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Entries by Jerry Sanders

RIP Gonville

RIP Gonville Bowling Club   You are looking at a bowling club in its very death throes.  Gonville Bowling Club in Thornton Heath is on the market with a guide price of £1.5 million, and auctioneers Bernard Marcus, from whose auction catalogue this description is lifted, will be selling it to the highest bidder on […]

Purposeful Practice #1 – Double Bubble (Indoor)

Place two jacks (the ‘bubbles’) on the rink, one white and one yellow. Place the white one on the T and the yellow one on the 23m dot, hence offering one long and one short jack to the bowlers. The mat is always on the T Play in teams of 3 or 4 Two bowls […]

Green health – a little dangerous thing?

Green health is, next to member health, the most important asset for an outdoor bowls club.  But how many members know what makes for a healthy green? Every club has its greenkeeping staff or team, and it’s hard to start a conversation with them from a base of little or no knowledge.  A little knowledge, […]

Bowls TV

Bush Hill Bowls is delighted to announce sponsorship of Bowls TV. This match streaming service broadcast – and archived – on YouTube is going from strength to strength, and Bush Hill Bowls will be working with Bowls TV to offer special promotions and offers to viewers who tune in to the live streams. We applaud […]

Location Location…..Location

After 10 years at Genotin Terrace Bush Hill Bowls moved to Lincoln Road in March 2023.  The distance between the two locations is small – maybe a mile and half by car, or 800 yards as the crow flies. Here’s a picture And here’s why: we came to the end of our lease at Genotin […]

Bowls Buzz Lounge

In golf they call it the nineteenth hole. In bowls we’ll call it the ninth rink, aka the Bowls Buzz Lounge. That’s because we’ve never seen a bowls green with more than eight rinks…have you? I hope you’ll find something interesting here – and if not, then I hope you’ll contribute something interesting! Jerry   […]

Underwater Bowls?

In a unique collaboration, the national Bowls and Swimming authorities have combined to introduce a coaching qualification for underwater bowls. I am delighted to be the first Level 2 qualified underwater bowls coach, and am proud to share the news, sent to me in the letter reproduced below. Dear Jerry Sanders, Congratulations! I am pleased […]

Stand and Deliver?

Stand and deliver, or step forward and roll? There is no ‘golden rule’ about what stance a new bowler should adopt. There are some helpful pointers which may help the novice evolve a style which produces good results consistently. Stability is key. So the feet may be side by side as you stand and deliver […]

For new bowlers

Little bowler boy

The game of lawn bowls begins when a small white or yellow perfectly circular ball (the JACK) is rolled some 23m down a perfectly flat lawn or carpet.

A larger, heavier melamine ball (bowl), which is NOT perfectly round, is rolled after it by each player in turn. With the right weight and direction it will come to rest next to the jack. Rather than following a straight line, the bowl takes a long slow gentle curve to reach its destination.

One of the sides of the bowl is slighter heavier than the other. This gives the bowl a ‘bias’ so that as the bowl slows down there is a pull towards that side. The bowl literally curves around until it comes to a stop.

HOW TO CHOOSE YOUR BOWLS

So that you have the best control possible of the delivery it’s important to use a bowl that’s the right size for your hand. To find your size, stretch out your bowling arm horizontal to the ground and place the bowl in the upturned palm, gripping it comfortably.

Now (with a friend’s hand underneath to catch it if it falls) rotate the wrist 180 degrees. If the bowl feels as if it is slipping out of your grasp, it’s probably too big. Go down one size and repeat.

DON’T follow the practice of placing your hand around the belly of the bowl until the second fingers meet at the top and the two thumbs touch at the bottom. This takes the weight of the bowl out of the equation and is a completely useless guide.

Consider too that some bowls of the same numerical size have different widths. So for example a Taylor Blaze size 2, an Almark Slimline size 2 or a Henselite Tiger size 2 might be more comfortable for you than a Taylor Ace or Drakes Pride Professional of the same size.

After your first season you’ll also want to take into account the route taken by the bowl from mat to jack – a wider or narrower curve. But that’s a subject for another page…