The Game of Lawn Bowls
Lawn bowls (also referred to as lawn bowling or just plain bowls) is defined as "a precision sport where the goal is to roll slightly radially asymmetrical balls (called bowls) closer to a smaller white ball (known as the "jack" or "kitty") than one's opponent is able to do." This game can most easily be compared to bocce or petanque. The most popular places in the world where lawn bowling takes place is Australia, Canada, the United Kingdom and select areas of the United States. Lawn bowling is a low impact sport suitable for people of most ages and is particularly popular among senior citizens. This sport is considered to be a "popular participant sport" and has become very competitive among the younger generation.
This game can be played both indoors and outdoors but it is primarily an outdoor game. Most of the time it is played on a surface of synthetic material referred to as a bowling green or it is played on a large, rectangular, well kept lawn. The simplest competition known as singles starts when one of the players places a mat on the ground and then proceeds to roll the jack to the opposite end of the green. This is referred to as a target and interestingly enough, the beginning of a match is referred to as an "end." Once the jack is motionless each player has a turn where they roll their bowls in the direction of the jack. This action intensifies what is known as the "head." If a bowl manages to reach the ditch it is deemed to be dead and is taken out of the game. The only exception to this rule is when the bowl makes contact with the jack and then it is identified with chalk as a "toucher." Touchers that fall into the ditch are permitted to remain a part of the game. After each player has rolled all four of their bowls, measurements of the closest bowls to the jack are taken and points are tallied. Points are awarded based on how close each player's bowls are to the jack. To give an example, if a player has gotten two lawn bowls in closer proximity to the jack than the other player's, he or she is awarded two points. The whole process is then repeated.
The way a game of lawn bowls is scored is not the same with every competition. In some games there is a "set" scoring system with the first to seven points awarded in a set in the best of for example, five matches. In other competitions, the first to a specific amount of points for example, twenty-one, is usually the amount used.