Umpire Development

Guidelines for Umpires

Common Procedures for deciding the shot

The following procedures should be followed by umpires when deciding the shot and are common to most measures.

Make sure you are asked for your judgement before stepping in.
Before going on the green make sure there is no risk of your clothing moving the jack or a bowl
Make sure you have all of the equipment that you need
Before you start measuring determine from the players what is required to be measured
Ask the players to remove any bowls not included in the measure
Do not remove any bowls yourself unless asked to do so.
Ask the players to stand well clear of the head
Use wedeges to secure any bowls that are on their running surface or leaning against another bowl
Get into a well balanced and comfortable position
Use the open side of the measure
When measuring over a distance of more than 1m or into a ditch, ask for assistance from a player, marker or fellow umpire.
Your assistant will take the jack end of the measure and you should give clear instructions.
Move around the head and not in between the jack and the bowls.
Measure bowls that are laying flat first as it is easier to find their nearest point
When you have measured all the bowls return to your original bowl and check the measurement
When measuring to a jack or bowl in the ditch, stand or kneel on the green not in the ditch
If you determine that the bowls are equidistant from the jack, turn out the jack.
Check bowls in the ditch are touchers after measuring.
Turn out the bowl or bowls that you determine to be shot and tell the players your decision.