Women - Rules

COMPETITION RULES

General

(i)     County Championships and Competitions shall be administered by Bowls Northumberland and will be conducted under the Rules and Regulations of Bowls England and in accordance with the current Laws of the Sport of Bowls. For further information see https://www.bowlsengland.com.

(ii)     All competitors must have paid affiliation fees through their club for the current year.

(iii)    Play to be on a set day at the venue(s) of the home drawn club unless specified. Games shall be played either on weekdays in the evenings with a start time no earlier than 6pm or at weekends. For weekday games an earlier start may be arranged by mutual agreement between competitors, but in the absence of mutual agreement the start time of no earlier than 6pm shall be adhered to.

(iv)    The draw for rink/s to be played on shall be made in accordance with the current Laws of the Sport.

(v)     Winners should notify the results by phone, text or e-mail to the Competition Secretary no later than 10pm on the day of play.

(vi)    The winners’ scorecard signed by both skips and listing all the player’s names must be submitted by the winners, to the Competition Secretary, within 72 hours of the end of play. This can be via post, or emailing a scanned copy or photograph.

(vii)  The winners of each Championship shall represent Bowls Northumberland at the Bowls England National Championships.

(viii) Any cases of dispute should be referred to the Competition Secretary.

Cancellations

(ix)     Games may be rescheduled to an earlier date if mutually agreed but must be played before the next round commences.

(x)     For cancellations due to adverse weather conditions as determined by the green keeper/challenger, the tie must be played before the next round commences.

(xi)    Any cancelled game must be reported to the Competition Secretary the same day.

(xii)  New dates should not be offered on County match days or any other County Competition days (see calendar).

Dress Code

Qualifying rounds/ Benevolent/ Norris/ Double Rinks Final.

(i)       All competitors must play in regulation shoes and grey trousers/ skirt/ crops/ Bowls England (BE) shorts and registered club tops. If there is no club top registered to the BNWS then you must wear plain white/ cream polo shirt. All members of the side must wear the same tops.

(ii)     County Finals
Dress for all county finals is white skirt/trouser/crops/ BE shorts plus white/ cream or registered top.
Any competitors not compliant may be disqualified.

(iii)   Bowls England National Championships
Northumberland County regulation tops, white regulation skirts/trousers/crops/BE shorts and regulation shoes.

(iv)   For other dress code please refer to Bowls England Regulation No 50. 2.8

 

Undrawn Competitions
Benevolent, Norris, 2 Wood & 4 Wood Champion of Champions

(i)    Arrive at the venue no later than 9.45am. Draw will take place at 10am.

(ii)   Competitors in the undrawn competitions must give prior notice of withdrawal or incur green fees

County Double Rinks & Senior Fours

(i)   3 Dates to be given, one of which must be a weekend or evening.

(ii)  Round to be played on a play by date except the semi-final and final, which will be on a set day.

Format of Play

National Championships Players (per side) No. of bowls per player No. of Ends No. Of Shots Age Restriction (age as at 1 April 2023)
2 Bowl Singles* 1 2 21 Open Age
4 Wood Singles 1 4 21 Open Age
Pairs* 2 4 18 Open Age
Triples* 3 3 18 Open Age
Fours* 4 2 18 Open Age
Senior Fours* 4 2 18 55 or over
Junior Singles 1 4 21 under 25
Junior Pairs 2 4 18 under 25

* In these games – in the event of the scores being equal when all ends have been played, an extra end or ends shall be played until a decision is reached.

Double Rinks – 8 players (2 rinks of 4), 2 bowls each, 18 ends

Benevolent Triples – 3 players, 2 bowls each, 15 ends

Norris Trophy – 3 players, 2 bowls each, 15 ends

Trophies

(i)    Current trophy holders to deliver all trophies to their respective finals.

(ii)   Winners and runner-ups will be expected to get their trophies engraved (font and size according to existing engraving on the trophy). Players will then bring the engraved and polished trophies to the County Luncheon where they will be presented formally.

REGULATION DRESS FOR COUNTY MATCHES

Bowls Northumberland County shirt, white trousers, skirts, crops or Bowls England regulation shorts and regulation shoes.