About lawn bowls and it's brief history
Lawn bowls is a sport that combines skill, strategy, and precision, played on a rectangular, flat grass surface called a bowling green. The game’s objective is to roll slightly weighted balls, known as bowls, toward a smaller white ball called the jack. The aim is to get your bowls as close as possible to the jack while keeping your opponent’s bowls away.
Each bowl is uniquely shaped with a bias, meaning it will curve as it rolls, creating a challenge to judge both distance and trajectory accurately. Players typically take turns, rolling one bowl at a time from a designated area called the mat, aiming to position it closest to the jack by the end of the round, or “end.”
Scoring is based on the number of bowls a player or team has closer to the jack than their opponent’s nearest bowl. Games can be played in singles or teams (pairs, triples, or fours), and the winner is the player or team with the highest score after a set number of ends or time limit. Lawn bowls requires patience, precision, and tactical thinking, making it a popular sport for players of all ages and abilities.
Lawn bowling, one of the world’s oldest sports, traces its origins back thousands of years. Evidence of a game resembling lawn bowling has been found in ancient Egypt, where stone bowls have been uncovered in tombs dating as far back as 5,000 B.C. Variations of the game appeared in ancient Greece and Rome, with the Roman game of “bocce” evolving from similar principles. By the 13th century, lawn bowling gained popularity in England, and it became a beloved pastime of English royalty, including Henry VIII.
Lawn bowling’s popularity surged during the medieval period, though it faced occasional bans in England, as authorities feared it distracted archers from military training. The game took its modern form in the 16th century, with the establishment of standard rules. In 1848, Scottish enthusiasts codified the official rules at the Glasgow Bowling Club, which served as the foundation for modern lawn bowling.
There is a famous story of Sir Francis Drake playing bowls on Plymouth Hoe in July 1588 as the Spanish Armada approached is one of England’s most enduring legends. According to the tale, Drake, when alerted to the Armada’s presence, refused to leave his game of bowls until it was finished. More likely he was just waiting for the wind and tide conditions to change, however, it does signify the importance of finishing the game in hand.
The Southampton Old Bowling Green is recognized as the oldest lawn bowling club. The club has a rich heritage, with documented records tracing its foundation back to 1299. It was founded during the reign of King Edward I of England. Other early lawn bowling clubs emerged in England and Scotland in the subsequent centuries. Scotland, in particular, played a pivotal role in the formalization of the sport in the 19th century, with the formation of the Scottish Bowling Association in 1892 to govern the sport at a national level.
The sport spread globally through British colonization, reaching countries like Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and South Africa, where it remains popular today. Modern lawn bowling is played on carefully manicured greens, with the objective of rolling biased bowls closest to a smaller target ball, known as the “jack.” Read more from www.worldbowls.com
In the UK, the governing body for lawn bowling is Bowls England. They oversee the sport’s rules, competitions, and development, working to support both amateur and professional players. Founded in 2008, Bowls England replaced the English Bowling Association and aims to promote lawn bowling across England. For other parts of the UK, separate governing bodies exist: Bowls Scotland, Bowls Wales, and the Irish Bowling Association. Together, they maintain high standards and promote the sport nationwide. Read more from www.bowlsengland
Bowls Hampshire is a non-profit making organisation and is a member of Bowls England and has authority for the administration of the sport of bowls within the County of Hampshire. Membership of Bowls Hampshire is open to all outdoor Clubs which play the level green game of bowls within the boundaries of the County of Hampshire as existing at 31st March 1965. Read more from www.bowlshampshire.com