Twizel was once known for being just one of the many humble villages built by the NZED up and down the country to support the creation of New Zealand’s hydroelectric network.  Like Atiamuri, Mangakino, Arapuni and Karapiro along the Waikato and Roxburgh along the Clutha.

But today, things are different.  Twizel is booming.

With a permanent population of 2,000+, it is now the largest town in the Mackenzie District.  That’s not counting the influx over the summer holiday season when visitors swell the population to over 5,000 … lured by the many attractions in the area : like exploring the Aoraki Mt Cook National Park (45 minutes away); discovering the night sky at Tekapo (45 minutes away); or marveling at the Clay Cliffs (30 minutes away).  The area has also gained a reputation for providing some of New Zealand’s best recreational go-to’s : rowing at Lake Ruataniwha (5 minutes away); skiing at Ohau (45 minutes away); gliding at Omarama (30 minutes away); biking the Alps to Ocean (passes through town); and of course the multiple trout and salmon lake and river fishing spots surrounding the town.

The boom has also awakened the Twizel Bowling Club … for many years in recess.

‘Awakened’ is an under-statement.  The club has come out of nowhere over the last three years … mushrooming from a small informal social roll-up club to one that is readying itself for competitive action in the future.

It’s taken a lot of energy and effort.

“A group of us in Twizel decided to get something going in the 2022/2023 season,” recalls Club President Greg Mackle. “After all the attention on COVID.  The council was considering pulling the plug on the lease.  And justifiably so … the grass was almost up to your knees and the clubhouse hadn’t hosted a bowler for years.”

“Using a domestic lawnmower, we managed to get the green into a rough and rugged state, allowing us to cater for anyone in the community who wanted to give bowls a go.  Although the green was nowhere near what it should be, we were surprised to get 12 teams of four … mainly tradies and past members… turning up to enjoy a weekly roll-up over summer.  As well as a bit of banter and socializing.”

“It was very successful.  And we knew we were on to something.”

“The following season (2023/2024), we got a bit of funding to buy a proper bowls lawnmower.  We also did some research into how to look after the green … you have to remember, none of us really knew what we were doing.  But with the benefit of a bit of know-how, we were able to transform the green into something a lot better.  Perhaps not what most clubs would regard as ‘standard’, but a heap better than we had before.”

“When we put out an invite again that year, we had 28 teams of four wanting to play in the weekly tournament.  Because we only had seven rinks, we had to run the draw over two nights.”

The club realised that things were serious enough to set up a more formal committee structure … which included creating a roster to maintain the green and look after the draw.

“Thankfully Dave Wilson also volunteered to be our greenkeeper,” remarks Greg appreciatively. “Without him we would not have got where we are.  He travelled far and wide … and listened to anyone and everyone who had something to say about the best way to keep a green.  There wouldn’t be many greenkeeping tips he missed out on.”

Last season (2024/2025), the club was even in bigger demand … 28 teams of four put their hands up to play in the weekly twilight again .., with more on a waiting list.

“We didn’t want to have to play over three nights,” explains Greg. “So instead we also opened up the green over the holiday period, so that bowlers could play whenever they liked by popping $10 in an honesty box.”

People were obviously very honest … the club took $7,000 from the box over summer!

“We also started getting people from Omarama, 30 minutes down the road.  As well as enquires from Otematata and Fairlie.  It started us thinking that we should get a bit more serious about competitive inter-club bowls.”

By now the club was charging $50 a year to be a ‘full playing member’ attracting members of all ages … from school kids to a bloke in his nineties wanting to play again.

“We found we were also getting a few older bowlers who used to belong to the club in the past.  They were thrilled about the revival of the club!”

“Members were getting so keen,” says Greg. “That they were starting to buy their own sets of sharp new coloured bowls.  Which was great.  Because we had been managing with 20 sets of old brown and black bowls kindly donated by ex-members, as well as the Temuka Bowling Club.”

But work doesn’t stop.

Next season (2025/2026), members will be able to look forward to playing as an ‘affiliated’ club … so that they can enjoy both social and competitive bowling.

“It will be interesting to be able to play in the big bowls world!”

“We’ve also got our eye on artificial,” adds Greg. “The extreme temperatures here make it difficult to keep a quality natural surface.” (Even Wikipedia observes that ‘Twizel is often the coldest town (in New Zealand) in winter’.)

“But the funding required for that is a big number.”

However, don’t be surprised if Greg and his team end up with an artificial … despite the roadblocks, they’ve come a long way in three years.  Making an artificial happen may be just another hurdle to overcome.