The 2013 tournament saw the introduction of the shot clock, used for the first time at the World Championships. It was previously trialled at the 2012 Scottish International Open and has been used in Australia. Each player is allowed 30 seconds to play their shot, and if they run out of time, the hooter will sound and their bowl is removed. However, players can use up to four time-outs in a match - which resets the clock to 60 seconds - and are given an extra time-out if the match goes to a tie-break set.[5]
