"My grandfather and uncle played and my brothers Chris and Mike started playing in 1993," he said. "When I was 10, I was old enough to start playing."
He joined his brothers, and father Bob, in the Bester family team that won the Ontario championship fours in 2001 and 2006. In the latter year they also won the Canadian title.
Bester teamed with his father to win the Ontario and Canadian pair's title in 2004 and 2005.
His brother Mike and his father have also represented Canada at bowls.
He became a celebrity in his home town of Hanover (population 7000) when he won the World Bowls pairs title with Keith Roney, at Ayr in 2004. The town fathers named a street after him called Ryan Bester Way.
Bester is one of the most exciting bowlers in the world, mainly because of his searing drive, which demoralises so many opponents with its speed and unerring accuracy.
"I like to drive and especially on New Zealand greens, when it starts to get a bit windy. It's quite easy to pick a bowl out with a drive."
He made his international debut at the 2002 Commonwealth Games at the age of 17.
What did it feel like to become world champion? "It was an indescribable feeling," Bester said.
"You only get one crack every four years."
The next World Bowls in 2012 will be at Melbourne and this will suit Bester who is now living in Australia and plays professional bowls for the Cabramatta Club with New Zealanders Peter Belliss, Rowan Brassey, Gary Lawson and Andrew Todd.
"I'm applying for a visa to stay in Australia," he said. "There is money there and the competitive bowls is some of the best in the world."
He has made his mark in Australian bowls and won this year's Australian Open pairs with New Zealand's double world champion Gary Lawson.
There are 17,000 competitive bowlers in Canada, but the short Canadian summer restricts bowls to four months a year.
His immediate goal is to perform well in the Australian premier league in Sydney. He will also be defending his fours title at the New Zealand championships at Auckland in January.
• Ryan Bester - At a glance
Age: 23.
Occupation: Professional bowler.
Home town: Hanover, Canada.
Records. -
World Bowls: Gold medal in pairs 2004; bronze medal in singles 2008.
Commonwealth Games: Bronze medal in singles 2006.
Asia and Pacific championships: Gold in singles 2005; silver in singles 2007.
Atlantic Rim championships: Gold medal in singles 2007.
Canadian titles: Two pairs, one fours.
NZ championships: Gold medal in fours 2008.
