The fortnight of competition kicked off on Tuesday with the ladies triples.

The two-day tournament attracted 120 women - 40 teams - from as far away as Penrith, Kiama, Sussex and Tuncurry.

Participants played six games over 12 ends with wins and margins determining the winners. 

In first place was the team of Jenny Mann of Castle Hill, Leone Lesslie of Dural and Lyn Skeers of The Hills with six wins and a margin of 53 shots.

Today will see the start of the mixed pairs tournament, also to be played over two days.

Forty-two teams registered for this event - the maximum that can be accepted due to the number of greens available at the Young Bowling Club.

Now in it’s eighth year the mixed tournament has really taken off, leaving organisers grateful for the number of greens available.

One organiser praised the fact Young has held onto the 21 rinks, as tough climate conditions have forced other clubs to sacrifice their beloved greens.

After a much-needed break on Sunday it is the men’s turn to hit the greens.

The 24th Men’s Cherry Festival Triples Tournament will commence on Monday, November 25 and will be run over three days.

The event consists of five games of 21 ends of triples, and has also received maximum registrations at the limit of 42 teams.

The tournament is an invitation event and for the past five years the 42 available places have been filled in less than two weeks from the posting of the invitations.

The majority of the players involved in the tournaments are visitors and many return year after year to participate.

Numerous players come from the Wollongong and South Coast regions and for several years, two players have travelled from Coffs Harbour to participate.

While the club does not set out to attract champion players to this tournament it is not unusual for teams to include players who have represented NSW.

As an example, this year David Ferguson who represented NSW earlier this year, Wayne Crane who is a former NSW representative and Eric Johannes who is a former South African international representative will all be competing.

The Young Bowling Club is grateful for all the sponsorship they receive, saying it’s impossible to conduct an event like this without the support of the town.