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Bowls

There are four different formats of the game recognised in Derbyshire – flat green outdoor, flat green indoor, crown green and short mat – so there are plenty of opportunities for you to give it a go.

Bowls is also a relatively cheap game compared to other sports, whether you choose to join a club, or 'pay and play' at your local park.

You will find below a basic introduction to the sport, but for more information contact your nearest club.

The sport has four National Governing Bodies that are working together to develop the sport through the Bowls Development Alliance:

• Bowls England (flat green outdoors) – www.bowlsengland.com (opens in a new window)

• British Crown Green Bowls Association (crown green) – www.bowls.org (opens in a new window)

• English Indoor Bowling Association Limited (flat green indoors) – www.eiba.co.uk (opens in a new window)

• English Short Mat Bowls Association – www.esmba.co.uk (opens in a new window)

Bowls basics

Like many games, the object of bowls is essentially simple. It can be played by anyone, but to play consistently well demands determination, concentration and practice.

In all formats, players take turns to deliver their bowls from a mat. In all flat green games, the mat is placed at one end of the rink and the players bowl towards a small white ball called the ‘jack’ at the other end. The bowls are biased i.e. shaped so that they take a curved path towards the jack.

The crown green game is played using biased black or yellow jacks and biased bowls, with play taking place in any direction from the mat.

To be successful the bowl must be delivered with the correct weight, along the correct line. The object is to get one or more of your bowls closer to the jack than those of your opponents on each end - one point is scored for each counting bowl.