TIPS ON SLOW GREEN PLAY Tactics and strategy can help a team succeed on slow greens. The ability of a team to play to a plan can give the skip more options and a chance to convert if he/she is down at the head. You should keep these suggestions in mind when playing or practicing on slow greens. 1. Short bowls are the beginning of disaster in any end but on slow greens with less draw on a bowl they can be a real liability to your team. 2. Stay down longer during your delivery to apply more force to the bowl therefore increasing the momentum of the bowl at delivery. 3. Avoid a finger tip grip which is more suited to fast greens and try a claw grip for extra confidence. 4. Aim to draw to a point 1-2 metres past jack high. This weight may give you the shot by hitting a bowl and taking it’s place or by trailing the jack. If you miss, your bowl will end in a very useful position. 5. If you also have a cross wind to contend with try drawing on the wide side and play with weight on the narrow side. 6. Be prepared for the green to dry out and to pick up some pace as the game progresses. 7. If down at the head the perfect draw on the open hand may not be the best option. Playing on to the opposition bowls for shot, to save or for position may offer a better percentage of success. 8. A winning plan may be to outdraw the opposition on long ends and play aggressive on the short ends. 9. After you step on to the mat remind yourself to play with 1-2metres of extra weight past the point you are expecting to reach. Start with a more upright stance to enable a longer, stronger delivery. 10. Pay particular attention to your line as bowling a little wide will often mean a wasted bowl , whereas a little narrow and reaching the head can be very effective. 11. Avoid the drive in preference to a fast running shot. Weighted shots turn more on slow greens and an alignment straight at the target will often miss on the narrow side. 12. Play a bit more aggressive than you normally do and expect the jack to be moved 2 or 3 times each end. 13. Often the skip has little opportunity to draw and will elect to play with weight through the head. Cover the areas behind the jack on both sides about 1-2 metres behind. 14. A block shot on a slow green can look very big to the opposition. However, ensure you already have the back well covered. 15. A strong smooth delivery without bouncing or hurling the bowl will give you the best chance of consistently reaching the head. 16. As a skip, watch and study each player’s ability to adapt to a slow green. Select a length that will give your team an advantage, but be careful on long ends. If the opposition gets the first close bowl it can be more difficult to convert, as there are usually more short bowls blocking the path. Some players may have difficulty in playing with sufficient weight on a long end when trying to disturb the head. 17. Bowls draw less on a soft, slow green than on a hard, fast green. This is due to the increase in friction applied to the bowl by the playing surface. The increased contact area also tends to keep the bowl upright resulting in a straighter run and not falling in at the end.
Posted on: Sun, 14 Jul 2013 07:00:41 +0000