Is your Golf Game off?

Golf Game Off?

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Why not come out and get as much fresh air as you would playing golf. So turn your sound up for this one!

Is your golf game off:------------------

Club Daily Schedule.

Bowling Times

May to September

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Monday  Morning - Green Maintenance

                1:30 p.m.    Scotch Pairs Open Draw

                7:00 p.m.    Singles-Pairs

Tuesday 

                10:00 a.m.  Triples Open Draw

                1:30 p.m.    Triples Open Draw

                Evening     Practice

Wednesday Morning - Green Maintenance

                1:30 p.m.    Practice

                7:00 p.m.    Prime Time League

Thursday       

                10:00 a.m.  Triple Open Draw

                 P.M.          Practice

                 Evening    Practice

Friday Morning       Green - Maintenance

                 P.M.          Practice

                 7:00 p.m.    Friday League

Saturday       

                 A.M.          Practice

                 1:30 p.m.    Triples Open Draw (tea)

Sunday    

                 1:30 p.m.    Australian Pairs Open Draw

Sunday anytime:  Available for Members to Introduce Family and Friends

New Clubhouse Floor.

New Floor Laying.

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We have a confirmed date for the flooring to be installed which will be Monday May 16th, Tuesday May 17th and Wednesday May 18th.  The clubhouse will be out of bounds for those dates.

 

If you want to bowl on those date place your bowls, shoes and whatever you need either in your vehicle or the green set up locker.

Any questions please contact me.

 

Harvey Rogalsky

harveyrogalsky@shaw.ca



 

 

The Lead.

The Lead.

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The Lead position in any game has a great deciding factor in the end result of that particular end. From the placing of the mat if your team has won the toss or previous end. To whether you throw a short or long jack.

Your first bowl should carry enough weight to come as close to the jack as possible, but if you over shoot the jack and come in behind it, that is alright, as the jack may be hit during the game, driving it closer to your bowl. Bowls that stop short of the jack are what you might call wasted shots.

Remember, always watch what the opposition Lead does. The track of his or her shot whether forehand or backhand should give you useful information on the grain of the grass. In competition with an early morning draw and that there has been an over night dew. Although the groundsman has dragged a lambs wool covered board over the green to dislodge the dew, you will find that the track and distance of the bowl will change dramatically as the sun rises and the green dries out.

If in doubt at anytime, always consult with your Skip any questions you may have. Some people will say you are only a Lead! As if you really don’t count! Believe me as a Skip, the Lead position is just as important as that of any other playing position on the team! That includes that of being Skip!

In the drawing above, figure (1) shows the ideal first forehand shot of a Lead. Figure (2) depicts another forehand shot that ended up behind the jack.

Alignment of the Mat.

Alignment of the Mat.

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The alignment of the mat is all-important at the beginning of an end. This is a job that falls to the lead of the team. The front or leading edge of the mat shall be at least two metres from the edge of the Ditch.

It also important, that the jack is placed in the center of the mat. This will make it easier for the Skip to ascertain that the mat is duly centered. As shown in the drawing above.

Where we are located.

Where we are located.

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I thought it was about time to give you some idea of where to find the Victoria West Lawn Bowling Club. So with thanks to Google I have come up with this small pictorial map.

A: The Bowling Green and Clubhouse.

B: The Car Park off Bay Street.

C: The Victoria West Park.

D: Bay Street.

E: The Skate Board Park.

At the bottom of the picture is Esquimalt Road. Where there is a frequent bus service for those wanting to use public transport.

The Hog Line.

The Hog Line Marker.

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The Hog Line in the game of Lawn Bowls is always marked on the back board of the Ditch, in most cases with a coloured painted line. Some clubs, as with the Vic West club, have gone a little further and have a wooden cut out of a Hog screwed to the back board as in the drawing above.

In this next drawing you can see the lines drawn in yellow marked D & B. These represent the position of the Hog Lines. Recently Bowls Canada has made a rule change in the distance of the Hog Lines from the Ditch. Now the distance from A to B or C to D on the drawing shall be 23 metres. The distance from the leading edge of the mat to be no more than 21 metres. 

Lawn Bowl Bias.

Lawn Bowl Bias.

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This section is for the aspiring and novice lawn bowler. It is all-important that when you pick up a bowl that you are aware which side of your bowl has the bias.

First, let us examine bowl (A.) You will also notice that it has more designs and a large center, which can be coloured or will have the club crest decal, or even a plain coloured sticker of your choice. This is the un-biased side.

Bowl (B.) For instance has a much smaller design and can easily be recognized, as having much less decoration. This is the important bias side of the bowl, and whether the bowl is delivered forehand or backhand it always faces the centerline of the rink.

There are times even when experienced players will not remember to check the bias before bowling, and find their bowl going out of the rink into foul territory.



A Good Delivery.

A Good Delivery.

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The delivery of the bowl by the player is only gained by practice. It must leave the players hand as close the surface of the green as possible, so as to lessen the impedance of the shot. Also it must roll off fingers of the player’s hand cleanly to avoid any change in the bowls intended direction.

A bowl that is released from say 12" above the playing surface is likely to do two things. First, due to the shock on hitting the green, it is most likely not going to reach the jack. Secondly it will not achieve the direction that was intended.

The two clips that are shown above and repeated are to show a near perfect delivery.

The track of a Lawn Bowl.

The Forehand Track.

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Fore & Backhand shots

Now we get down to the wood (ancient term) or bowl it self. They come in varying sizes. Though in the set of four bowls they all have the same amount of bias. Bias: or a built in off center weight. As the bowl leaves the players hand it will tend to go straight for a while, then as it slows down the bias takes over and the bowl will curve in the desired direction, as you can see in these two diagrams.

The Backhand Track.

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In the case of the player being left handed these terms are reversed. You will learn also in this game, as in the game of golf the grain of the grass and the moisture content and firmness of the soil all play a big factor in the game. That is what makes the challenge of the game so enjoyable. That means that the angle of aim when delivering the bowl may change from whether it is forehand or backhand play that is being called for by your team skip. If you stand behind and watch the track of your opositions bowl. It will give you some idea of where to aim your next shot.

The Basic Rink Layout.

The Basic Rink Layout.

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The white square markers represent the hooked pegs that hang on the wall of the ditch and denote the rink boundary.

The blue center square markers are the hooked number pegs and centerline for that rink.

The yellow oblong represents the mat from which bowl is delivered during that end. As a rule it is set out two metres from the ditch, and remains in place after the jack has been set, until the last bowl has been delivered in the end. Then it is lifted and placed on the bank at the edge of the green.

The white spot is to represent the jack after it has been set on the centerline at right angles to where it ended up when rolled out. It also cannot be set closer than two metres from the ditch.

By the way the plan view drawing is not to scale and is only there for demonstration purposes.

The Bowling Green Ditch.

The Bowling Green Ditch.

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The drawing above shows a side view of The Ditch Bowls that roll into the ditch, the sandy boundary around the edge of the green, are considered "dead" and removed from the play, unless they have touched the jack. "Toucher’s" are marked with chalk and remain in play (referred to as a "live" bowl) even though they are in the ditch.  Similarly, a bowl that has touched the jack is still alive if it is knocked into the ditch by another player's bowl.



Basic Green Layout.

Basic Green Layout.

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 I want to present you with a basic bowling green and its size and shape. First of all, the drawing above shows the direction of play being in one direction only, say, North-South. In fact to save wear and tear of the green, games are also played East-West as well.

The size of the greens can vary from, 25.8 metres square, up to 34.8 metres square. Each of the rinks can also vary as well from a minimum width of 4.3 metres or 14 feet, to that of 5.8 metres or 19 feet. Most greens are laid out with eight rinks, though in the plan drawing above it only shows six. This again is for demonstration purposes only.

Elevation of the entire green is usually within one quarter of an inch, this is usually checked by the grounds keeper, towards the end of the bowling season. This is carried out using a water-leveling device. Nowadays laser equipment can be used as well. So that during the winter season any repairs required can be carried out.

Lateral movement of the rinks, are carried out on each day of play by using a colour code marker system. This way also helps even out the wear and tear of the green surface. So when you hear someone say “What is the colour today?” You will know what the rinks are being set up on.



Short History of Lawn Bowling.

A Short History.

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It is thought that the Romans brought bowls in the form of the game of “Bocce.” To Europe, from the Middle East. Records of the game as we know it today with a number of changes in the rules, date back to the thirteenth centaury. The game today is widely played throughout the British Commonwealth and the United States on a very strong competitive basis.

One famous story, and it has some credence, is that Sir Francis Drake and Sir Walter Raleigh were in the middle of a game on Plymouth Hoe, when word reached them of the impending assault of the Spanish Armada. The story goes that Sir Francis insisted that Phillip of Spain would have to wait while I finish the game; noble dedication, indeed. In fact, he had to wait for the incoming tide to peak before he could get his ship out of the harbor anyway.

This blog will continue to outline the present game in graphic detail, so that the aspiring player gains a little more knowledge of how the game is played.

2011 Lawn Bowling Season.

2011 Lawn Bowling Season.

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As of the 10th of April the club will hold an Open House from 1:00 p.m. until 4:00 p.m. Here you will be able to come and ask questions and even try your hand at the game under the direction of the club coaches.

As you can see by the photo advert above it is a game for the young and working population in the area. You will be able to play in the evening under the club flood lights and enter in the weekend games as well.

If you curl during the winter months, now is a chance for you to carry your skills forward with no sweeping involved!

In the beginning the club has bowl sets that the potential lawn bowler can use. Dress in comfortable clothes as you will be doing a lot of bending. The only thing that is required is that you wear a pair of flat heal-less shoes with little or no tread. This is to protect the grass on our green.