Changes to the 2027 Bowls NSW Calendar
Bowls NSW publishes its season calendar well in advance so that Clubs, Regions and individual members can plan their own programs with confidence. Our 2027 calendar was published in May this year — seven months ahead of the January 2027 season start — and was built around the 2027 national event dates published by Bowls Australia, which listed the Australian Championships (Nationals) as 3–21 October 2027.
Bowls Australia has now advised that the 2027 Nationals will take place from late November into December, and that the event will run for a longer period than originally published. Those dates were not flagged as subject to change at the time we built and published our calendar.
As a result, Bowls NSW has had to make several changes to the 2027 calendar so that our events remain aligned with the national pathway, including qualification for the Australian Champion of Champions Singles.
The following changes have been made:
State Champion of Champions Singles
Previous dates: Saturday 20 – Monday 22 November 2027
New dates: Saturday 30 October – Monday 1 November 2027
State Champion of Champions Pairs
Previous dates: Tuesday 23 – Saturday 27 November 2027
New dates: Tuesday 2 – Saturday 6 November 2027
Champion of Champions Singles & Pairs – Entries Close
Previous closing date: Wednesday 13 October 2027 at 11:59pm
New closing date: Monday 11 October 2027 at 11:59pm
Impact on the Nationals pathway
The change in dates also affects how our pathway events line up. When the 2027 Nationals were scheduled for early October, our September State Championships did not allow enough turnaround for winners to meet Bowls Australia’s entry deadlines — which is why the Nationals Qualifier was created and scheduled for November 2026. With the Nationals now moving to late November/December 2027, those September 2027 State Championship winners would have comfortably met the national entry timelines.
To be clear on what this means for players:
- Winners of the November 2026 Nationals Qualifier will represent NSW at the 2027 Nationals — a wait of around 12 months.
- Winners of the 2027 State Championships in September will represent NSW at the 2028 Nationals — a wait of around 15 months.
The practical result is that two of our pathway events now sit ahead of the 2027 national event, and our 2027 State Champions face a longer than usual wait before they compete. We understand this is confusing and difficult to explain, and we apologise for that. It is a direct consequence of the change to the national dates, and we will continue to advocate for greater consistency and earlier certainty in the planning of the Nationals at a national level.
The revised Nationals dates will also overlap with the Bowls NSW State Rookies Finals. Given the low likelihood of participant crossover, the Rookies Finals will remain as currently scheduled.
We recognise these changes will have a flow-on effect for Region and Club calendars, and for our host venues, and we appreciate your understanding. Bowls NSW has formally raised our concerns with Bowls Australia regarding the late change to published national dates and the impact on state, Region and Club planning, and we have asked that the 2028 Nationals dates be confirmed at the same time as 2027 so that our next calendar can be built with certainty.
The updated calendars can be viewed below:
A print-ready PDF calendar containing all Bowls NSW events (Print Ready PDF)
An editable Excel calendar featuring National and Bowls NSW events, plus a blank column for Regions and Clubs to add their own event dates (Coloured Version | Black and White Version)
