Tags in Muscle Memory

Recently while sitting outside of the club's Green Fence watching a Major Qualification Lawn Bowls game; an interested passerby began asking questions about the sport. The reason I was sitting there outside the club was a lawn bowls rules which does not allow spectators behind the players "line of play" unless more than 3 meters which meant on the other side of the club's fence. 

Stats of blog for 1st week of September 2024

The fence is at 1 meter from the ditch and behind the player's bench and I was studing players strategy and post delivery focus and evaluation.

After several minutes, the passerby asked an advance sport question. " The game appears to involve a lot of muscle memory and mental  development ?" I discovered that he was a serious Basketball athletic and he explained a bit of the "Memory Recall" exercises his coach had educated him. Many basketball coaches advise their athletics to mentally practice their basket shooting skills in idle time even if during a bus trips or simply sitting and relaxing.

"Muscle Memory" simply defined is the mind being conditioned during a lot of practice to know the muscle movements needed to perform the correct basket shooting technique. Or in Lawn Bowls the correct delivery techniques. Others will say that a child learns to throw a ball and catch that ball by simple instinctive actions. Yes, Instinctive subconscious actions are involved in most sports.

  This blog is more for those Club Coaches doing the three or four week Club's "Introduction to Lawn Bowls" course to new members. This advance information is usually given only by Level 3 or Level 4 coaches dealing with helping competition athletics or international players; but as a learning bowler, it is important to know. 

In the photo (left) we see a screen capture from a Youtube Petanque video of Mark Wildeboer as he does a Petanque "Takeout" shot. In his previsualization of his shot we see  his toe tapping (a "Tell" of his pre-visualizations ) before his actual action of the doing the takeout shot. Athletics working with a Level 3 or Level 4 coach have moved from "Muscle Memory" to doing their performance in a "Void of thought" which allow the subconscious mind to perform the actual action. Often called  "Being In the Zen Zone", this is the exact action when we quickly break the car because of a child running out into the street. Watch the video and see the "Tell"

 Unless you are certified Club Coach or with five or six years experience; these ideas and this information may seem strange. There are various levels of mental development in sports and that is why National Coaching organizations have sport neuropsychologists hired full time. These ideas are part of mental development and control. Angisity and Competition Stress at the international level can become  a major problem in every sport and how we understand our mental aspects of our sport we are missing a major aspect of it.  As  now, in the summer of 2024, we finish the Paris 2024 Olymapic Games we now hear more televised interviews of  how these  olymapic professionals have helped our athletics.

Muscle Memory is something you know and understand or some people hear mention and don't know if they believe it all. It is like we hear how some people have an insistance on  "Angels" and as they speak they explain how they believe  that angels guide them in life"; Muscle Memory and "Being in the zone" or "Zen" are such things. For now, as you develop in   your sport treat it like "angels". We can suggest " just take it or leave it", but still to know there is such knowledge  is not harmful. Don't worry within  years of play and practice in your game,  your level of development will slowly reveal several new and strange things.

However, where this may matter to a new members to Lawn Bowls and the Clubs, is that because we were involved in a previous sports, we bring "Muscle Memory" we had  developed competitively in that sport. For example, Curling, uses the same muscles to deliver the stone up the ice and often a coach finds that these new members have heard their coaches or other players talk about  during their development and performance. They have maybe not used the term "Muscle Memory" but talked about how your body know how to do those deliveries.  

This year, I will turn 80 and I changed clubs to get more competitive game play and practice with players of a higher performance level.  Because I have been doing less coaching this increased competition will allow me some time before age forces me  to leave this sport I so "love". This year, I was surprise to discover that this new club has an extremely large number of "Curling" members who now have turned to Lawn Bowls as their go-to summer sport.

There are two aspects of "Muscle Memory" for a new or novice lawn Bowler. First, until one has a few years experience in a new sport, it is best to understand that we have in our performance a memory of muscle movements. It is therefore that we build these new performance memory by watching always your bowls as they roll to their finish. Yes, you will be disappointed with a delivery; but don't step of the mat until your bowl has come to a stop. And if you are lucky to have a coach or skip which know of their ability to do "Memory Imprinting" as you learn; you will not only learn the correct delivery actions; but also develop important memories.

"Memory Imprinting" is an action or event which makes that memory stand out from the hundred of other delivery memories of the past years. A skip of experience standing in the head can see that the "Deliveery Line" of the player on the mat is good and that the weight is going to result in the bowl coming to a stop near the jack.  If the skip does a hand-clap while the bowl rolls from the mat to the jack, this sound and you, the player watching your bowl; will imprint that memory of your delivery as an important memory. A good coach knows that such a stored memory and the retrevial of it by the competitive player from another sport; will only increase the speed with which that player adapts and learn their lawn Bowl delivery. 

In December of 2016 blog on "Muscle Memory to the Zone" there are a couple of exercises to help explain how the in Bowls the subconscious mind interacts with our delivery performance through "Muscle Memory". The blog is long but explains the need for the athletic to be in what some calles "The Zone" or a subconscious "Void" during their performance. That blog talks about Tiger Wood who on a "Youtube video" says that  often during his performance; he has no memory of his swing and hitting his ball. He is in a void of thought. Also with the Youtube video of  2016 World Bowls Women's Pair (Christchurch New Zealand); which is still available now in 2023 thanks to the VIMEO streaming. This blog show the two different styles of "In the Zone" performance of these two great Lawn Bowl  In the above example we are using the "Tags" to inform the subconscious mind that this is not a similar " Muscle Memory" action to another sport's delivery action. In the mention blog the two leads are evaluating the jack distance as part of their pre-delivery routine and "Memory Retrevial" of having seen a bowl rolled that same distance. Each flip of the bowl is a refusal of the memory and a retrevial of a long (or shorter) jack distance.

 Although the "Muscle memory" may include similar actions in the two sports; there is no stopping the "Muscle Memory" from completing all the actions in the old sport when a Bowl's Delivery is done. This is what makes learning a good lawn bowl delivery difficult for the athletic as each time they leave the mat they must return and redo all your previous perfect "Pre-Delivery" action or routine. (I had a tennis player who had the same problem with the squash swing)

 The "Tag" when given to the student, should be a simple action like a toe tap; and should also be accompanied with the words "This is Lawn Bowls"when first time shown explained. Do not ask the student to think the words, or do not repeat it to the student more than once, as the "Tag" loses it invisible nature. The Tag words should  not a corrective action like "Don't turn your wrist" because the student has incorporated the "tag" in his "Delivery Routine" and will  hears the words. If he was to think of a corrective action before the bowl delivery and "Muscle Memory (being "in the zone") the conscious mind would attempt to do the delivery. The "Tag" is a note to the subconscious and in time the student will noteven hear those words during their action of delivery.

The "Tag" is not a corrective action but just something added to the delivery which the student must remember to perform because if the student was to  begin thinking of a corrective action they will lose their focus and "DeliveryVoid" will be missed.

A "Tag" which is visiable is called a "Tells" as the extra actions during delivery is uses for a "Timing" or like the above example, to pass a remainder to the subconscious. When we are viewing a video like in the above mention blog of the two leads at the 2016 Pairs in Christchurch; we see they have an action which is performed during their delivery. Something  the subconscious needs to be remained before the delivery, especially during the early season. In that mention blog we see the Petanque player with the "Toe-tap Tell" probably as he evaluates the distance to the object target. In the blog of the two leads they are probably do a "distance memory retrival".  If we look we will see the many "Tell" even if not intended to be visual because as a mental interaction of the player's communication to the subconscious before the actual performance.

 If one looks at a teaching video on curling you will see that part of the delivery is a small wrist movement as the stone is made to slowly turn as it goes up the ice. One would think this is such a small action and can be overlook. But remember "Muscle Memory" is executed when you are in a "Subconscious Void" and during that action of delivery; when it starts to delivery it does everything until the action is complete. So if "Muscle Memory is from start to finish; it is hard for the subconscious to remove a part of the action which make up "Muscle Memory". Yes even that little wrist turn of the stone from 11 o'clock to 12 o'clock during the curling delivery will  causes the student (from a Curling sport) to have a bad lawn bowls  delivery. Even if the student was using a "Stick Delivery" in curling it is still a turning.

Solution is to give the subconscious mind a thought during the delivery routine (a Tag) to change the start of the delivery and then allow the delivery action (of lawn bowls) to continue to the different and until it is a complete action. What sort of thought ?. Centainly not a verbal instruction as these comands are from the conscious mind and the "Muscle Memory" is from the instinctive or Subconscious mind. A "tag" is an action added to your delivery preparation which does nothing to influence the bowl but it communicate with the Subconscious mind.

In this case because in both Bowls and Curling the athletic starts their delivery from a standing position the tapping of the foot does not influence the bowl's delivery. When the "Tag" is given by the coach it has to be accompany with a verbal which the studentwill hears when he does the "Tag".  Why ? Cause the student hearing the words, when he does the "Tag", is a thought which his subconscious mind also hears. It should be only once spoken and  the coach should not explain the choice of words such as "This is Lawn Bowls".

The student could be told to think the phrase but it is hard to think an action and not try to do it because thinking is a conscious mental action. Also, the coach needs to know the student is doing the "Tag" as part of the Delivery routine and it being a physical action it can be seen by the coach. A physical action as seen during a "Muscle Memory"  is called a "Tell" (like in poker where you can read your opponent by their facial movement when they got their card) and if done right in coaching it does not affect the Bowl's delivery. 

Talking to the Subconsciousn mind 1/2

Posted during the development because the thought is there and later I will add photo and examples (like a alley bowler who discuss the same thing); but for now this is a blog to be finished later as at which time I suggest other similar blogs and remove older ones which are not easy to follow or understand. Even this is hard to follow.

 The subconscious mind is a lot like a young

child who wants very much to please their parents. If you communicate to the subconscious mind what you wanted to do with your bowl and if you have worked a bit with the ability to communicate your wishes you will be surprised what you can do. Strange but true.

First we must understand that the subconscious mind is always seeing what is happening and if asked it will use what it has seen previously in your game. As an example, you have just rolled the jack up the rink and spotted it and picked up your bowl and are ready to bowl. What was the last thing that the subconscious mind saw or watched. The jack roll, the jack centering and you getting your bowl.

These are memories which can be recalled as they have just happen but some memories like the jack centering and your walking and picking up the bowl can be ignored as they requied no developed skill and you have done it a million times. Of course, I hope that these two actions are done and forgotten as they are required by the rules and when finished we just go on with the game and do a good performance.

Now the jack roll is different. You watched it. I hope you did.. some players turn away from the jack roll and go get their bowl while it is rolling up the rink. The jack roll time is like a song in that it is continual until it has stopped. As the jack roll took time and you saw every second of the roll, this is like "memory Data" which you (or the subconscious mind) can recall and view. Close your eyes and you can see  a memory of that jack roll as it happen.With training you can actually see ever second of it rolling time.

Here, as example of world class athletics communicating with their subconscious and allowing it to do the "Muscle Memory" actions I am using the 2016 World bowls Finals of Womens pairs which was in Christchurch NZ. These are great athletics (in photo right) and are fine examples of "Talking to the Subconscious Mind". You will hear the announcer's  comment on the long Delivery Routine of Angela Boyd. (If you watch a few end of play). But Angela and her routine, although long, has various parts of communication with the subconscious which some of us never know to develop. Her rocking and swing of  delivery arm is similar to the  Youtube Petanque video of Mark Wildeboer as he does a Petanque shooting "Takeout" shot and  is judging his distance "takeout" by a previsualization of the distance to the target ball. (seen in his toe tapping, a "tell" his mental effort is to judge the distance)  

The use of the word "Talk" in the title is intentional as we too often think of "talk" as words spoken and surprisingly we even think in words.  A child in its first years hears sounds and sees images and process everything very fast until they begans to talk. Then as the child learns words, the images and memories are lost and replaced by thinking in words. With the subconscious mind, the words are an enemy to "Muscle Memory" because it is thought (conscious instructions) we use to instruct muscles on what we want to do and thinking does allow for instinctive (subconscious) actions.

When we "talk" to the subconscious mind we use images and like a computer going into a file and getting that picture or other information, the subconscious mind can recall and use these images to do for us what we may want done with the next delivery. Yes, we do remember in images which are memories of previous actions but by thinking about our next action (conscious) we have stopped  the subconscious mind  developing and processing a memory images of previous saw actions. Using collected memories to judge the distance to the jack.

Above we have the New Zealand Angela Boyd in the 2016 World Bowls Women's Pairs final doing her first delivery of the match. This match of  December 11^th Women`s Pairs Finals of World Bowls (Streaming); can still be watched. We see Angela go to the mat and after what the video announcer describes as "Half a dozen motion of the arm then look down at her feet, look back up and now delivery". A "Delivery routine" which includes subconscious evaluation of the jack distance before the release.  Although the Wales Pairs Lead, Laura Daniels has a faster "Delivery Routine"; you can see her "Tag" and "Tell" with her finger tapping the bowl a couple of times.

So the next time you are on the green and as lead or in "Single" game and throw the jack up the rink to be centered try this exercise which can be added to your Delivery Routine. As you are standing on the mat with your bowl ready to deliver; recall that memory of the jack as it rolled up the green. This is a mental "Tag" for the subconscious mind telling it to remember the roll for to know the distance.

While writing this blog I was suprise to discovered that my 100,000 reader has passed. Blog stats to right. (If you have been following my blog for the past 10 years or more plse leave a comment and thank you for your interest)

In the above video (if you watched it) we see both leads with "Tells". as their "Tags" inform the subconscious of the expection action. (judge the distance) However, with a mental tag is used like the exercise with the "Jack roll" tag; it may not be possible for an observator watching to see any body movement which would be a  "Tell". However, when we included a "tag" the subconscious mind see the body movement as an action becomes a part of the "Delivery Routine". With the "Tag" as part of the bowler delivery routine it is talking to the subsconscious.

First, you must see the roll all the way until it stops. which is a memory collected when you watched it. You did watch it closely, I hope else it is not a Memory which can be used constructively. Now if you  do it again a second time it is a mental part of your delivery. Your subconscious mind can judge the distance to the jack by being instructed to use this "Memory Data". If you were to bounce your bowl in your hand as your remember that jack roll so the subconscious would know the distance; your actions would be a "Tell" to an observator that you are doing mental communication.

 With this "Tag" or mental action added to your delivery you will be surprise to find that you have bowled right to the jack. (if your line was right) and after the "Tag" you have allowed the subconscious do the delivery and you feel your "Void" of thought. If you were thinking, do this, or don't do that, when you were doing your delivery, then the subconscious was not give the chance to perform "Muscle Memory" and "Memory retrival" and bowl to the exact distance of the jack.

Good Reading of Old Bowls Books

The local Library was my favorate afternoon visiting place with all the great books and magazines.  Today, with the World Web (Internet) there are so many great "Old" Lawn Bowls books available for reading. Now a digital library online called the

 Internet Archive started 28 years ago (in 1996) recording the World web history. As a non-profit, they build a digital library of Internet sites and other cultural artifacts in digital form. Like a paper library, it provide free access to researchers, historians, scholars, people with print disabilities, and the general public. Our mission is to provide Universal Access to All Knowledge. they write in their website "About us".

As our web archive grew, so did our commitment to providing digital versions of other published works. Today our archive contains:

• 835 billion web pages
• 44 million books and texts
• 15 million audio recordings (including 255,000 live concerts)
• 10.6 million videos (including 2.6 million Television News programs)
• 4.8 million images
• 1 million software programs

Photo (left) is Spalding's Athletic Catalog president James Thaw at his New Jersey Bowling Green Club. ( pre-1900). The "Game of Bowling on the Green or Lawn Bowls" by Greig, James Weir was published by the Spalding's Athletic Library in 1904 as the official Lawn Bowls Publication.

Thes publications of  24 -30 pages before (1907) when the rules of the game were published (25 pages) sold for only 10 cents and was the contribution of the Scottish Bowls Association and approved by the then world Bowls organization of The International Bowling Association (formed in 1899). 

In reading there a lot of interesting facts like where and when the game of bowls was first created. Note at the bottom of Chapter 1 (left) reads 

"Herodotus says (I quote from Beloe's translation) that the Lydians during a great scarity of corn which lasted eighteen years, invented bowls and dice, with many other games, devoting themselves on alternate days to diversions and their necessary repasts. Perhaps, however, they took some "light refreshment" on bowling days, for we can hardly believe games of any kind would for say long period assuage hungry feelings.

Mention of the Lydians of the 6th century world indicates that the game of Bowls is extremely old activity and there is some suggestions that early bowls activity may have been with a stick. 

In reference to today sport of bowls the 1910 rules as published, suggested that if a player contested the bias of a player's bowl it would be check immediately (before the 6th end) and if thought by it action of bias to be illegal the bowl would be send of to the international testing site and the player charged the shipping fee of 2 shillings sixpence. ( 2 shillings sixpence or about 68 US cents in 1910 (when the book was written) value and the equivalent  to $15.96 today. But to know the purchase value; we look at this 50 page book (above) which sold for $0.10 so 6.8 times ($.68) more value or The today's value of $15.96x 6.8 or cost of $108.73. Certainly enough cost to discourage a reason to not use legal bowls). All clubs were expected to have one tested and marked bowl to compare the questionable bowl and the rules said "Competitors in public competition are recommended test and stamped before hand" (page 2 of rules p33 of 1908 book)  If the bowls were questioned and found "maybe" illegal, they were removed and the player was given bowls by the official to finish the game or forfit the game.

Slow Greens and Bias changes

 Was asked an interesting question from an seasoned player.. "When the green is not recently cut does the grass growth effect your bowl's Bias ?" A answer for the beginner is "NO" unless you are referring to the "green Speed" but how much you see, read and expect from your bowl can be of enough important to have a  "Yes" reply  for the trophy player to see deeply into such a deep question.

Just a minute.. Lets get a little laugh in here.  Lawn Bowls for Dogs is a blog of 2015 from Russia.  Rolling the bowl with their nose..  and good for their health.. really true facts. Yes, the 2015 blog is "Lawn bowls for Dogs"

So the Russian site says "Dog Lawn Bowl - It is known that dogs often too quickly absorb the food, just lashing out at it, and swallowing it all at one sitting. Because of this, the animal can  create health problems.  To help the four-legged friend to eat normally, experts have proposed a new device that approaches the normal course of  feeding.  It is a bowl that has a special design. . It is a unique model of what looks like lawn where the grass grows high. . The total surface 43 "stalk" of a height from 5 to 10 cm, which are arranged at small distances from each other.  In between these interstices (between the "grass") one serves and pour the food which will not be available as freely as in a conventional bowl. . The creators estimate that the time it will take for a dog to get the food out of a bowl, will be almost 20 minutes". (after translation and grammer correction)

Now you looked up that blog and laughed.. so now that question.

The small details of this question are not really important. Unless you’re drawing to within a few inches of the jack and your opponent is just as good as you. So what is important if the question of "whether uncut grass affects your bias" is  insignificant.

September 2024 Stats

Answer - The question you are asking would suggest you want to know why your bowl seems to be affected? Maybe, your question is the wrong approach and after the answer here, you will go on to another approach to this bias problem.  It is good to know why something happens but sometimes it’s best just to make a corrective action and go with what is happening. A lover of Bowls or any other sport would not ignoring their problem and after looking hard accept that it seems to be earlier to correct ( adjust) your line and to not be looking for an answer. 

 Maybe, like in my early years when I always had sore ankles after partice games it was wise to ask an Level 3 coach because it could be your delivery action. My problem was as I moved forward with the step I was turning my ankle sideways and twisting my ankle several times during a game.  Took me all one year to correct that problem. Muscle memory" had to be changed and believe me at that time I did not even know what "muscle Memory" was let alone how to reprogram it. The bigger question is "Why are you asking about this ?"

Let’s assume that the question comes from green # 4 and everytime when you have bowl up that green,you found your bowl has straightened out for several feet and so you may think there is a ridge there. Expecting the solution is like all ridges affecting a bowl when playing a  bowling surface, your bowl has gone over the top  of the ridge and stayed out. You have learned over years, that one of the solutions it to moved the mat up a few meters to miss that ridge from your line of delivery but  to your surprise the same occurs the next time.  Certainly there is not a ridge in that direction of the Green which runs a full length of the green; so there’s another reason. Maybe, a quick solution is to say "the setting up the greens means this green (color red) has something strange". So next week, you will check out the green when the white green markers are used. After waiting a week weather does not allow you to play. You are asking why your bowls are going straight and if it was because the green was not

 recently cut. You are asking the questions and looking for the answer.. Good, as it means you expect more of yourself than just accept you are a bad bowler with problems. And you are asking all kinds of strange questions like is this "bowls" or "Bulbs" in the photo.. A beautiful field (had to add color to too serious a blog)

At this club, there are a lot of winter curlers and maybe someone suggested that like curling where the curling friction on the side of a turning stone can cause it to resist and swing toward the center; this is happening to the bowl. Natural to see the curling swing to center line much like a bias on a bowl. So you think, "If the green had not been cut for a couple of days and the sun had always set  to the west and we know plants (grass also) bend toward the sun; maybe the grass leaves, although very small. have all now  a bend and leaning towards the west. Of course, just north south delivery could have a bent grass effect on the east side of your delivery as the standing grass on the other side is resistance to the bowl. In other words, your ball would want to take a swing to the "East" but is rolling into standing grass and being forced to fight the resistance of the uncut grass.  Strange, but how we see things we don't know is never too strange.Yes, about now someone has said "You are thinking too much" which to me sounds like "Just bowl and accept what happens". "No need for improvements" "Just have fun"

 So the question is not important, except that when your bowl has gone straight your normal solution is to move the mat up and avoid the problem. But not knowing why and trying this solution of advancing the mat  has wasted an end of play. Hopely the moving the mat up was a decision which did not result in a lost of points or several points. 

Like curling where a little turn of the stone has sufficient action (effect) to cause a movement of the stone towards the centre line; you are right to believe that such resistance on the bowl will act like a ridge and prevent the bias of the bowl to be normal. To be interested in what is affecting your bowl is a serious question and leads always to an improvement in performance. when you find the answer.

The important aspect is that.. You are become more serious about your bowls and you are looking at the different things that can affect your bowls. This is good because if the wind was forcing your bowl off line or increased  their bias;you would not ignore the wind and not change your line of delivery. To see the effect of wind on your bowls the blog "Bowls in New Zealand strong wind" still has the 2021 video on youtube.

 Likewise, in looking for the answer you are aware that in early spring  the cuts of greens are usually with more grass height left on the bowling green (to allow the roots to get a good start) and then in the late fall where the end of the bowl season we find that the greenskeeper  seems to cut shorter (below 1.4 mm) because the well developed root system can handle such a cut. And in any case  the bowls season is almost over it would be nice to have a fast green.  The yellow color greens we sometimes see are usually a bit too low a cut as such a cuts apporach close to a millimetre height of grass.

Fact - One of the variables that affect your draw weight is the condition of your playing surface. We often refer to the green as being fast or slow, and we understand that a slow green requires more weight during your delivery to get to the Jack. Also very fast greens allow for a better "Finish" on your Bowl's Bias. However, if you are really serious the answer is "Yes"  the grass length will affect your bias if bowling North/South in late afternoon. But not enough for you to see but maybe enough to get that really special "finish"when finally it stops at to the jack.

Fact - The answer is not the raison for intelligent quere but the quest and the question is showing the value of a thoughtful search for truth is good. 

Comments on "Being a Good Lead" Blog

 Being now between computer repairs (using a Window 7 while desktop awaiting Computer Shop visit) I have these two comments from a reader last week and decided to make a blog just to explain as my Microsoft (blogger) interface does not support my Windows.

The first comment reads "I felt guilty as a Coach because the point which was taught certainly was not well communicated. Even if the lead had forgotten, the skip should have told his lead of the need to stop the continual strong lead's control of the game by his bowl placement and how it affected the head was build. Could you please explain this in a little more detail please, I'm unsure what you're saying?"

If what "was taught certainly was not well communicated", it was probably teaching from the coach's lecture which was forgotten when the student went to the green. Too often Coaching is broken into two parts. a lecture by the coach and a on-the-green action as new members attempt to apply what was discussed. This in my opinion is a club method which allows the coach to start even if all expected members are not present.  Allowing late comers to enter and sit in the lecture. I also feel this is probably becausse these introduction coaching sessions are free or included with the new members subscription. If late arrivers were excluded once from the lecture, I doubt if they would arrive late the next lecture. They paid for their coaching as part of their membership.

What is wrong is that the on-the-green coaching in Bowls is of major importance and can not be excluded from the coach's lecture and how-to-do instructions. Maybe a game video with comments by the coach would be a better first few minutes of the session.

Secondly "Even if the lead had forgotten, the skip should have told his lead of the need to stop the continual strong lead's control of the game by his bowl placement and how it affected the head was build." is best to be explained clearly. An experience "Lead" knows that their bowls in the head, if well placed; have a major control over the remaining part of play of that end of play. Rather than doing well a little of a big task, it is better if the skip instructs the Lead to do the same simple thing every end of play until he instructs a different task of Bowl placement.

Sometime the information given to a Lead is not as complete as a long time player or a skip who after many years has developed a strategy of play. As an example. There is a though of Bowls called "Game Section of Play" which divides a 12 or 14 end of play into 4 section of Strategy. Section 1 (the first 4 ends is information gathering as we learn the green speed and strangeness and study the opponents strength and weakness) This section is not a point gathering task but when a big end of points occurs the 1st Section is finished even if only the 1st or 2nd end of play.

The fight for points or to keep points begans with the 2nd Section of play as the data of Section 1 is used to find and use weakness of opponent and strenghts of team mates. (Four ends of risk taking or careful action as a reasonable point spead is developed or protected) This section may be consider the "Risk-Taking" section because before midway through the game any mistakes can be recovered in the last ends of play.

The other 2 sections of play are "Tight restrain Section" to keep the points gained or "Team Union Section" to gain lost points before too late to be able to recover the game. The Forth section or "Wrap-it-up" Section is the last 2 ends (if 14 ends of play) are to be very careful as both team now know the draw weight, the line of delivery, and can make any number of unique actions. Like a jack-roll to collect 4 or 5 points,

If the lead had been told to put a bowl on the jack and then control the easy draw side of the head and he can do it without too much effort then at one point the skip must explain that they "need to stop the continual strong lead's control of the game by his bowl placement " 

When the lead believes their task is to control the head building and Section 1 has ended quickly because "a big end of points occurs. The skip must know that as he changes his strategy and approach to game play so also does the lead. 

Some basic of Lead's bowl Placement.  With three bowls of play by the lead there should be "First Priority"  a very tight point bowl. If this bowl is better by the opponent than the other basics of the "Lead's Placement" will wait as the lead then regains the lost point. If the 2nd comes to the mat and must perform the "Lead's Placement" "First Priority .requirement than that will be the 2nd role. If it is 4 bowls pairs (not triples) the fourth bowl is usually considered a "Free Bowl" which the skip will use by requesting to balance the head or even collect another few points.

It is here that communication is important from the skip to his team as he must change game plan or strategy due to a surprise. All team members including the Lead must follow this instruction from the Skipl 

As the Skip attempts to regain the lost point and depending upon the signal from the skip the Lead regaining the shot will either be a "Draw" or "Bit-over".  If the shot is regained and the Lead can move on toward his other placement requirement than Section 1 of 4 end continue until the end of End 4.  The signal for a "Draw" has always been "Show Bias choice and "Swing arm pointing to the jack" mean "Use this bias and "Draw" to the jack". 

"Bit-Over" draw usually means a foot or 18 inches over weight and often indicates the wish of the skip to have the oppoent bowls moved back several inches while your bowl stays there where it made contact with the opponent's bowl.

The photo (right) from BowlsQLD.org Sept 15,2024 in their Test competition against Victoria; show the skip signal for a Bit-over draw. The draw bias is forehand (righthand used for signal) and weight of delivery is to draw to the skip's foot position. (open hand means it is acceptable to roll the jack. As if the open hand will catch the jack) So the skip show the Bias, the weight to be played and the Strategy of accepting a "Jack roll"  (because the blue/orange bowl behind the jack is the team's bowl. 

In this game (Video on Queenland site, The Victoria's lead miss read the signal and his bowl finished off-line.I said "Miss read" because the weight to draw to the skip's feet is about 2 complete rolls more of the bowl. However, the lead thought of the shot as a take-out shot and changed line for a heavier shot which does not curve as much before getting to the jack/bowl position. I would have added one more signal to the skip's instruction. (keep your line) which is signal by open hand slicing downward slowly or walking over to show the line (fast slice movement of open hand would indicate a takeout shot)

The latter part of the comment is of major importance as " how it affected the head was build", A skip would accept a lead with good understanding how his bowls affect the building of the head later when the 2nd and skip comes to the mat. Under ideal conditions the skip will get the point and control the strength of the opponent's draw. If the skip is not giving the choice of the bias of the draw he wants he is still searching for the best point. When satified the skip will probably close the draw approach of the most accurate side of the green unless a player with a strong draw is to be blocked and then that player's draw preference will be the blocked side.

As the game develops the lead should be watching how the opponent players and skip are building the head and how it affect his own teammates especially his skip and his time on the mat. All team members should have the same insight in how the strategy progress. I believe that the reader is suggesting from his experience the need for the lead to apply this play differently over the 4 section of the game. 

The skip may be happy with the control that the lead head building has established and maintain the bowl placement instruction the same throughout the 4 sections of the game. Of course, the 2nd and the skip will use this "Lead's Head" with the new strategy in the other sections of Game play. 

The 2nd comment reads "Good post. As a dedicated lead at the age of 72, I find it a very exposed position to play. Have a great game and your team wins, struggle and so does the whole team? Due to lack of bowlers in most club, too many less experience members gravitate to playing skip, long before they have learned to draw a good bowl.  I found most skips only contribute with weighted shots ps will  get an additional shots when you're holding... In practice games I do skip sometimes, but playing lead in comps gets me picked most times. Love the blog, keep going."  

This is the type of Comment which keep us coaches and lovers of our sport busy online and blogging.  Thank you .

Clean up of 2013 "Measuring Bowls"

 The blog Lawn Bowls "Using the Head": Measuring Which Bowl is Shot? (ishi-in-sn.blogspot.com) on a method of measurement of Bowls which was written in March 2013 has been cleaned up and updated.

  Go to The blog Lawn Bowls "Using the Head": Measuring Which Bowl is Shot? (ishi-in-sn.blogspot.com) 

Some of that blogs comments..

Making a "Good Lead" 1/3

 Bowls is like everything else in life. Baking a cake requires you to do the preparation which may require grocery trip, a kitchen baking session and finally a Cooking session. After the cooling of the master-piece is the final and most important aspect. The evaluation and approval and success.  Same applies at work where preparation for a meeting often depends upon the success of the meeting.

Like-wise Lawn Bowls require a preparation and even a Cooking Session (if you call a player's Games lost an experience similar to a bad cooking experience); toward the final creation of a great Lawn Bowler "Lead". 

Later when the Lead had gone on to become the skip at a National or International Competition after many years; their memory of such losts will at times influence a decision.  But all starts with the Preparation of a Lead to knowing the game and their potential as a team member and a player. 

Too often the Leads is put as the first player on a Lawn Bowls Team has been instructed with "Do what the Skip asks". A Lead is only as good as the teaching by the Club Coaches and their experiences during those first few years. One would say "Being Smart, or using your Head" would be good advice to a new bowler. But as they begin Club games as an  inexperience "Lead" they have a lot to learn. Of course, they are certain to not want to out guess the Skip' by doing the opposite of what is requested. Communication is important and a Lead should never be afraid to ask questions.  The "Lead" makes the mixture of bowls in the head which is the start of each end played.

 The role of the team's "Lead" is often as simply " Place the mat" and "Delivery the jack" with each new end of play. But the "Lead" is not always taught the important these two action in a  Lawn Bowls game.

Recently, yesterday, I skipped against another old-time skip and I asked him "Do you remember how we were taught to place the mat and measure if it was Legal ? " and added " Flip it over 3 times as you placed it ahead toward the matline ?"  Yes, that was the taught method of measuring the correct distance of the mat to be legally place 2 meters from the Ditch.  Today we see the "2 step - Mat down" method as those smaller players put the mat illegally and everyone accepts it.

 If a jack was thrown out-of-bounds would you simple put it back on center line or send it back to the mat for the opponent to place it ? O a"Short Jack" not over the Hog-Line?" and simply kick it a little further. NON that  "Oh it is ok, it is only a few inches  short or "out-of-bounds"?.  Why does a club and club coaches accept the illegal mat placement of a New member ?. 

Of-course, the rejection of an illegal mat placement can only be contested before the first bowl is rolled. But the leads in cooperation should accept that the player is in their first serious competition and help them. It is surprising to heard that lead say "I didn't know that". 

Recently, while playing a club game, with both teams  each having  new players as "Lead", yes even in a club trophy game; I explained that "A mat which does not have it front end beyond the "Mat Line" is legal and can be contested by the opponent skip and result in the lost of the jack".

 Why the club did not have "Mat-Lines drawn or why the new members where not taught really surprised me; but each club has different ways of club game play.  During the following ends of play, it did my game a sincere joy to see the two leads each help the others to place the mat correctly. 

After seeing it 4 or 5 times seeing this interaction of the leads,  I was so happy that after the game it was my treat to pay everyone their drink of choice. The above photo is from a  August 23 2024 Canadian Nationals photo and shows according to the rule book; the mat-line drawn and indicated with a "Matline Marker".

  Placing the mat is defined in the rules as being on the "Center line" and  being at or beyond the "Mat-line". Know these two terms (Mat Lines and Center Line) and their meaning is important.  Even if a club's decision that the Green does not have a Mat-line  marker on the side boards; this should be taught to all new bowlers.

 But I remember many years ago,  during "Governor Generals" as I was playing lead, my 3rd told the skip with a sign that the mat was illegal, After at least 6 times in our game of Triples he said to me "I don't know why Stephen does not contest the mat placement.  Finally, before last end of play the skip called for the umpire and a verification of the mat with a measure. With jack in hand, the skip asked our lead to throw a long jack which resulted in a gain of 4 points and  finally winning the game. (Was it good ethics to wait so long ? Rules are rules and should be applied always from minute one to the last bowl of the game.)

Centering the Mat before the jack is thrown is another important aspect of the jack throw. When the mat is brought forward several meters the "Centre line" can be hard to identify. So the "Leads in Learning" should be shown how to place the mat and then stand to the side while expecting the Skip to indicate that the mat in on  "Center Line" and then adjust it for a correct "Placement of the Mat". New members are shown how to "Center the Jack" after it has been  thrown up the green  but seldom are taught or shown how to let the skip "Center the Mat".

     Placing the mat where the skip has asked that it be brought forward , often finds that the skip will allows some freedom as to the choice of where the best place to lay the mat; as long as it is on "Center Line". ( before jack is rolled). Why ??

In the past when the use  of "Protective Screens" ahead of the mat was less important the lead was expected to do a wise  choice of  the "Receiving area" directly in front of the mat. The. "Receiving area" is that area of the green directly in front the mat where their team would be placing their bowls as they did their delivery.   In earlier years when less "Protective Screens" were being used the lead had a responsibility to find an area of the green in front of the mat without anyy inprefections (sand, worm holes or even debits).  

As a lead progressed into a level of competitions; they became aware of  many other thing about their teammates delivery. Their placing the mat might be different for how their team mate stand on the mat or even deliver their bowls. Also a left or right handed playing teammates may deliver to a different area of green infront of the mat.  Remember left and right handers roll their bowls 2 feet apart in distance (Shoulder distance) and can make a big difference toward a draw around a block or frontal bowl. 

As the player is taught to bowl they  also learn that some players will bowl from the "center-line"  as their first contact of bowl to green; while other players may be bowling their bowls in a standing on the mat which has the bowl arrive on the green nearly a foot  away from center line and more off to the "mat's corner". 

If the "receiving area" you have picked as lead (and even today will be covered by the protective screen) is always a smooth area of greens, then when their bowls are rolled, there is a good chance they will not be affected during those first few moments of Delivery. Every year as a Leads  learn more  about various choices their team mates make in a delivery; will result in them asking questions like "Why did you Walk the Mat?".   A lot more than just throwing down the Mat and the jack up the green. Many small details can affect the actual winning your game.

     "Rolling the Jack" means putting it where the Skip has asked for it.  "Unless, he says "Your Choice" which means to put it at a distance where you (the lead) can best bowl. Probably your "Natural Distance". Opps, I hope that the lead has been taught "Natural Distance" and know what it mean.

Don't try to second guess the Skip and decide the distance best for the team or best against the opponents unless the skip has given that instruction in the "Pre-game" instruction. Although, some competitive teams will allocate this decisions to the lead because the leads responsibility is to start a good Head, sometime "Your Choice" means.. "Where ever you can start a good Head". (Photo of a local Montreal Club in the early 20th Century) I used this photo to show that not always has greens been nice and smooth as we see them today.

The lead should practice to roll the jack to the distance requested by the skip. The skip depends upon this ability especially when at the end-game and end-strategy the "Jack Distance" may be what will win the game. Because the lead is the first to roll their bowl after the jack has been centered; they should always watch the Jack roll, and watch for its changes in direction especially as it arrives at the final stop. I was once playing an inter-provincal competition and the jack rolled left like a bias bowl finishing it roll indicating a slight indentation at that location.