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Story: Bowls, pétanque and tenpin

Blind lawn bowls

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Blind lawn bowls

Blind bowler David Monk competes at the Blind Bowls Championship at Gate in Tauranga, in November 2010. Bowls has been a popular sport among both deaf and blind people. A 'clock' is used to assist blind bowlers learn the position of the bowls. In addition to the clock, blind bowlers are assisted by a director (in David's case, his wife Kath) who tells them how far the jack is in front of the mat so they can gauge the correct weight of their bowl. A mark or badge on the bowl also indicates the side of the bias.

Using this item

Bay of Plenty Times

Reference: 30 November 2010

by John Borren

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How to cite this page

Lindsay Knight, Bowls, pétanque and tenpin – Indoor bowls, Te Ara – the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, https://teara.govt.nz/en/photograph/37991/blind-lawn-bowls (accessed 4 June 2026).

Story by Lindsay Knight, published 15 November 2012, updated 1 January 2015.