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How to mark a toucher with chalk or a nomination

Updated: 16 October 2026

The bowl has stopped on the jack and the head is tight enough that a fingertip could move a wood. How to mark a toucher is the next decision, and it carries the score. You put chalk on it at once, or you nominate it. You do not fetch a site can from the shed. The Products Compared editorial team used World Bowls Law 15, the Bowls England domestic regulations of 1 March 2023, and the amazon.co.uk extracts in the [chalk spray comparison](/hub/occupational-safety-accessories/chalk-spray), dated 15 October 2026. We did not run a laboratory test. Choosing a can is the [chalk spray buying guide](/hub/occupational-safety-accessories/chalk-spray/sub/chalk-spray-buying-guide).

The bowl has stopped on the jack and the head is tight enough that a fingertip could move a wood. How to mark a toucher is the next decision, and it carries the score. You put chalk on it at once, or you nominate it.

Our top picks

Drakes Pride Drakes Pride bowls chalk spray with keyring

Best overall

Drakes Pride Drakes Pride bowls chalk spray with keyring
9.2/10about £6.60
View offer
Drakes Pride Drakes Pride white chalk spray, pack of 20

Best value

Drakes Pride Drakes Pride white chalk spray, pack of 20
9.2/10about £77.00
View offer
Stevens Stevens white bowls chalk spray

Alternative

Stevens Stevens white bowls chalk spray
7.8/10about £5.90
View offer
On this page
  1. 1.Mark it as soon as it rests
  2. 2.Nominate when a spray would move the head
  3. 3.Wipe the mark off before the next end
  4. 4.What the can will and will not do

Mark it as soon as it rests

Law 15.1 says a toucher is marked with chalk as soon as it comes to rest. The mark is made by a member of the team that delivered the bowl, or by the marker. The law says chalk. It does not name a brand, and the Bowls England regulations of 1 March 2023 do not add a spray. Spray is one way to put chalk on the wood so you need not touch the bowl. A competition’s conditions can still be tighter than the Laws. Do it while the bowl is still. A Staines club note suggests two spots beside the running surface. That note is a club aid, not Law 15. If chalk would move the bowl or another wood, you do not force the mark.

Nominate when a spray would move the head

Law 15.2 says you nominate the toucher instead of marking it when a mark would move the bowl or disturb the head. Say it so the opposition can hear it. Spraying into a crowded head because the can does not touch can still shift a wood if your hand or the chalk lands badly. A preference for spray does not repeal the nominate rule. If you neither mark nor nominate in time, Law 15.3 says the bowl is no longer a toucher. On the last bowl, that law points at the 30 seconds in Law 23.1. A 500 ml aerosol is the wrong tool, which bowls chalk spray versus survey spray sets out.
Drakes Pride Drakes Pride bowls chalk spray with keyring

Testsieger

Drakes Pride Drakes Pride bowls chalk spray with keyring
9.2/10about £6.60
View offer

Wipe the mark off before the next end

Law 15.5 says a mark left on a bowl is removed before that bowl is played again. Law 15.6 says that if rubbing the mark off would move the bowl, you nominate it as a non-toucher instead of scrubbing. The wipe is part of the same job as the spray. Only the Stevens bullets, at £5.90, say a water-based solution, that the chalk wipes away, and that it is friendly with carpets. Behind that claim is 3.9 from 3 reviews. The other Drakes Pride pages do not print a wipe-off line. On the four-pack, one reviewer needs a towel and another says the chalk cleans off without a residue. One review of the £6.60 can says it washes off. If the mark will not clear without shifting the wood, nominate under Law 15.6.

What the can will and will not do

How you hold the can is a review habit, not a law. On the £6.60 listing, one reviewer says to spray upside down or you may spray yourself. On the £6.50 listing, a reviewer got only air until the can was shaken and held upside down. Both pages include flat cans, tops that come off, and cans that arrive dry. Shake, try a puff away from the head, and keep a stick for the day the aerosol does nothing. The orange 500 ml Soppec Tempo TP does not belong on a wood. Its bullets say about 2–8 weeks, the table says it is not waterproof, and the manufacturer talks about mechanical removal. The ground rules for that can are on temporary marking spray. Amazon links on the main comparison may earn us a commission.

Common questions

Does the law require a spray, or any chalk?
Law 15.1 requires chalk, or a nomination when chalk would move the bowl or the head. It does not require an aerosol and it does not name a brand. Bowls England’s domestic regulations of 1 March 2023 do not add a spray rule. A stick of chalk still satisfies the law. Spray is a way to avoid touching the wood, which is why reviewers buy it.
Who is allowed to put the mark on?
A member of the team that delivered the bowl, or the marker. Someone from another rink is not the person Law 15.1 names. If you are marking, the chalk is part of that job at the moment the bowl rests. If you are bowling, your own team can mark it. The right person can still be too late. Law 15.3 does not make an exception for good intentions.
What if the bowl would move if I touch it?
Nominate it. Law 15.2 replaces the mark when a mark would move the bowl or disturb the head. Say the nomination clearly. A spray can still disturb a tight head, so the can is not a reason to lean in. If you do neither the mark nor the nomination in time, Law 15.3 says it is no longer a toucher.
How long do I have before an unmarked toucher stops counting?
Mark or nominate as soon as the bowl rests. If you do neither in time, the status lapses under Law 15.3. On the last bowl, that law points at the 30 seconds in Law 23.1. That figure is the last-bowl window. It is not a general excuse to wait on every wood. Earlier bowls still need a prompt mark or a prompt nomination.
Should I spray the can upright or upside down?
The Laws do not say. Upside down is a review of two Drakes Pride keyring cans. One reviewer of the £6.60 can said you may spray yourself if it is the wrong way up. One reviewer of the £6.50 can got only air until it was shaken and turned upside down. Puff away from the head first. If nothing comes out, use other chalk, or nominate if contact would move the head.
Can I use the orange 500 ml can on a wood?
No. Soppec Tempo TP is a 500 ml outdoor spray with a stated life of about 2–8 weeks, and the listing says it is not waterproof. UK reviews include marks that lasted many months and a mark that needed a jet washer. Law 15 expects chalk you can clear, or a nomination. Keep the survey can off the green.

Related pages

Best chalk spray in this set

Chalk spray

Bowls chalk spray vs survey spray on green or site

Chalk spray buying guide: which can and which pack

Temporary marking spray for a located ground service

Sources

Public UK sources and the manufacturer page, as listed in the research digest. amazon.co.uk prices are the six listing extracts of 15 October 2026.

  1. World Bowls Crystal Mark Fourth Edition, Law 15 (retrieved 15 October 2026)
  2. Bowls England domestic regulations, 1 March 2023 (retrieved 15 October 2026)
  3. HSE HSG47, Avoiding danger from underground services (retrieved 15 October 2026)
  4. HAUC (UK) Bulletin 39, marking out on the highway (retrieved 15 October 2026)
  5. Street Works UK colour coding, July 2024 (retrieved 15 October 2026)
  6. Aerosol Dispensers Regulations 2009, GOV.UK (retrieved 15 October 2026)
  7. HSE, spraying and hazardous substances (retrieved 15 October 2026)
  8. Soppec Tempo TP temporary marking spray (retrieved 15 October 2026)