Lawn Sports

Enjoy lawn bowling and croquet on the carefully-maintained lawns north of the Sheep Meadow. There are two fenced-in fields dedicated solely to lawn sports. Adjacent to these fields is a clubhouse, which provides storage facilities and bathrooms to holders of lawn bowling permits.

You can obtain a permit for playing lawn sports in Central Park for $30 every year. The permit office is located in the Arsenal building at 64th Street and Fifth Avenue. Office hours are Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. and Saturdays from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m (open Saturdays only in April, May, and June). Permits are non-transferable, so be careful not to lose yours. If you need to have it reissued, you will have to pay an additional fee.

Lawn bowling is played by rolling a series of balls, or "bowls", toward a target. Croquet is played by hitting balls through goals, or "wickets", with mallets. You must bring your own lawn bowling or croquet equipment to play.

You can play lawn sports in Central Park any day of the week from 8 a.m. until nightfall. However, sometimes the fields are reserved for tournaments, which take precedence over individual players. A few groups hold formal lawn bowling games in Central Park, including the New York Lawn Bowling Association. Annual membership for this group is $95 and allows you to participate in numerous club activities.