World Bowls Championships

Conditions of Play

1.	All games shall be played under the Laws of the Sport of Bowls – Crystal Mark Edition.
2.	A Team will consist of five players, manager and/or a coach.
3.	Accreditation: five players and two support officials per country (Men and Women) giving a total of ten players and four support officials.
4.	The playing format shall be in two qualifying sections in each discipline.
5.	Pairs, Triples and Fours shall consist of 18 ends – Singles 21 shots. In section play all 18 ends must be completed. There will be a 3 ½ hour time limit on all section matches.
6.	The Singles, Pairs, Triples and Fours competitions shall be played throughout by the competitors whose names appear on the scorecard of the first game.
7.	The Singles Pairs, Triples and Fours competitions shall be played throughout by the competitors in their nominated disciplines.
8.	During the playing of the competition, changes in player positions within each discipline i.e. Pairs, Triples or Fours, shall be permitted before the commencement of each game and the Tournament Director must be notified.
9.	A substitute shall be utilised in the following manner: The manager of the team shall herself/himself substitute or call upon an affiliated player from her/his National Authority to substitute. Where an accredited player in a singles event is unable to play in any round subsequent to the first round in which they are accredited owing to illness, sudden indisposition, or reason acceptable to the Jury of Appeal, their place shall then be taken by an alternative player from the Side, playing in the same series. The replacement singles player to be replaced in the team affected, by a substitute player as set out in (1) above. The singles player may resume in his/her original position when deemed fit. If a competitor in a singles game is unable to complete any game already commenced, their opponent shall be awarded maximum match points for that game. The opponent shall also be awarded the average net shots margin of all matches completed in that round of the competition. It is understood, however, that a substitute in terms of the foregoing, may only be utilised if the Jury of Appeal is satisfied that the player to be substituted is genuinely unable to play. The substitute player shall not be permitted to play in the position of skip. The team/player receiving the points for the walk over shall also be awarded the average net shots margin of all matches completed in that round of the competition.
10.	Practice play will be permitted in accordance with Law 13.
11.	Two trial ends only will be allowed for all games in accordance with Law 18.1. In trial ends players can use any combination of bowls taken from different sets so long as they have registered the bowls used (Law 18.1.5).
12	A signal will be given five minutes before the time fixed for starting each session. Any player/team arriving fifteen minutes after the starting time shall lose the right to play trial ends. Any player/team arriving at the green more than thirty minutes after the official starting time shall forfeit the game and the points for that game.
13.	All bowls used in play must be registered with the Organising Committee and must bear a 2008 or subsequent recognised test stamp (Law 9.3). Players may register more than one set of bowls.
14.	Players requiring bowls testing shall be liable for the cost of the test.
15.	A Jury of Appeal shall be appointed for the purpose of deciding upon any points not provided in the Conditions of Play, for dealing with any appeals from decisions made by umpires and/or the Tournament Committee, and generally for the purpose of exercising overall authority on behalf of World Bowls. No member of the Jury of Appeal shall be part of any decision if her/his country is involved.
16.	Restriction on movement of players – the following conditions will be enforced: 1. After delivering their first bowl, players will only be allowed to walk up to the head under the following circumstances. Singles game · the opponents: after delivery of their third and fourth bowls. Pairs game (each player playing four bowls) · the leads: after delivery of their third and fourth bowls; and · the skips: after delivery of their second, third and fourth bowls. Triples game (each player playing three bowls) · the leads: after delivery of their third bowl; · the seconds: after delivery of their second and third bowls; and · the skips: after delivery of each of their bowls. At the start of each end the lead and second player will be at the mat end. Fours game · the leads: after the second player in their team has delivered their second bowl; · the seconds: after delivery of their second bowl; · the thirds: after delivery of their second bowl; and · the skips: after delivery of each of their bowls. At the start of each end the lead and second player will be at the mat end. 2. In exceptional and limited circumstances, a skip can ask that a player walks up to the head earlier than described in paragraph 1 above. 3. If a player does not meet the terms of this Condition, Law 35 will apply.
17.	(i) For Pairs, Triples and Fours two points will be awarded for each win and one point for each draw. (ii) In the Singles two points will be awarded for each win. (iii) If after section play points are equal then section placing will be decided on the highest net total of shots. If positions are still equal, the Controlling Body will divide the total of shots scored against each player/team into the total shots it has scored. The player/team with the higher result will be declared the higher position of the two. (iv) The top four teams in each section will play quarter finals in the following sequence: Game 1 - Winner Section 1 v Fourth Section 2 Game 2 - Second Section 2 v Third Section 1 Game 3 - Winner Section 2 v Fourth Section 1 Game 4 - Second Section 1 v Third Section 2 The winners of the quarter finals will play semi finals in the following sequence: Winner Game 1 v Winner Game 2 Winner Game 3 v Winner Game 4 · The losing quarter-finalists will be allocated to positions five to eight using the formula outlined above in Condition 17 (iii) applied to the quarter final round only. · The losing semi-finalists will be treated as third equal for medal purposes but for overall trophy consideration they will be allocated positions three or four using the formula outlined in Condition 17(iii) applied to the semi final round only. · All other countries will be allocated to positions 9 onwards based on where they finished in their section and if equal at that stage then by using the formula set out in condition 17 (iii). (v) In all disciplines should a substitute play in a final then they shall be awarded a medal along with the original team member.
18.	Where possible, the minimum pace of the greens shall be twelve seconds and a maximum pace of seventeen seconds. Pace of green shall be determined before play on each day by the green keeper and an umpire who shall then post that information in a prominent place at the venue.
19.	Drug testing will take place in accord with the World Bowls Anti-Doping Regulations.
20.	The Organising Committee reserves the right to alter the programme as deemed necessary to complete the event satisfactorily.
21.	World Championships Overall Team Winners The Overall Team Winner in each of the Men’s and Women’s Championships will be declared as the country gaining the most points in the four competitions. The Taylor Trophy will be presented to the women’s winner and the Leonard Trophy to the men’s winner. In determining the winners, points shall be awarded on the following basis: The winner in each discipline shall score points equivalent to the total number of teams competing. Subsequent placing in each event shall be reduced by one point for each placing. Where the total points are equal then the formula set out in Condition 17 (iii) will be applied using all games played by each team.
22.	Eligibility as per World Bowls Regulation 9.9 Subject to Regulation 9.9.2 as a condition of entry to compete in a World Bowls sanctioned event, all competitors must: (a) not be currently under disqualification or suspension by World Bowls or their National Authority. (b) satisfy the eligibility criteria of the member National Authority; (c) comply with all applicable rules and regulations of World Bowls, their Member National Authority and the World Anti Doping Code as may be applied by World Bowls to ensure that the overriding principles of World Bowls are observed. Regulation 9.9.2 A player is qualified to represent a country if: (i) he or she was born in the country or; (ii) he or she is a citizen of the country, is entitled to hold a passport issued by the country and has lived there for thirty six consecutive months at some time; or (iii) he or she has been a permanent resident of the country for a period of twenty four months immediately prior to the event. Regulation 9.9.3 A player who is eligible to represent two or more Member National Authorities at the same time, and meets the requirement of the above Regulation may represent either one of them as she or he may elect. However having represented one Member National Authority in an international event, he or she may not represent another Member National Authority for at least twenty four months and then only after approval is granted by the National Authorities of both countries and the Board of World Bowls. Regulation 9.9.4 The Board of World Bowls shall have the power to alter or waive the provisions of Regulation 9.9.3, in any case or good reason or if circumstances warrant.

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