Smith (45) was a double World Bowls champion in Christchurch in 2008 and was the only New Zealand bowler to come home with a medal from the Commonwealth Games in Delhi.
But she is now feeling the strain of constant bowls at the top level.
''I want to take time out, relax and have a holiday from bowls,'' she said after winning her first two games of singles at the New Zealand bowls championships in Dunedin yesterday.
''I want a bit of down time for myself so I can recharge the batteries.
I'm looking forward to taking the winter off bowls.''
During that time Smith will work on her fitness levels and try to iron out a few flaws that have developed in her game.
''I don't have the consistency in timing that I need. I want to be able to pick out what I'm doing wrong.''
The break worked for her old mate and pairs partner Jo Edwards, who took 18 months away from the sport and has come back rejuvenated.
They are playing together in the pairs for the first time in nearly three years since they won the World Bowls title in Christchurch and competed in the Hong Kong pairs.
The big year for Smith, and New Zealand bowls, is next year when World Bowls will be held in Adelaide.
Smith and partner Charlie Edgarton have a gardening business in Nelson.
She is also studying for a diploma of applied fitness at the Nelson-Marlborough Institute of Technology.
Smith showed some good touches on the first day of the sudden-death women's singles on the Mornington artificial green.
In the first game she beat Michelle Fallow (Logan Park) 21-10 and then had a comfortable 21-5 win against Sue Way (Northern).
The scores were level at 10-10 after 13 ends before Smith put her stamp on the game by scoring 11 shots on the next four ends with a four, two, four and one.
''I had to keep playing well and not go off the boil. I tried to apply constant pressure and not allow her back in.''
Way had a comfortable 21-10 win in her first game against Carrie-Jane Hargrave (Beckenham).
But she met her match against the world champion.
Way scored two on the first end but it was downhill from then as Smith scored 18 shots on the next eight ends to lead 18-3 after nine ends.
Smith played a world-class shot on the ninth end after Wray nestled on the jack with her toucher.
A carefully-weighted shot by Smith nudged out the shot bowl.
Token resistance by Way extended the game by four more ends before Smith won by drawing the shot when she was three down on the head.
Jane Anderson (Queenstown) came back strongly in the second half to win her second-round game against Trish Marr (St Clair) 21-18.
She trailed Marr 15-7 after 14 ends but took the lead for the first time on the 20th end, and drew the winning shot on the 24th end.
