About the Club
Calgary Lawn Bowling Club invites you to join us to try out this great game.
Club Update: August 31, 2011
Our season is now almost over as we approach September, and we have been fortunate with the weather this year, as we have had minimum disruptions to our schedule. Our membership has risen slightly as a result of our Open House, and we plan to do that again next Spring. We were grateful to all who turned out for the Open House and hopefully we created a little interest in the game of Lawn Bowling. We are always on the lookout for more lawn bowlers, so come on down and give the game a try on Monday nights at around 6.30 to 7 p.m., through the end of September, weather permitting, then we can welcome you back to the club when we start play in May 2012.
As usual, many of us have participated in Provincial tournaments and all enjoyed the experiences. We must congratulate Pat Bird, Peter Mok & Stan Nelson from our club, who (along with Lyle Adams from Edmonton) won the Alberta Provincial Men’s Fours tournament in July and went on to Ontario and achieved the Silver medal in this year’s Canadian Championships. Well done and for Peter & Pat that gives them a whole set of gold, silver and bronze medals in the last four years.
We have had a number of groups rent our facilities for team building or other functions, throughout the year, including the successful third annual Amber Bowerman Memorial Tournament on August 27th. All of our visitors seemed to enjoy the sport and we hope they will return to play at some time in the future.
We have now held all of our club Trophy days at our greens this year, and we congratulate all the winners. The Lorne Stout Trophies were held on June 18th, and the winners were tied after our regular play, on both wins and points, so the trophy was shared this year by the teams of Ross Richards, Barrie Irwin, & Marylyn Ballinger, and Joe Lazzarotto, Heather Mackie & Sylvia Grant. Meanwhile the Junior Lorne Stout Trophy was won by Teana Redick. On Canada Day there was a smaller than usual turn out because of the conflicting Provincial Playdown dates, as a number of regular bowlers were in Edmonton, however the tournament was still a success and the winners were Joe Lazzarotto, Delsie Dworkin & Alex Thomson. The Pain Trophy and barbecue was held on August 1st this year, and was won by the team of Lindsay Mackie, Stan Thompson & Sylvia Grant, congratulations to them all, and a special note that it was great to see our new bowlers get their names on some trophies.
Our club Championships have also been decided and the winner of the Larry Hughes Memorial Trophy for the Men’s singles was Don Blair, while Janette Mackie won the Ladies’ Singles Trophy. The Ladies’ Pairs Cunningham Trophy was won by Janette Mackie & Gay Buckland. Congratulations to all who played in these events this year.
Our local leagues all went very well and are now completed, other than the cut-throat league. The winners of this season’s Tuesday Two Bowl Triples League was the team of Janette Mackie, Judy Taylor and Florence Horman, who beat Peter Mok, Judy Blair & Alex Thomson in the final. The Inter Club Fours League, which we hold at Stanley Park each week, was won by the team of Dave Cox, Ken Oslvik, Betty Bruce and Patricia Walker, and unfortunately none of our Calgary Lawn players were involved in the final game this year. We also started a Two-Four-Two League part way through this year as a trial and most of the players enjoyed this experience so we will do that again next year, perhaps with an extended list of participants. We played with a different partner every week and it was lots of fun.
The only outstanding tournament is the Fall Classic scheduled for September 10th, which is a fun tournament sponsored by Calgary Lawn Bowling Cub and Specialty Turf Care. Entries should be in a.s.a.p. as there will be a limited number of teams permitted and we do have some players coming from Edmonton and Saskatchewan. As usual that will be a great day at the club for all who participate and even worth visiting just to watch.
Our season will wind down this month with the final week of bowling scheduled for September 24th, and that day will also be the annual wind-up banquet in the clubhouse after the bowling. We will also have our annual prize giving and awards ceremony at that time. Our annual meeting will be on October 15th this year in the clubhouse at noon.
How to Participate
All you need is to show up at the noted times, with smooth soled, heel-less shoes, and we will provide everything else you need for a game. We have members on hand to teach you the basics and try out the bowls for size, fit, etc. After a few free lessons, which includes the use of the club bowls, we will invite you to join the members for a few trial games, to see if you want to join our club. The lesson times are noted on the “playing times and lessons” page in the website, and other arrangements could be made, with any of our members or coaches, on an individual basis if required. You can call us to arrange a visit or just drop in at one of the lesson times. Lessons are usually on Saturday mornings and Monday nights for JUNIORS and Monday nights for ADULTS.
What to Wear
Our dress code is fairly relaxed other than the requirement for smooth soled, heel-less shoes. We usually require all “whites” for any official Provincial Playdowns or Club Trophy competitions. The whites can be trousers or shorts with collared shirts for the men, and dresses, shorts, slacks, or skirts, with tops or blouses for the ladies. At all other times there are no formal dress rules, other than flat shoes.
Who Should Play
You do not have to be a serious competitive bowler — play for the exercise and social interaction with the other members, like many of our members, or join the various more serious competitive leagues. If you do choose to get into the competitive side of the game, and you practice enough, there is a chance that you can qualify to represent the province at a National Championship, with events held in various provinces across Canada. In Alberta, if you win a provincial title, your travel costs are usually covered when you go to the National Event regardless of where it is held.
Where Are We
Our bowling green is located just south of downtown in Connaught at:
1238 - 16 Avenue SW
Club By-Laws
Calgary Lawn Bowling Club By-Laws 2011, as of May 16, 2011 [PDF format]
