Bowls3Five primed for SKY Sport debut

BOWLS NEW ZEALAND
20 June 2018

Get ready, Bowls3Five is coming to SKY Sport - and with a short fast format, it’s going to challenge the perception of lawn bowls and arguably become the most innovative change to the sport yet.

Bowls New Zealand are primed and ready to launch the fast format of lawn bowls this coming summer.

Bowls3Five aims to showcase the diversity and personality of the sport of lawn bowls by featuring the best ‘club bowlers’ in a high-profile televised sports league.

Bowls3Five will see six club teams from throughout New Zealand selected to compete in a live to air competition on SKY Sport every Tuesday and Wednesday 7pm-10pm.

For six weeks from October 23 - November 28, the competition will promote New Zealanders playing sport for the challenge, the entertainment and that taste of victory.

Games will last no more than 55 minutes, with teams comprising three players (minimum one male or female) who each play two bowls per end. The game is made up of two five-end sets. In the event the sets are tied, a one end tie-breaker will be the decider.

Adding to the thrill of the short format of the game, a Power Play will be available to each side once per game with double points for the nominated Power Play end. Astute followers of the format know this is where games can be won or lost depending on the strategy deployed. A 30-second shot clock keeps the action fast paced as it applies pressure to every delivery.

Bowls New Zealand is currently calling for expressions of interest from clubs from around the country. This is the opportunity to showcase our community bowling clubs to New Zealand. The Bowls3Five competition will acknowledge lawn bowls as one of New Zealand’s all-inclusive sports, regardless of age, ethnicity, gender, ability! There’s an opportunity for all to have a go.

“Bowls3Five is an important evolution for the sport of lawn bowls, by combining the short fast format of a competition like T20 cricket with the ‘made for TV’ entertainment of a sports league like Professional Darts,” said CEO of Bowls New Zealand, Mark Cameron.

The inaugural Bowls3Five round robin competition will be played at the new covered facility at the New Lynn Bowling Club in Auckland.

Teams play each other twice in the first five weeks of competition, with the sixth and final week scheduled for the post-section and Finals action.

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