For the last two summers, I have run a clinic at Etobicoke LBC in Toronto Canada for lawn bowlers who are no longer beginners but still want to accelerate improvement in their bowling skills using some drills. I call it the Skills Development Challenge. I do not coach attendees although I remain on the green to answer questions or to help any new bowlers who show up.
I set up 8 rinks each arranged to test a skill that if mastered can improve their game. I tell participants that it is a playground. They can start on any rink using their own bowls. They can try all or whichever challenges they want. They should just move from low rink numbers towards higher ones so they don’t collide with other participants. Each person gets a handout explaining what is going on at each rink site. In this blog, I attach the handouts for each of the four weekends. In my case, the green is open Sunday morning from 10:30am-12:01pm.
SKILLS DEVELOPMENT CHALLENGE 2019 (1)
Rink 1 Deliver two jacks, one after the other, to between 21 and 23 meters (short jacks)
Then deliver two consecutive jacks to within 4 meters of the front ditch (long jacks).
Control of jack length is one of the two tools your side has to stay ahead. What is the other?
IMPORTANT FOR LEADS AND SINGLES BOWLERS_____________________________________
Rink 2 Deliver 4 bowls with the same weight over a single stare point marked with a beer coaster;
See whether you can pick up ALL 4 of your bowls from the green afterward without moving your feet from one place. The correct weight is 90% of the game; line is only 10%.
IMPORTANT FOR ALL BOWLERS______________________________________________________
Rink 3 Your opponent(s) have a very close shot bowl. Bowl 4 bowls so each of your 4 bowls finishes either within one mat length of the jack or ends up behind the jack; don’t be short. [When you’re down (in the head) be up!]
IMPORTANT FOR ALL BOWLERS______________________________________________________
Rink 4 Add or subtract length. Deliver your first 2 bowls trying to reach the length of your skip’s shoe, which is placed 1 meter beyond the jack; With your next two bowls try to subtract a meter.
The object is to avoid bowling short by first getting behind the jack and then correcting to get to the jack; avoid short bowls!
IMPORTANT FOR ALL BOWLERS_____________________________________________________
Rink 5 Draw around bowls to reach the jack; change where you stand on the mat if necessary. It isn’t necessary to change hands to avoid bowls in your line.
IMPORTANT FOR ALL BOWLERS _____________________________________________________
Rink 6 Remove a single opposition bowl. Hit the shot bowl and move it back. Quite often the best way to score is to knock out an opposition bowl. Hitting a bowl is much easier than hitting a jack.
IMPORTANT FOR SKIPS ______________________________________________________________
Rink 7 Bowl between the two smaller markers with the weight to reach the large marker behind.
You can try with each of your bowls but don’t be short and block yourself.
IMPORTANT FOR VICES AND SKIPS ___________________________________________________
Rink 8 Draw to within 2 meters of the front ditch aiming towards a ditched jack.
IMPORTANT FOR SKIPS ______________________________________________________________
SKILLS DEVELOPMENT CHALLENGE 2019 (2)
Rink 1 Deliver a jack and then immediately follow with a bowl delivering with the same rhythm speed. Rhythm speed is the combined swing of your arm and length of your step. Repeat- first jack then bowl. Delivering the jack first is one of the best ways for the lead to get the proper length.
IMPORTANT FOR LEADS AND SINGLES BOWLERS_____________________________________
Rink 2 Deliver 4 bowls with the same weight over a single stare point marked with a beer coaster;
See whether you can pick up ALL 4 of your bowls from the green afterward without moving your feet from one place. The correct weight is 90% of the game; line is only 10%.
IMPORTANT FOR ALL BOWLERS______________________________________________________
Rink 3 Your opponent(s) have a very close shot bowl. Bowl 4 bowls so each of your 4 bowls finishes either within one mat length of the jack or ends up behind the jack; don’t be short. [When you’re down (in the head) be up!]
IMPORTANT FOR ALL BOWLERS______________________________________________________
Rink 4 Deliver one bowl to each of four lengths marked by tennis balls. The correct weight is 90% of the game; line is only 10%.
IMPORTANT FOR ALL BOWLERS_____________________________________________________
Rink 5 On-shot through your team’s bowls in front of the jack. Promote your team’s short bowls.
IMPORTANT FOR VICES AND SKIPS________________________________________________
Rink 6 Remove a single opposition bowl. Hit the shot bowl and move it back. Quite often the best way to score is to knock out an opposition bowl. Hitting a bowl is much easier than hitting a jack.
IMPORTANT FOR SKIPS ______________________________________________________________
Rink 7 Bowl between the two smaller markers with ‘ditch’ weight. You may need to break up a head when you are badly down. No more power is required than ‘ditch weight’. Extra power gives up accuracy.
IMPORTANT FOR VICES AND SKIPS ___________________________________________________
Rink 8 Push up one of your team’s short bowls. A standing bowl is easier to move.
IMPORTANT FOR VICES & SKIPS ______________________________________________________
SKILLS DEVELOPMENT CHALLENGE 2019 (3)
Rink 1 Deliver a jack and then immediately follow with a bowl delivering with the same rhythm speed. Rhythm speed is the combined swing of your arm and length of your step. Repeat- first jack then bowl. Delivering the jack is one of the best ways for the lead to get proper length.
IMPORTANT FOR LEADS AND SINGLES BOWLERS_____________________________________
Rink 2 Deliver 4 bowls with the same weight over a single stare point marked with a beer coaster;
See whether you can pick up ALL 4 of your bowls from the green afterward without moving your feet from one place. The correct weight is 90% of the game; line is only 10%.
IMPORTANT FOR ALL BOWLERS______________________________________________________
Rink 3 Add or subtract length. Deliver your first 2 bowls trying to reach the length of your skip’s shoe, which is placed 1 meter beyond the jack; With your next two bowls try to subtract a meter.
The object is to avoid bowling short by first getting behind the jack and then correcting to get to the jack; avoid short bowls!
IMPORTANT FOR ALL BOWLERS_____________________________________________________
Rink 4 There are two jacks and two mats on this rink. Deliver 4 bowls from the back mat aiming to reach the jack at the hog line. Then deliver your 4 bowls from the forward mat to the jack at two meters from the front ditch. Does your aim change with the different mat positions? Does your weight change?
IMPORTANT FOR ALL BOWLERS_____________________________________________________
Rink 5 Remove both opposing bowls with a single delivery. This is one of the biggest easiest targets you will ever be given.
IMPORTANT FOR VICES AND SKIPS________________________________________________
Rink 6 Remove a single opposition bowl. Hit the shot bowl and move it back. Quite often the best way to score is to knock out an opposition bowl. Hitting a bowl is much easier than hitting a jack.
IMPORTANT FOR SKIPS ______________________________________________________________
Rink 7 Deliver two blockers- one to protect against a forehand draw and the second to protect against a backhand draw. With your next two bowls deliver one forehand draw and then one backhand draw. Are your blockers effective? The best blockers against draw shots are just 14 meters from the mat.
IMPORTANT FOR VICES AND SKIPS ___________________________________________________
Rink 8 Draw to within 2 meters of the front ditch aiming towards a ditched jack.
IMPORTANT FOR SKIPS ______________________________________________________________
SKILLS DEVELOPMENT CHALLENGE 2019 (4)
Rink 1 Deliver two bowls on your forehand and then two bowls on your backhand. Decide which is the more playable hand for you going in this direction. Now bowl two bowls on your forehand and two on your backhand coming back in the opposite direction. Again, for you, what is the more playable hand? Often , particularly on rinks that are not completely flat, one side is more forgiving of errors in line than the other and it is usually, but not always, the narrower side. Lead bowlers can often tell teammates the more playable side.
IMPORTANT FOR LEADS AND SINGLES BOWLERS_____________________________________
Rink 2 The opposition has delivered a very close shot with their first bowl. Draw your side’s first bowl. Follow with three more good bowls. It is even more important not to be short when the opposition has a very good shot bowl. As lead it is not your role to remove it. Try to deliver a good second best bowl; close but more importantly- behind the jack.
IMPORTANT FOR LEADS AND SINGLES BOWLERS_____________________________________
Rink 3 Your side has delivered a very close bowl (6 inches). Bowl 4 bowls so each of your bowls ends up behind the jack. Particularly, try not to bowl narrow; you do not want to separate your close bowl from the jack. The opposition will attack. The jack is very likely to move backward.
IMPORTANT FOR ALL BOWLERS______________________________________________________
Rink 4 There are two jacks and two mats on this rink. Deliver 4 bowls from the back mat aiming to reach the jack at the hog line. Then deliver your 4 bowls from the forward mat to the jack at two meters from the front ditch. Does your aim change with the different mat positions? Does your weight change?
IMPORTANT FOR ALL BOWLERS_____________________________________________________
Rink 5 This is a test of measuring. Don’t bowl. Look at the head set-up. What do you measure? How many points does yellow score? Hint- After removing the uncontested bowls decide which is the best contesting bowl of the side that does not hold shot.
IMPORTANT FOR VICES AND SINGLES BOWLERS_______________________________________
Rink 6 Bowl to an off-center jack. This presents two problems: the possibility of ending out of bounds and estimating line & length over new grass.
IMPORTANT FOR ALL BOWLERS ______________________________________________________
Rink 7 Bowl your 4 bowls into this head and then count your score versus the bowls already behind the jack. Hint- If you touch the jack you can get in real trouble. If you bowl short you may block yourself. Try to rest your bowls on the opposing bowls behind or wick in off your own side bowls.
IMPORTANT FOR ALL BOWLERS ___________________________________________________
Rink 8 Bowl within two meters of the ditch because the jack is in the ditch. Be daring. The last two meters of grass is longer and the edge of the rink may have a small rise.
IMPORTANT FOR VICES & SKIPS______________________________________________________
You will notice that some challenges are repeated in different weeks while others appear only once. I emphasize that there is no need to come every week and no week is a prerequisite for later weeks.
