When she won the event last year, Bateman was partnered by Dunedin sevens representative Sharon McCaw.
Bateman (68) won the New Zealand pairs title in 2005 and represented New Zealand in the transtasman tournament a year later. She has won 28 Northland titles.
She skipped her composite Northland four to the quarterfinals of the national championships in New Plymouth in January. They were beaten by World Cup singles champion Jo Edwards' composite team that went on to win the title.
Former Black Jack Sandra Keith (Mid-Canterbury) is back and will be aiming for her fourth Dunedin Casino Classic Pairs title. She won the first three events from 2012 to 2014.
Keith won the world champion of champion's singles title in Cyprus in 2012 and two bronze medals at the Asia and Pacific championships last year.
Christine Buchanan (Queenstown), an accurate draw bowler, was the lead for Keith in 2014 and for Rae Hammond (Auckland) a year later. She will be a skip this year.
Buchanan, a ninth year bowler, has won 22 Central Otago titles and two New Zealand open titles in Auckland.
Other New Zealand champions competing this week include Gloria Shine and Dale Bourke (Dunedin), Shona Mann (North East Valley), Serena Matthews (Mid Canterbury), Margaret O'Connor and Lynley O'Callaghan (Central Otago), Wynette McLachlan (South Otago) and Dale Rayner (Wellington), who won the pairs title in New Plymouth this year.
This is the sixth year the two-day tournament has been held and it is regarded as the top women's bowls tournament in New Zealand offering prize money.
The event is organised by the North East Valley Bowling Club and has a purse of $6000, the highest for a women's bowls tournament in New Zealand. The winner's share is $2200.
The partners for the national champions will be decided when the 48 players are drawn by lot into teams at the Dunedin Casino tonight. Twenty-four of the invited players are designated as skips and the other half of the field are leads.
The tournament begins tomorrow and the final will be played at the North East Valley green on Friday afternoon from 1.30pm.
