COMPETITION RULES

GENERAL RULES

  1. The competitions shall be played under the laws of and rules of Bowls England and shall be under the management of the Executive Committee of Huntingdonshire Bowls.
  2. The competitions shall be open to all bona-fide members of affiliated Clubs. No player may play for more than one Club. Members shall not play for any other County Association that is affiliated to Bowls England unless dispensation to do so has been obtained from the Huntingdonshire Bowls Executive Committee.
  3. The Ladies’ and Men’s Championships/Competitions Committee will make the draw for all rounds.
  4. With the exception of competitions where the venue has been decided upon by the Competitions Committee, the first Competitors drawn for each match up to the final will play the game on their own green. If that is not approved, then they have the choice of an approved green and rink. The Competitions Committee will allocate greens for the Finals. The Competitions Committee will allocate dates for the completion of the rounds.
  5. With the exception of competitions where fixed dates have been decided upon by the Competitions Committee, all rounds of the competition up to the Final, should, if possible, be adhered to, but these ties may, by mutual consent, be played prior to the nominated date. In the event of rain making the green unplayable, the game must be completed on the same green or on a green mutually agreed, on a date mutually agreed within 72 hours from the postponed date unless agreed with the Competitions Secretaries. The Competitions Secretaries must be informed of the new date immediately.
  6. An objection to bowls must be made before the start of the first end. A protest regarding the rink or any other conditions under which a tie is played must be made to the opponent or opponents no later than the completion of the sixth end of play and recorded on the scorecard. The Competitions Secretary is to be informed immediately after the game. The game shall be completed as if no protest has been made. The result shall be allowed to stand if the protesting player so desires, but protest, once made, must be proceeded with. The Competitions Committees shall have full power to deal with all protests appertaining to the green and players.
  7. Only greens, which have not previously been approved for competition, will be inspected prior to the commencement of the playing season. It is the responsibility of the County Association and each Club to ensure that greens meet the requirements as specified in “The Laws of the Game” (Laws 2 – 6 – The Green). The Greens Inspection Committee may at the request of the Competitions Committees inspect a green at any time during the season in the event of a protest received in accordance with Rule 5. Their decision in all matters shall be final.
  8. The Competitions Committee shall have full power to deal with any matter not provided for in these Bye-Laws.
  9. The Competitions Secretaries shall be responsible for appointing an Umpire for the finals.
  10. In the pairs, triples and fours, the players taking part in the first game of the competition shall constitute the TEAM for the remainder of that competition. Any NAMED person playing in a team game (pairs, triples and fours) will not be allowed to play in any other team in that Competition for that year.

A player may change position in between rounds of the competition but not during the game being played. Substitutes are allowed as shown under the Championship By-Laws in the Bowls England Yearbook. One additional and the same player may be used as a substitute at any time provided they have not already played in, nor been named as a player in, the competition.

  1. The first named will be the Challenger, the second the Opponent. Any fee charged for use of the rink shall be paid by the challenger. If a competitor arrives more than 30 minutes after the time fixed for the tie, their opponent may claim a ‘Walk Over’. Such a claim is to be made to the Competitions Secretaries within 24 hours of the time fixed for the tie. Any fee charged for use of the rink shall be paid by the challenger who shall also offer wherever possible hospitality.
  2. All games, excepting the finals, are to commence at 6.30pm. except in the month of May where the commencement time will be 6.15pm. In the event of a game being mutually rearranged play must commence at the time mutually agreed or specified and not later than 30 minutes after that time. S Finals will commence at the times specified by the Competitions Secretaries.
  3. Any singles competitor or team who is unable to play at the National Championships will concede their tie at the earliest possible round in order that there will be two players/teams representing the County at the National Championships. Failure to comply will mean that the defaulter(s) will be suspended from all Huntingdonshire Bowls competitions for one year, unless special dispensation is granted by the Executive Committee.
  4. The winners of the Single, Pairs, Triples and Fours in each competition with exception of Ladies and Mens U25s (See BE ruling) will represent Huntingdonshire Bowls and compete for the National Championships. Entries for the National Championships have to be submitted to Bowls England in July.
  5. The winning Skip or Competitor shall telephone/text, before 10.00pm, or email the result to the Competitions Secretaries within 24 hours of the tie being played and the scorecard correctly made out with the nature of the tie being played, all competitors, including any substitutes used (who should be indicated by circling the player in question), the ground where the tie was played, and the date it was played, and signed by the losing Skip/Competitor, must follow by second class post.

IN THE EVENT OF A ‘WALK OVER’ BEING GIVEN THE SKIP MUST RING THE COMPETITIONS SECRETARIES AND FOLLOW UP WITH A SCORECARD SHOWING THE FULL NAMES, IN CORRECT ORDER OF PLAY, OF THOSE RECEIVING THE ‘WALK OVER’. THESE PLAYERS ARE THE SUBSTANTIVE TEAM AND NO SUBSTITUTES CAN BE MADE, OTHER THAN PERMITTED BY BOWLS ENGLAND. Failure to comply with this rule may result in both competitors/teams being eliminated from the Championship/Competition.

  1. The dress code for all county competitions except the Final will be white blouse/white shirt or registered Club uniform, grey skirts/slacks/cropped slacks or trousers.

In the Final white blouse/white shirt or registered Club uniform, white skirts/slacks/cropped slacks or trousers will be worn. If Club Shirts are worn all players must wear the approved shirt. Only in exceptional circumstances will this rule not be applied, the Competition Secretaries will have the final ruling.

In the Stuart & Co Shield, white trousers/club uniform will be worn in the final.

INDIVIDUAL RULES
Ladies’ & Men’s 2 Wood Singles Championship

  1. An entrance fee shall be paid by each player entering the Competition to the Treasurer as directed.
  2. Each player shall use two woods, the first player to 21 shots or 21 ends with the highest score whichever comes first, shall be the winner.
  3. No substitute will be permitted.
  4. The competition shall be played under the Laws of the Sport adopted by World Bowls Ltd and in accordance with the By-laws currently laid down by Bowls England.
  5. The competition will be played on the date(s) and venue(s) as decided by the Competitions Committee.
  6. The winners of the competition will represent Huntingdonshire Bowls at the National Championships.

Ladies’ & Men’s 4 Wood Singles Championship

  1. An entrance fee shall be paid by each player entering the Competition to the Treasurer as directed.
  2. Each player shall use four woods; the first player to 21 shots shall be the winner.
  3. No substitute will be permitted.
  4. The competition shall be played under the Laws of the Sport adopted by World Bowls Ltd and in accordance with the By-laws currently laid down by Bowls England.
  5. The dates of all rounds of the competition should, if possible, be adhered to, but these ties may, by mutual consent, be played prior to the nominated date.
  6. The winners of the competition will represent Huntingdonshire Bowls at the National Championships.

Ladies’ & Men’s Pairs Championship

  1. An entrance fee shall be paid by each pair entering the Competition to the Treasurer as directed.
  2. The game shall consist of 18 ends. Two players shall use four woods each.
  3. The two players taking part in the first game shall constitute the pair and should normally play together throughout the Competition. For substitutions see rule 9 of the Championship/Competition Rules.
  4. Both players and the substitute must be members of the same Club.
  5. The competition shall be played under the Laws of the Sport adopted by World Bowls Ltd and in accordance with the By-laws currently laid down by Bowls England.
  6. In the event of a tie, an extra end(s) must be played, the shots to count in the final score.
  7. The dates of all rounds of the competition should, if possible, be adhered to, but these ties may, by mutual consent, be played prior to the nominated date.
  8. The winner of the competition will represent Huntingdonshire Bowls at the National Championships.

Ladies’ & Men’s Triples Championship

  1. An entrance fee shall be paid by each triple entering the Competition to the Treasurer as directed.
  2. The game shall consist of 18 ends. Three players shall use three woods each.
  3. The three players taking part in the first game shall constitute the triple and should normally play together throughout the Competition. For substitutions see rule 9 of the Championship/Competition Rules.
  4. The three players and the substitute must be members of the same Club.
  5. The competition shall be played under the Laws of the Sport adopted by World Bowls Ltd and in accordance with the By-laws currently laid down by Bowls England.
  6. In the event of a tie, an extra end(s) must be played, the shots to count in the final score.
  7. The dates of all rounds of the competition should, if possible, be adhered to, but these ties may, by mutual consent, be played prior to the nominated date.
  8. The winners of the competition will represent Huntingdonshire Bowls at the National Championships.

Ladies’ & Men’s Rinks Championship

  1. An entrance fee shall be paid by each rink entering the Competition to the Treasurer as directed.
  2. The game shall consist of 18 ends. Four players shall use two woods each.
  3. The four players taking part in the first game shall constitute the four and should normally play together throughout the Competition. For substitutions see rule 9 of the Championship/Competition Rules.
  4. The four players and the substitute must be members of the same club.
  5. The competition shall be played under the Laws of the Sport adopted by World Bowls Ltd and in accordance with the By-laws currently laid down by Bowls England.
  6. In the event of a tie, an extra end(s) must be played, the shots to count in the final score.
  7. The dates of all rounds of the competition should, if possible, be adhered to, but these ties may, by mutual consent, be played prior to the nominated date.
  8. The winners of the competition will represent Huntingdonshire Bowls at the National Championships.

Ladies’ & Men’s Junior (Under 24) Singles Championship

  1. The Competition shall be open to members of Clubs affiliated to Bowls England who have not attained their 24th Birthday on the 1st April in the year of the Competition. A player may only enter this competition from one Country within the United Kingdom in any given year.
  2. An entrance fee shall be paid by each player entering the Competition to the Treasurer as directed.
  3. Each player shall use 4 woods; the first player to 21 shots shall be the winner.
  4. No substitute will be permitted.
  5. The competition shall be played under the Laws of the Sport adopted by World Bowls Ltd and in accordance with the By-laws currently laid down by Bowls England.
  6. The competition will be played on the date(s) and venue(s) as decided by the Competitions Committee.
  7. The Men’s and ladies winner and runner up of the competition will represent Huntingdonshire Bowls at the National Championships provided that the criteria for entry numbers is met. If not then only the winner will represent the county.

Ladies’ and Mens unior (Under 24) Pairs Championship

  1. The Competition shall be open to members of Clubs affiliated to Bowls England who have not attained their 24th Birthday on the 1st April in the year of the Competition. Two players from different clubs may enter as a team provided that both clubs are affiliated to Huntingdonshire Bowls. A player may only enter this competition from one Country within the United Kingdom in any given year.
  2. An entrance fee shall be paid by each pair entering the Competition to the Treasurer as directed.
  3. The game shall consist of 18 ends. Two players shall use four woods each.
  4. The two players taking part in the first game shall constitute the pair and should normally play together throughout the Competition. For substitutions see rule 9 of the Championship/Competition Rules.
  5. The competition shall be played under the Laws of the Sport adopted by World Bowls Ltd and in accordance with the By-laws currently laid down by Bowls England.
  6. In the event of a tie, an extra end(s) must be played, the shots to count in the final score.
  7. The dates of all rounds of the competition should, if possible, be adhered to, but these ties may, by mutual consent, be played prior to the nominated date.
  8. The winner only will represent Huntingdonshire Bowls at the National Championships.

Ladies and Mens Over 55 rinks championship

  1. An entrance fee shall by paid by each rink entering the competition to the Treasurer as directed.
  2. The game shall consist of 18 ends four players shall use 2 woods each.
  3. The four players taking part in the first game shall constitute the 4 and should normally play together throughout the competition. For substitutions see rule 9 of the championship/competition rule.
  4. The 4 players and the substitute must be members of the same club.
  5. The competition shall be played under the law of the sport adopted by World Bowls Limited and in accordance with the bye laws currently laid down by Bowls England.
  6. In the event of a tie an extra end(s) must be played. The shots to count in the final score.
  7. The dates of all rounds of the competition should if possible be adhered to, but these ties may by mutual consent be played prior to the nominated date.
  8. The winners of the competition will represent Huntingdonshire Bowls at the National Championship.

SHOTBOWL County Champion of Champions

  1. The competition will consist of the four wood Singles Champions from each affiliated Club and the County Singles Champions played under the Laws of the Sport adopted by the World Bowls Ltd. Each club will be entitled to two entries, one from each gender and will consist of an open draw.
  2. In the event of a player being the singles champion of more than one Club, only one Entry in the competition will be allowed.
  3. The rules for this competition are the same as the County Singles Championship.
  4. An entrance fee shall be paid by each player entering the Competition to the Treasurer as directed.
  5. All rounds of the competition up to the Semi-Finals should, if possible, be adhered to, but these ties may, by mutual consent, be played prior to the nominated date.

Mixed Benevolent Triples Competition

  1. The competition will be played on the date and venue as decided by the Competitions Committee.
  2. Each team MUST contain at least one player of each gender, and all players in the team must be members of the same club.
  3. The competition will be with 2 woods per player.
  4. The closing date for entry will be two weeks before the advertised date.
  5. The Competitions Committee will decide the format of the competition once the number of entrants has been established, and each competitor will be made aware of the format that has been decided upon.

Double Rinks Competition (STUART & CO SHIELD)

  1. This Competition is open to all Affiliated Clubs and is for Teams of TWO RINKS. Each Club may use any number of players but the player must represent the Club with whom they are affiliated with for their County Championships (singles, pairs, triples and fours etc.). No player shall represent more than one Club and may play for only one team within that Club.
  2. The Competition will be played on a home and away basis as a straight knockout, shot aggregate to decide the winning team. The final will be played on one green on County Finals Day.
  3. The game shall consist of 21 ends.
  4. The HOME rink of the first named team shall automatically play an extra end(s). This should be recorded on the scorecard and forwarded in the normal way to the Man’s Competition Secretary. In the event of Teams being equal on shots after ends the extra end will determine the result.
  5. The dates of all rounds of the competition up to the Semi-Finals should, if possible be adhered to, but these ties may, by mutual consent, be played prior to the nominated date, but BOTH rinks must play at the same time.
  6. In the event of rain making one of the two greens unfit for play the affected Club should either, arrange for the tie to be played at a neutral green or, play the tie at the oppositions’ green.
  7. In the event of rain making both greens unfit for play the Home Team must contact the Men’s Competition Secretary with a mutually agreed date for the game to be completed. This date must be within 7 days of the original closing date of the round.
  8. As a sponsored competition, prize money will be paid to the winners, runners up and losing semi finalist.
  9. A representative of the successful Clubs must be present at the County Luncheon to receive their prize monies. Failure to do wo will mean that the prize money will be donated to the Benevolent Charity Trust.

LADIES AND MEN’S COMPETITION RESULTS
The Competitions Secretaries must be informed of the result of each tie in all competitions held in rounds as soon as possible after completion of the game.

This can be done:
by telephone: 01733 559056 NO LATER THAN 10PM
by text: 07895 649981 NO LATER THAN 10PM
by e-mail: bobstheman_ager@hotmail.com

Scorecards must also be sent to the Competition Secretaries as soon as possible at:

7 Ash Road
Dogsthorpe
Peterborough
PE1 4PF