Walker (64) has been a key member of the Dunedin inter-centre team for the past 28 years and his dumping was a surprise.
There was one exception when he was dropped for one year after a dispute between his Fairfield club and Bowls Dunedin.
"The selectors may have forced my hand," Walker told the Otago Daily Times. "I was thinking of standing down myself, because I was blocking the progression of a younger player."
Walker is undecided about his future in representative bowls and will not make a decision until he has talked with the Bowls Dunedin selection panel.
"Bowls has been so much of my life and I have made a huge commitment to the sport," he said. "I'm disappointed that I have been removed from the team."
Walker still intends to play in PBA bowls at the Westpac Indoor Bowls Stadium during the winter, in invitation events around the country and in national championships.
"You haven't heard the last of Ken Walker yet," he said.
The chairman of the Bowls Dunedin selection panel, Bob Crawford, said Walker was dropped because his recent form was not up to his usual standard.
"He has not performed that well in centre open events and did not have a very good nationals," Crawford said. "His form has slipped.
"It was a hard decision but we had to look to the future and bring younger players into the team."
Walker, who is playing in the Burnside pairs at the weekend, disputed his form lapse and outlined his record over the past 12 months.
This included being runner-up in the national singles in January last year, finishing third-equal in the Burnside pairs a few weeks later, winning three of his five pairs games in the inter-centre event at Balclutha, representing New Zealand in the PBA Trans Tasman event at Tweed Heads in Australia and finishing third in the PBA events for the Welsh and Scottish singles.
He began the summer season in style by finishing in the top eight at the Speight's Invitation Singles at the North East Valley green.
It is a 12-month record that is unmatched by any member of the Dunedin team.
There are two other changes to the Dunedin men's team that lost the regional event to South Otago last season.
Mark Watt is playing in the Australian open championships and is not available, and Paul Girdler now lives in Sydney.
They have been replaced by Craig McCaw (Kaikorai), who will lead the pair, with Nigel Wright (Leith) at skip.
McCaw gets into the team because he won his three games at the Northern Quadrangular event before Christmas.
Alistair Keith (Taieri) will skip the four and Regan Larkin (Andersons Bay) will be lead in the four.
Keith skipped the Taieri four that almost beat fours champion Ali Forsyth's Composite team in the semifinals of the national championships.
Former international Jim Scott (North East Valley), who reached the finals of the fours at the national championships, was another bowler passed over by the selectors.
Former international Mike Kernaghan (Kaikorai), who won the Bowls Dunedin open singles before Christmas, was not available.
There is only one change in the women's team that finished runner-up in the national final at Palmerston North last season.
The promising Cindi Ewart (Outram), who has won nine Bowls Dunedin titles, replaces Malia Ellison (Andersons Bay), who died last month. Ewart will be second in the four in a team that is skipped by Janet Swallow.
Sue Hodges (Outram), the singles player last year, will skip the pair with club-mate Mary Stevenson as lead.
The singles player will be Carolyn Crawford (St Clair), who reached the last eight in the singles at the national championships and won her three singles games at the Northern Quadrangular in Timaru before Christmas.
The women's regional event will be held in Balclutha and the men's in Invercargill on February 5.
INTER-CENTRE BOWLS
- Dunedin teams
• Men: Singles, Shaun Scott (NEV); pairs, Nigel Wright (Leith), Craig McCaw (Palmerston and Kaikorai); fours, Regan Larkin (Andersons Bay), Dennis Leeden (Wakari), Ross Brown (St Clair), Alistair Keith (Taieri).
• Women: Singles, Carolyn Crawford (St Clair); pairs, Mary Stevenson (Outram), Sue Hodges (Outram); fours, Jenny Dyhrberg (Taieri), Cindi Ewart (Outram), Beth Brown (Taieri), Janet Swallow (Taieri).
