Bowls Blitz is back
After a successful running last year, the Bowls Blitz is back and coming soon in July 2022.
Once again, the Bowls WA High Performance Committee is looking forward to not only putting State Squad members through their paces but also incorporating players outside those squads through a draft process to build depth and competition within Western Australia.
With a combination of all the disciplines, singles, pairs, triples and fours being played over 12 rounds plus finals it is a great opportunity for players to test themselves against each other in a meaningful way.
This year the Bowls Blitz will be held over three Sunday’s starting on July 3rd. The second day will be the following week on July 10th with the final rounds, semi-finals and finals on Sunday July 31st.
How Many Players Are Going to be Involved?
As per last year, eight franchises will be involved with members of the BWA High Performance Committee taking charge of managing a franchise along with BWA President Doug Kelly and BWA CEO Ken Pride.
Each franchise will consist of eight players, making a total of 64 players involved.
Who Are Playing in These Teams?
This year there will only be two stages in the selection of players for each franchise
Stage 1 – Each of the Franchise Managers will have the opportunity to retain two players from last season’s squad. Those players will be nominated once the draft nomination period has closed.
Stage 2 – Each of the Franchise Managers will meet to select the final six players to complete their squad through the draft process.
So, anybody can nominate to be selected on a franchise?
Yes, they can, and we encourage as many players from all over Western Australia to put their hat into the ring for selection. You never know what type of player the franchise managers will be looking for to complete their team. A number of lesser known players were drafted and made quite a name for themselves and possible higher honours in the future.
Anyone who wishes to nominate should send an email to pieter@bowlswa.com.au. Please include your current club, email, contact phone number and shirt size.
Nominations will close at the end of the day on Tuesday May 17th, 2022, with the draft taking place soon after.
Are there any Conditions of Play Changes from Last Year?
Due to some feedback from last year and a reduction in the playing days, there will be some changes as to how the competition is played
The major changes are
- 5 rounds per day instead of 4
- 12 rounds across the three days instead of 14
- Each Round has been reduced to 1 hour 15 minutes to allow an extra round to be played on day 1 and day 2
- While each squad will still be 8 players, only 6 players will take part on Day 1 and Day 2. The remaining two players in the squad will not play on that day. This means no substituting on and off the green and all 6 players will play all day.
- For the third day which includes the last two rounds and the finals, all eight squad members will be required and will play in both the last 2 rounds and the Finals.
- No player can miss more than one day. Therefore, all players will play a minimum of 7 rounds not including finals.
- Coaches will be able to move players between disciplines an unlimited amount rather than a maximum of 5 times.
- Once either singles player reaches 10 shots in a match, neither singles player may be switched between disciplines and must complete the singles match
- Due to limited time, dead ends in pairs, triples and fours to be respotted. Singles replayed
The Final Conditions of Play including the fixtures will be released in the coming week
