about us

On the south-eastern periphery of Hopton, off Short grove Lane lays one of the finest bowling greens in the locality (and the bowlers are not bad either). This is no unfounded exaggeration as the club has staged something of a renaissance in the past couple of years. Firstly, by winning promotion to the first division of the Bury and District league in 2018. Then in 2019 building on that achievement by finishing the season as runners up in the higher league and also winning the prestigious Guinness Cup. Hopton Bowls Club has a long and distinguished history and is this year 97 years young. Originally based at the Commercial Inn, located in the High Street nearly opposite the chip shop, it faced an uncertain future in 1990 with the closure of the pub. However, a very determined nucleus of players decided that they were not going to let the club go under, so much so that they all contributed £1000 each into a rescue fund.

One of the downsides to no longer being attached to a public house is the fact that it is very hard to recruit younger/ fresh players into our sport. Where once newcomers would have been exposed to bowls in the same manner as any other pub game, that informal ‘taster’ no longer exists. If there is one thing bowlers hate, it is the common misconception that it is ‘an old man’s game.’ This may appear to be so, but is not, it is a game of skill just as any other. Youngsters might be surprised to find just how much effort is required to punch that ball to the far side of the rink when playing on ‘heavy’ greens. Taking the positives from this, just look how fit all the older players are; some well into their eighties, (and they can dance pretty well at the Christmas Party too).

The fact remains that new blood is the lifeline of any organisation and Hopton Bowls wishes it to be known that all are welcome here; we will accommodate any new member. The club has two teams; The Tuesday three wood game plays in division one and the two wood Thursday side play in division three. The club rule is that if a player does not get picked for the first team on a Tuesday, they are guaranteed a place in the Thursday side, but there again there is no requirement to play in a league. Social/practice bowling is held on Monday evenings and Friday afternoons.

Even in these Covid blighted times the club still functions, and practicing good hygiene, with social distancing of course, some semblance of normality has returned. With tongue in cheek and some dark humour, 12-14 of us in the absence of our normal internal competitions, launched the Covid Challenge Competition 2020, culminating with another mini competition and BBQ on Saturday 5th September. We hope to get a few more games in before ‘putting the green to bed’ on the 15th. Hopton Bowls Club is a fun place to be, so “Come on Down.” Hopton Bowler.