If you’ve always wanted to play lawn bowls in Rother, but didn’t know where to start May could be the month to begin.
This month, Bowls England holds its Big Bowls Weekend with Cancer Research UK, which will see clubs offering free taster sessions between Friday 23 to Monday 26 May.
The clubs opening their doors – and greens – to people wanting to take part in the event in Rother are:
- Northiam Bowls club
- Polegrove Bowls Clubs
- Rye Bowls Club. Please note the session will be held on 26 May between 10.30 am to 12,30pm.
If you cannot make those dates and locations, don’t worry. Throughout the year, there are many opportunities across Rother to play bowls, whether you are a beginner or experienced competitor.
You can find somewhere to play at one of the many clubs in the main towns, including Bexhill/Sidley, Battle and Rye, and villages from Northiam to Westfield, Staplecross to Fairlight.
Getting started
There are many reasons why you might play bowls, with people often introduced to the game by a friend or family member. The sport is ideal for people of all abilities and ages, so there’s no need to feel nervous about going along to a club near you.
Not only is the sport great exercise and a benefit to your physical health, but the friendly social side – that many club’s pride themselves in – is the perfect way to meet new people and boost your mental wellbeing too. The British Heart fund has listed its 6 reasons to play the sport.
There is a local league, with some players going on to play at a county and national level.
Events in the Rother bowls diary include:
- The 2025 Bexhill Open Tournament from Sunday 3 August to Saturday 9 August.
- The 2025 Rye Bowls Club Annual Tournament on Saturday 26 July.
The outdoor bowls season runs from April to September.
About bowls
If you fancy playing but only know about the sport from watching the white-clad players on greens across the county, don’t worry. Bowls is an easy game to understand. Bowls England has a quick guide to getting started.
It’s played on a square of grass called a green. This is divided into lanes called rinks. Players take turns to roll their bowls from one end of the rink towards the ’jack’ (a small white target ball), at the other end (a complete round is called an end). Points are awarded for each bowl that’s closer to the jack than the opponents.
The winner is the person, or team, that gets the most points after a specified number of ends or the first to reach a designated score.
You can play singles or as part of a team, and a match can vary in lengths.
The history of bowls is believed to go back to ancient times. One famous story involved Sir Francis Drake deciding to finish a game instead of launching the English fleet to meet the Spanish Armada.
Finely kept bowls green are a feature of many a local village or town. Let us know if your club is the oldest one in the district.
Details on the game came be found through the national governing Body – Bowls England – and they do keep a list of registered bowls clubs.
How do I find out more?
If you live in a village or town you may already know of a club through a community website or parish magazine.
You can find a bowls club near you on the Bowls England website.
Active Rother and bowls
Active Rother is keen to support clubs and volunteers helping to get or keep people playing. Recent schemes to encourage wider groups of residents along include working with Sidley, Polegrove and Rye Bowls Clubs especially around people with long-term conditions or disabilities.
Some of these are featured on the news and your stories page of the Active Rother website and we welcome working with more clubs to help get Rother active and bowling.
If you enjoy bowls and want to share news about your club, please let Active Rother know and we can feature it on the website to encourage more to get involved.