Let's play bowls

🤩 “BEST THING I'VE DONE, fresh air, exercise, meeting folks. Worth a try!” Trevor, Somerset

🤩 “Wonderful game and social side, fabulous to make lots of friends” Brenda, Essex

🤩“Best sport ever! I have been playing since 1986 and have made so many fantastic friends. Give it a go you won't regret it” Elaine, Coventry.

LET'S ROLL!

Bowls is an uncomplicated and accessible sport, which anyone of any age can play. It’s also both a real challenge to get those competitive juices flowing and a relaxing way of spending an hour or two, with players always enjoying the social side of the sport. For sportsmen and ladies considering retiring from football, rugby, golf, hockey and other ball sports it's a natural follow on sport which is not quite so physically demanding but still requires your full mental powers. Easy to learn, but watch out for those pensioners that have been playing for many years, as they may have a few tricks up their sleeve.

If you have never been involved in sport you will find bowls can also be a nice sociable game where the fun of the game and the company is sometimes more important than the result.

What kit do I need to start playing? - Well at Marldon and most other clubs a pair of flat soled shoes is essential, to protect the green. That is all you need to try out the game. The outdoor bowls season runs from about Mid April until the end of September.

Peter Cartwright of Riviera FM interviewed Ray O'Brien, one of our bowls coaches, on the merits of taking up the sport of bowls, (preferably at Marldon Bowls Club) and you can hear the show containing the interview by following the link Riviera FM Interview. Last season, Ray showed several new bowlers how to play the game at Marldon after which they joined as members, and we are hoping they will all enjoy many years at our club. More new bowlers are always welcome.

We can let you borrow a set of woods to try the game, (they come in various sizes and they come in sets of four) and it's probably advisable to use borrowed woods for a while until you are sure of the right size before buying your own woods. When I started playing bowls, I borrowed a set of woods for a whole season (April to September) in my first year. Most people will buy a second hand set of woods to start off with as new woods are quite expensive.

At Marldon you will be shown the basics of how to play the game by one of our qualified coaches and this is all free. If you decide you want to take up the game then you will need to join as a full member and will get 4 weeks free membership followed by a discounted price for your first year at our club. Once you are a full member then you are eligible to play on our green when it is available and also play for our club in matches, both home and away. Like most clubs we have a 'dress code' and once you have become a member you will be expected to adhere to the dress code and to buy a club shirt if you intend to play in matches against other clubs. It is also worth pointing out that games (especially league games) are sometimes played in wet conditions, so at some time you might need to consider buying a waterproof bowling jacket and trousers.

In addition to playing in organised matches,you can use our green for 'roll ups', where you can play on your own or with other members in a non-competitive envirinment just for the exercise and a bit of sociable sport. Roll-ups are permitted when the green is not is use for other games and sessions are limited to three hours maximum time.

At Marldon we play a mixture of league games and friendly games. For league games the best available players will be selected to play, but there are leagues designed for players of different standards. For friendly games, all members are given the opportunity to play. We quite often find that new bowlers are good enough to be selected for league games after a very short time.

At Marldon we also have club games, (involving just our own members) and new players are encouraged to play in these games to gain experience in match conditions.

We also have club competitions including one excusively for novices and bowlers who have never won a competition.

Want to know more? Call Ray:- Telephone 07525 780125. or email : [email protected]

or Read more: Here