take your eyes off the jack line after delivering the jack

  3. Similarly, if your opponent has the jack, have your bowl in your hand already on finger or thumb whilst they are delivering theirs

  4. Don't be intimidated by having a more experienced opponent. Just concentrate on playing the green and getting the big black one as close to the small yellow one as possible!

  5. Always try to get level with the jack. It's often said "There's nowt for short!" Unless you purposely want to put in a short bowl as a "blocker"

  6. Get to know your home green as well as you can and all its hollows and ridges and don't be afraid to bowl into these areas

  7. Try to stay relaxed - tension makes the game harder. If you play a bad bowl, don't dwell on it. Move on and try again.