Bowlplaying is an Irish game played with an iron ball on a road. The game is sometimes called road bowling. Bowlplaying is played almost exclusively in the counties of Cork and Armagh. The two counties compete annually in the All-Ireland finals. Starting from a marked point, each player has a ball and throws it along the road as far as possible. The ball weights 28 ounces (800 grams). After the ball comes to rest at a particular place, the player throws it again from that place. The game continues till the players reach a marked finishing point. The course today averages about two miles (3.2 kilometers) in length. The winner is the player who reaches the finish in the least number of throws. Since 1954, bowlplaying has been governed by an organization called An Boll Chumann. The origins of bowlplaying are obscure. It may have developed from an ancient Scottish bowling game.
