How is an end scored in lawn bowls?
B · Beginner · The game · 3 of 4When the last bowl stops, the shots are counted: each bowl nearer the jack than the opponent's nearest scores one. Close bowls are measured from the nearest points of jack and bowl. Measuring before the end is over costs the measuring side its remaining bowls. If the nearest bowls of each side are equally close, the end is tied.
How it works
- Shot bowls: bowls nearer the jack than the opponent's nearest bowl.
- When to count: once the last bowl stops, or 30 seconds later if a skip asks, to see if a leaning bowl falls.
- No bowl moved: until the shot is agreed, except to measure another.
- Measuring: between the nearest points of the jack and the bowl; a string measure for the ditch.
- Early measuring: loses the measuring side its remaining bowls in that end.
- A bowl falls during counting: it stays where it fell; shots already agreed still count.
- Tied end: nearest bowls of each side touching the jack or the same distance away, or no live bowls left; it counts as an end played.
- The last bowl: the last player need not bowl it, but must say so before counting starts.
The glossary has the shot, the shot bowl, the measure, the tied end, the last bowl of an end and the head.
Tricky cases
Both sides' nearest bowls touch the jack. Who scores?
Nobody. It is a tied end.
A skip measures a close bowl before the last bowl is played. What happens?
That side loses the right to play its remaining bowls in the end; the opponent finishes the end.
A bowl leaning on another may fall. Can it be wedged?
During counting, yes, by either side. But not during the 30 seconds asked for to see if it falls.
The skip decides not to play the last bowl. Can they change their mind?
No. The decision is final once given.
Why the rule exists
Counting from the nearest points gives one clear answer to "which is closer". The 30-second wait settles bowls leaning on others before they are counted.
Where it differs
| Where | What changes | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Shots | Bowls nearer than the opponent's best | WB Law 22 |
| Measuring | After the last bowl only | WB Law 23 |
| Tied end | Counts as an end | WB Law 24 |
From the rule book
World Bowls, Laws of the Sport of Bowls, Crystal Mark Fourth Edition (August 2022), Definition C.21 and Laws 22 to 25. Checked 14 October 2026. Official document: the World Bowls Laws of the Sport of Bowls.