Practice Drills - Richmond Park Bowls Club

Bowls Practice

AIM

  • To increase the awareness and the power of Positive Purposeful Practice.
    "I am not a naturally talented person but by practicing I achieve the best standard that I am able to" remember bowls is 70% mental and 30% practice.
  • Positive Purposeful Practice, This will be the part where individual problems can be studied and a remedy prescribed to enable future quality practice, having eradicated the old bad habits. Remember, if you practice bad habits your game will decline, worse still practice the same bad habits with friends and like the pox and plague you pass them on!
  • Involve umpires, which will help to reach higher standards within marking, measuring and etiquette, the qualities of which are so important to the game.
  • The following are examples of the type of practice sessions. Practice can range from delivery of the jack, sports psychology, improvement, line and length, angles, threes and skips, communication, head reading and head building.
  • Here are three exercises all of which are as necessary as each other. These can be practised on your own or with friends but need to be taken seriously and for that reason it is suggested to keep a score card to assist you achieve the next step in your goals that you wish to aspire to.
  • If you see a better bowler than you practising ask to join in, it will lift the quality of your play. So many bowlers forget to practice delivery of the jack, maybe they never play lead and then when they lose a singles match they wonder why. See exercise 1.

Positive Purposeful Practice - EXERCISE 1

ROLLING THE JACK

At the first end of a match it is advisable to roll the jack to your team's favourite length. It is wise to concentrate on and strive to win the first end as this creates early confidence. If it works stay with it, why change a winning length? Your opponents will soon alter the length when they get the opportunity, and in so doing will reveal what they consider to be their strength.

When changing length it is always advisable to alter the position of the mat as an addition to altering the length, this will involve a slight adjustment of grass for players using an object on the bank for establishing their line.

There has always been controversy as to whether the winner of the toss should take the mat. The rolling of the jack at the first end is like having an extra bowl! It gives the lead the feel of the pace of the green and is preferable to the doubtful asset of having the last bowl in perhaps a cluttered head.

On the last end it can be advantageous for a skip to have the last bowl, presupposing that neither team has been playing better than its opponents on any particular length, and that the head will not be hopelessly blocked, as often occurs on heavy greens before the last bowl is played.

If playing against inexperienced bowlers it is good tactics to have the jack positioned as near the 2m mark as possible irrespective of length, with the mat well up the green if a short end is desired. Inexperienced bowlers are usually afraid of going in the ditch and tend to drop short. If playing an experienced player with a good firm shot or drive it is advisable to leave plenty of distance between the jack and the ditch so that in the event of the jack being moved there will be ample room to draw the shot.

All of this stresses the importance of accurate rolling of the jack, so if you have any pretensions of being a good singles player or competent lead in any team it is imperative that regular practice at rolling the jack be carried out. The practice should include the rolling of the jack to various lengths. The best method of doing this is to take a number of jacks (without bowls) and practice rolling each jack to a different length in turn. Many a game has been lost through poor rolling of the jack.

Positive Purposeful Practice - EXERCISE 2

Rhythm and Delivery - Positive Purposeful Practice - EXERCISE 2 - Richmond Park Bowls Club

RHYTHM AND DELIVERY

Eight Ends - 32 Bowls

This exercise has multi uses

  • Finding your rhythm/timing.
  • Reinforcing your knowledge of your delivery action.
  • Exploring the green.
  • Using forehand and backhand so that you are equally adept on either.

METHOD

Bowl 4 bowls in the same direction aiming to be within 1 yard of the jack. Repeat exercise in the opposite direction using the other delivery hand. Repeat the same again and again.

i.e.
End 1, 4 bowls forehand up the green.
End 2, 4 bowls backhand down the green.
End 3, 4 bowls backhand up the green.
End 4, 4 bowls forehand down the green.

As always left handers reverse the procedure.

Positive Purposeful Practice - EXERCISE 3

Positive Purposeful Practice - EXERCISE 3 - Richmond Park Bowls Club

Eight Ends - 32 Bowls

First bowl to long jack on forehand
Second bowl to short jack on forehand
Third bowl to long jack on backhand
Fourth bowl to short jack on backhand
Turn round play back the same way
Long bowls should be within 1 Yard of the jack and short bowls should be within 2 feet of the jack.
KEEP A SCORE OF YOUR SESSION

Exercise 3 like exercise 2 has multi uses with the Advantage of (e)

  • Finding your rhythm/timing.
  • Reinforcing your knowledge of your delivery action.
  • Exploring the green.
  • Using fore and backhand so that you are equally adept on either.
  • Finding techniques to assist in achieving more consistency.

DISCLAIMER

All articles contained within this webpage are for information only and should not be considered as an offering of professional advice.

Any of the information taken from this website is at your own risk and Richmond Park Bowls Club and/or the club officials, jointly or severally, will be held responsible for any outcome.