Indoor Bowls: Nationals under one roof

Dianne Mackey is the first to admit her bowls this week haven't been as successful as she'd like.

But the success of this year's indoor bowls nationals held in Rotorua have more than made up for it says the president of the Bay of Plenty Indoor Bowls Association.

More than 1000 of the country's best bowlers are taking part in the 64th Lion Foundation National Indoor Bowls being held at the Energy Events Centre.

It's the eighth time the event has been held in Rotorua but the first time its been held under one roof in the city.

The 71-year-old grandmother said the feedback from the competitors had all been positive and there has been plenty of talk about returning the nationals to Rotorua.

"It's fabulous, we're lucky to have this [venue] in Rotorua now ..."

Mackey has taken part in the singles, pairs and yesterday the triples but unfortunately her play hasn't been up to the standard she'd like.

Teamed up with Brian and Maureen Enevoldsen for Bay of Plenty in the triples, Mackey said the team got away to a slow start dropping their first two games but winning the third. Unfortunately it wasn't enough and the side missed out on making the next round.

"With the first couple of games, we struggled with weight and didn't quite make it with those two games. But started to come right now but it's a bit too late."

Despite not getting the results on the mat, Mackey said she'd been impressed with the level of play at the tournament.

"It's been fantastic, Grant l'Ami, he won the singles and [it] was just magic to watch."

With the mat dimensions about 6.7m long by 1.8m wide Mackey said the game was centred around making the right moves at the right time.

"To get the right shot at the right time there can be a lot of pressure."

Its the pressure which has kept Mackey interested in the game since she first picked up a bowl as a 12-year-old.

"My mum and dad and brother all played, we used to have a family team. I've just always enjoyed it, I've sort of grown up with it."

The nationals will conclude on Saturday with the fours.