Latest Updates
Easter Sunday Jack Attack 2026
We held an innovative Jack Attack competition on Easter Sunday. The competition attracted 16 pairs and was organised by Joaquim Cruz, one of our members who has been invited to represent Portugal at the European Championships to be held in Wales in September 2026. The Portugal bowlers have to fund themselves to attend the Championships, as there is no central funding available. The proceeds from the competition will help Joaquim with his funding.
We had bowlers from Floresta and Pedras playing in support of Joaquim, plus a number of our own members. The competition was won by Paul Sutton and Jenny Sutton from Floresta.
Jack Attack is designed for players of all skill levels, and involves teams playing a series of 5-end matches. Points were awarded for touchers, shot wood after the leads had played their bowls and points for shot, second and third woods at the end of each end.
Australian Pairs Tournament 2026
Our annual Australian Pairs Tournament ran from 23rd to 28th March and attracted an international line-up of 64 players from The Algarve, UK, Ireland and Holland playing for a prize fund of 3760€. Following an initial round robin stage, the bowlers were streamed into two groups for the knock-out stages. The main Tournament was won by Antony Bailey and Mikey Kempsell, after an exciting match with Andrew Griggs and Will Allen. Of the finalists, only Mikey had played in the Tournament previously! The subsidiary Plate was won for the second time in a row by Allan Milburn and Paul Beardmore.
Club Competition Finals 2026
The Club held our annual competition finals on 19th and 20th March, being the culmination of a variety of competitions which started in January. The matches were exciting and closely contested, and medals and bottles of wine were presented to the winners and runners-up by Ze Martins.
John Macrae won the Open Singles for the second year in a row. The 2 Wood Pairs was won by Craig Walsh and Peter Morris, and the Fixed Jack was won by Dave Heppenstall.
Monday League 2025 - 2026
Our popular Monday League ran from 17th November to 16th March and consisted of a variety of games formats. We had good support for the League with a consistently good number of entries. The winner took a healthy and unassailable lead with a few weeks of the competition to be completed, but there was still interest on the final day of the League as a number of bowlers still had a chance for the medal places!
In third place was Graham Hey, second place was taken by Tim Dawson and John Macrae was the outright winner. The winners were awarded medals and vouchers to spend in our Drakes Pride shop.
Crown Green Team Challenge 2026
This year we introduced a new tournament, the Crown Green Team Challenge. This is a team competition, with each team having 4 bowlers with a minimum of 1 lady and 1 man in each team. The teams played in round robin league format, covering men’s singles, ladies singles, mixed pairs and open pairs. The team with the highest points awarded for wins at the end of the week were the winners with a total prize fund of 1200€ to look forward to!
We had an entry of 6 teams from the UK and The Algarve playing 5 sets of games per day. At the end of a fun filled week, the Crown Green Bowling Machine emerged as winners with Infinity in a great second place on their Alvor debut! We are now considering feedback from the bowlers to see how we can improve what was a great first edition of this Tournament!
Crown Green Singles Tournament 2026
We ran our annual Crown Green Singles Tournament from 23rd to 27th February with a prize fund of 1670€.We had an entry of 32 bowlers from across the UK and The Algarve, with many of our UK travellers staying in the onsite apartments. Following an initial round robin stage, the bowlers were streamed into two groups. The Tournament was won by Pedro Yates and the subsidiary Shield was won by Craig Walsh. The week ended with a very enjoyable drawn doubles won by Sally Turner and Pedro Yates - a good week for Pedro!
Charity Fundraiser 2025
We held our annual fundraiser for a local charity during our Christmas celebrations and raised a total of 200€ for a local charity.
The funds raised were once again donated to the Cassa de Nossa Senhora da Conceicao, which is a local home for girls in Portimao. The funds were gratefully received.
Christmas Celebrations 2025
We had great festive celebrations at Alvor Bowls Club split over 2 days! The festivities started at Emma’s Coffee Shop on 3rd December where we had an evening party with live entertainment. Emma and her attentive staff provided a great buffet dinner and we had a fun quiz as well as a great singer. The second stage of celebrations took place on 10th December, starting with a fun bowling session organised by Colin Cummins.The bowling was very ‘rules light’! The winners of the bowling were Roger, Lone and Julie. Janet Mills won the best Christmas costume award. As usual the players enjoyed Ze’s ‘mouldy wine’ served up with home made sausage rolls and mince pies courtesy of Mark Johnson. Following the bowling was a lunch at Lobo da Ria, where the good food was enjoyed by all.
Crown Green Doubles Tournament 2025
We held our annual Crown Green Doubles Tournament from 10th to 14th November, where the bowler player with their nominated partner. The entry list had increased from 16 pairs in the first year (2024) to 24 pairs - mainly comprising UK based bowlers here for a holiday and to play in the tournament. The total prize fund was 2250€.
The pairs played in round-robin matches in 4 groups of 6 teams, after which they were streamed into two groups - one continuing in the main Tournament and the others playing in a subsidiary Shield. The Tournament was won by Jo Leeman and Geoff Watson, and the Shield was won by Pedro Yates and Kevin Spencer.
The bowlers had a great week despite the slightly damp weather which was torrential at times! However, we still managed to complete the whole Tournament and Shield and our overseas visitors went home happy!
Top Block Challenge Cup 2025
Alvor Bowls Club hosted the second Top Block Challenge Cup on 9th November between our two Crown Green Doubles Tournaments. The Challenge aims to promote greater awareness of mental health issues and suicide risk, and was linked with a fund raising initiative with proceeds being donated to PAPYRUS, a UK charity seeking to reduce suicide amongst younger people.
The match involved the home side playing both crown green and lawn bowls against the challengers, with the home team retaining the Cup for the second year. A great time was had by all the bowlers, who are looking forward to the third edition in 2026!
Alvor Crown Green Drawn Doubles Tournament 2025
Our annual Crown Green Drawn Doubles Tournament ran from 3rd to 7th November. The Tournament attracted a field of 32 bowlers, most of whom were over on holiday from the UK to play in the Tournament. The total prize fund was 1500€ plus the opportunity to get your name on the coveted trophy!
Partners were drawn on a daily basis with the pairs playing in group round robin matches to determine daily results. At the end of the Tournament, Lorraine Hirst emerged as the worthy winner with the highest number of points scored over the four days of bowling.
Ladies vs Gents Season Opener 2025
We held our annual season opener on 1st October with our traditional challenge match between the ladies and the gents. There was a good turnout of players and supporters, and this year the gents beat the ladies for the second year in a row to retain the trophy. It was good to see everyone coming together and then socialising over a BBQ lunch and drinks afterwards.
Alvor Triples Tournament 2025
The Alvor Triples Tournament ran from 22nd to 26th September when 10 teams from across the UK, Republic of Ireland and The Algarve competed for the Triples Trophy and a share of the 1365€ prize pot.
Following round-robin stages over the first four days of the tournament, the top two teams from each group entered the semi-finals and final. A high standard of bowling was on display from all the teams, and there was an exciting finish as the final two teams fought for the trophy. The Tournament was won by Kevin Spencer, Peter Morris and Geoff Bailey who all bowl at Alvor Bowls Club. The runners-up were Dave ‘Whitelegs’ Whitehead, Rob West and Ze Martins. Whitelegs and Rob play crown green bowling in Rochdale and also enjoy lawn bowling at Alvor Bowls Club
