Playing Bowls in Honolulu: Leads as Greenskeepers’ Assistants

 On my way home to Canada, after avoiding any winter weather in Australia, my wife and I played bowls at the Honolulu Lawn Bowling Club.  This is the only lawn bowling green in Hawaii. It was built by Australian troops during the war. It fell into disrepair afterward, was rehabilitated, and is now maintained by its present membership, who total about 35 souls. The club is within walking distance of the Hilton Hawaiian Village resort where we were staying.  Apparently, many visitors come for a game from the tourist sites. There is play on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday but see their website for current details. We were not the only visitors. There is a large selection of bowls to borrow and a friendly atmosphere.

As you might imagine keeping up a natural grass green with only a small group of player-volunteers is a challenge and I could see that not all the rinks were playable at one time. This reminded me of something very important for novice bowlers to remember. Novices very often are lead bowlers and they have the freedom(at least within 3 or 4 meters) to decide where to place the mat. Leads should choose the position of the mat with respect for the condition of the rink. They are the most important assistants to the greenskeeper because they can keep the heavy traffic away from areas where the grass needs time to recover. Most often this is the area two meters out from the back ditch where so many players think the mat must be placed!

Try moving the mat five meters up the rink. When the mat has been centered with the help of your skip, on the green mark the position of the front center of the mat with chalk. That way you will be putting your mat down where there is less wear and tear while still making it quick to center the mat at the same place again and get on with the next end.