Bowling Surfaces

There are a wide range of different aspects in relation to playing conditions which lawn bowlers will have to adapt to. In general terms you have the outdoor game which is played during the summer on a maintained bowling green of grass. The indoor game is played during the winter on an artificial surface where the bowling green consists of underlay flooring and a carpet. However, each surface varies in the way it plays as their will be individual traits dependent on a variety of factors.

There will be different runs on greens which cannot be explained on an outdoor surface, this is just due to the way the grass grows. However, runs on outdoor bowling greens will tend to stay the same on each individual bowling green which means players can gain a competitive advantage on their home or well known playing surfaces.

Outdoor greens in the United Kingdom although maintained to a high standard, are known as heavy playing surfaces which in technical terms to a bowler is a slow playing surface. This means players will have to deliver their bowls more powerfully to reach the final destination. This could be due to the adverse weather we have, which means the bowling surfaces cannot be maintained to their maximum level. All greens vary in speed dependent on how well they are kept and sometimes the natural environment plays a role on how the surface will play as the grass could grow differently compared to others, although this will not have a major influence.

Shown below is an example of an outdoor green in the United Kingdom, this particular green is Kelvingrove Bowling Green where the Lawn Bowls was held for the Commonwealth Games in 2014.

Outdoor greens in the southern hemisphere however, are able to be maintained to a maximum level due to the kinder weather conditions. The playing surfaces are fast in comparison to that of the United Kingdom, which in technical terms to a bowler means the surface is playing fast. This means players will have to deliver their bowls less powerfully to reach the final destination. A lot of players will look to move to Australia or New Zealand to be exposed to these playing surfaces on a regular basis.

Shown below is an example of an outdoor bowling green from the southern hemisphere, this particular green is Broadbeach Bowls Club bowling green which is home to one of the best teams in Australia the Broadbeach Bulls.

As you may have noticed from the photos, although not entirely apparent, the playing surfaces in the southern hemisphere are maintained to maximum efficiency compared to the surfaces here.

Indoor greens in the United Kingdom do not need maintained like outdoor greens as there is no grass to be cut on a regular basis. The surface consists of underlay and a carpet. The only maintenance which will provided on indoor surfaces are the stretching of carpets to ensure maximum speed is kept. Over time the carpet will wear away through the continual play and stretching to maintain it, which means new carpets may be required every decade or so. Indoor surfaces are fast in comparison to that of the outdoor surfaces here, this is due to the bowls almost sliding along the carpet which means bowls are delivered less powerfully to reach their final destination. Indoor greens will vary in speed dependent on the underlay flooring present, which will also have an influence on the different runs on the green. Heating of the indoor arena has an effect on the playing surface, as this will cause the carpet to almost stretch due to the heat which will result in a quicker playing surface. Similar to that of outdoor greens, each surface has its only personal traits.

Shown below is an example of an indoor playing surface from the United Kingdom, in this particular instance the green shown is from Ayr Indoor Bowling Club where I personally play during the indoor season.

Shown below is an example of an indoor playing surface from the southern hemisphere, this green shown is from Tweeds Head Indoor Bowling Centre in Australia.

In this instance, indoor surfaces in the southern hemisphere are similar to that of indoor surfaces here as the playing conditions are similar as the examples above show.

Where bowlers from the United Kingdom will find the indoor a quicker surface than their outdoor greens, bowlers from the southern hemisphere will find their indoor a slower surface than their outdoor greens due to the maximum level of maintenance on their outdoor surfaces.

With this being said, this will have an influence on delivery technique. Different aspects of this will be discussed in my next blog. So stay tuned for more updates.

My Background Of Lawn Bowls

Lawn bowls has been a sport that my family has played for countless generations and has been a major part of our lives for as long as I can remember. The sport involves indoor and outdoor bowls which are playing during the winter months and summer months respectively.

I first started playing from only a year or two old with small carpet bowls up and down my living room with my family members. As the years went by and I grew older, I seemed to have mastered all the different particular runs in my living room like a seasoned professional.

When I was 10 years old, my Dad said it was time to join a junior section at the club he played at which was Prestwick Indoor Bowling Club. Following that, I joined the outdoor club of Newton Park. Both were very successful clubs, with their gent’s teams being included in the best teams in Scotland at the time. The indoor club had one of the best junior teams in the country as well, this could be used to my advantage to help develop my game appropriately as I grew into the sport.

In the following years, local indoor county titles were won at both junior and gents level with regularity. At only 13 years old in 2003 I was part of the junior team to win an indoor Scottish title. Evidently, three years later at 16 years old in 2006 came my second indoor Scottish title and with that came my selection for Scotland in the indoor international youth team. Success came at a young age and I began to take what I had achieved for granted. As a result I lost focus on what I was trying to achieve and my interest in the sport diminished for a few years, with my attention being focused to other areas of my personal life.

In 2007, I moved to Ayr Seafield Outdoor Bowling Club. In the following years I was part of teams winning local outdoor titles at gent’s level in Ayr with regularity without firmly establishing myself at the level I wished to achieve. To this day, I am still a member of this club and our successes have continued to grow. We have established ourselves as one of the strongest teams in the county and look to progress further in the future.

In 2011 at 21 years old, I qualified for the outdoor Scottish finals at senior level for the first time. This success was used as a stepping stone for the further successes to come. In 2012, I got to my first ever outdoor club championship final only to be unsuccessful. I used this experience to my advantage and bounced back the following year to reach the final yet again. This time, I came out on top defeating the 2009 Scottish gent’s singles and 2010 British Isles gent’s singles champion with the last bowl of the game. This was a massive confidence booster in the grand scheme of things.

In 2013, I moved to Ayr Indoor Bowling Club. Immediate success came my way by reaching my first indoor club championship final and coming out victorious. In addition to this, I was part of the Gents Team to win the indoor Scottish Division One title, only to be pipped in a playoff to gain entry into the Premier League.

The following season, more success followed on a personal and team basis. I was managed to reach the semi-final of the indoor Scottish under 25 singles before being beaten. I continued to try and develop my game as much as possible and managed to defend the club championship title I had won the previous season. The gent’s team I was part of also had great success, losing only one game all season to successfully win another indoor Scottish Division One title and due to the governing body changing the league set up we gained automatic promotion to the Premier League.

During the 2015 outdoor season, I was part of the gent’s team at Ayr Seafield to reach the Ayrshire final. It was the first time in the clubs history that they had reached the final. However, we were unsuccessful across the board and unfortunately lost out. However, during this game I managed to beat the indoor world ranked number two player Paul Foster MBE which was an extremely positive experience I could take moving forward. He is one of the most successful players Scotland has ever produced, one of the most naturally gifted players I have possibly ever seen with my own eyes.

This season, I managed to reach the quarter final of the indoor Scottish Gents Singles only to lose out. However, in the process I managed to beat one of the most established players in the game David Peacock on route to the quarter final. He has represented Scotland at all levels, including the commonwealth games. Needless to say, I played one of the games of my life to win. This experience continued to help my confidence grow. Our gent’s team firmly established themselves in the Premier League, finishing third in our section. A successful season for all involved, which will be looked to be built upon next season.

With the recent successes, I have been selected for Scotland in the indoor international gent’s team. This is by far the biggest accomplishment I have achieved in the game and I am greatly honoured that my hard work has not gone unnoticed.

The most important thing to remember is to not take anything for granted and if you want to achieve something, you must be willing to work hard for it while continuing this process in order to maintain your progress while developing all aspects as much as possible.

Stay tuned for my next blog, where I will discuss the different aspects of the game of bowls.