Tuesday and Sunday mornings are the real fun days. Wednesday afternoons slot in somewhere in-between. Established in 1931 and still at their original location in the Municipal Precinct in Central Circle (previously and often known by many as “4th Crescent”). Synonymous with the town, it’s membership over the years resonates with names like A P Jones, H S Jager, the Yeld, the Moncrieff and Reich f
amilies – a quick look at the various Honours Boards will bring back fond memories of people you’ve known or heard of in the past. The club has produced many Provincial Champions over the years with the most recent being Karen Kent who won the Western Province Ladies Novice Championship in 2014. The late LB Teichardt brought significant kudos to the club by winning the Provincial Champion-of-Champions in 2006; that’s akin to winning the SA Open in golf! The Honours Boards truly read like the “Who’s Who” of Fish Hoek. Despite being in existence for over 85 years, it’s kept pace with the times – no longer is it necessary to play in white “uniforms” (although this is still done for the various competitions), instead a more informal dress code has been adopted with the focus on bright colours – the brighter the better! The change in dress code has brought other more significant changes to the game – it’s no longer the (perceived) preserve of a game for those who cannot play more robust sports. It’s rapidly changing into one where skill, temperament, concentration and ability to deal with long periods of pressure have become cornerstones of the game. It’s almost the only sporting code which is not gender specific and one where a “newbie” has as much chance of winning as does the polished player of many years standing. Although bowls is largely a team game varying between teams of 2, 3 or 4 players, you will very often or not find members practising individually on every day of the week; Monday and Thursday afternoons some of the senior players are on hand to assist with coaching. Friday afternoons are the most popular where upwards of 20 players can be found either honing their individual skills or getting ready for the weekend competitions. It’s also an ideal place to unwind after the stresses of the working week!