The Game
Bowls is a strategic, challenging and fun sport that can be enjoyed by anyone. It is played on a large smooth grass or artificial surface called a “green”.
Lawn bowls are large, hard resin balls with a bias to them, so that they travel along a curved path, rather than going straight. 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” and it is rolled the length of the green to start play. Then players from each team take turns rolling their bowls down the green toward the jack.
When all all the bowls have been played in one direction the players have completed an end.
The Green
The game of Bowls is played on a 120 foot square of closely cut grass or artificial surface called the green.
The green is divided into playing areas called rinks. Each rink is 14' wide and with the rinks placed side by side, multiple games can occur at the same time.
The green is surrounded by a small ditch to catch bowls which leave the green, and a bank which has marks indicating the center side lines of each rink.
Object of the Game
The object of the game is to deliver bowls closer to the jack (target) than your opponent.
The player or team with the closest bowl to the jack earns one point for each bowl closer to the jack than the nearest opponent bowl.
Bowls come in sets of four and each set has its own unique symbols engraved on the sides to identify the owner. Bowls are perfectly smooth and round in one direction, but slightly flattened in the other.
The shape of the bowl causes it to curve. When a bowl slows, it loses momentum and leans towards the smaller side. This is known as the bias and allows you to curve your bowl around others.
The "jack", a small white ball similar to a pool cue ball, is the target in the game. The object of the game is to roll your bowls as close as possible to the 'jack'.
To roll or deliver their bowl, each player stands on a mat at one end of the rink. The 1'x 2' mat ensures that all players in the game roll their bowls from the same point on the rink.