07
Bowling Study Guide
Terms
Alley - general name applied to the lane on which the ball is rolled
Approach - the technique which the bowler uses to get to the foul line also the floor area up to the foul line
Gutter - the semi-circular grooves on each side of the alley, also called the channel
Gutter ball – a ball that is thrown down the channel and receives no points, also an
open frame
Deadwood - the pins knocked down by the ball and lying on the alley
Double - two consecutive strikes
Foul - to touch or go beyond the foul line when delivering the ball no pins
will be scored on that ball
Frame - a bowler’s term to knock down ten pins with one or two balls – 1/10
of a game
Head Pin - the number one pin
Line - game of ten frames
Lofting - throwing the ball far out on the alley before it lands
Mark - making a strike or spare
Open frame- knocking down pins but not getting a strike, spare or throwing ball into
gutter (score sheet can be added immediately to all open frames)
Sleeper - a hidden pin
Spare - knocking down remaining pins with the second ball in a frame –
spare = 10 points plus the next ball thrown
Strike pocket - the space between 1-3 pins for right handed bowlers and 1-2
pins for left handed bowlers
Split - two or more pins standing with a space between them - head
pin must be down for split
Spot Bowling - using the spots or arrows on the lane for direction or aim
Pin Bowling - using the bowling pins for direction or aim
Turkey - three strikes in a row
Types of Shots
Brooklyn - a crossover ball that hits to the left of the head pin. The ball hits
the 1 - 2 pocket instead of the 1 - 3 pocket (right handed)
Hook - a ball that that travels down the alley in a straight line, then hooks or
turns sharply to the left (right handed)
Curve - a ball released with spin near the center of the alley, and widely arcs out to
left (right handed)
Straight ball – a ball that is released straight towards the head pin
Etiquette
1.
2.
Never walk in front of a bowler addressing the pins.
Respect the priority of the bowler to right or left - do not start your approach
until he/she has completed their delivery.
Be ready to deliver the ball when it is your turn to avoid delays.
Do not deliver the ball until the pin setter is completely up and ready. Hitting
the pin setter while loading pin and not set will damage the setter and result is
student being responsible for damage done.
Do not loft the ball.
Stay behind the foul line. Bowling lanes are very slick and dangerous to walk
on.
Bowling shoes with socks must be worn at all times
Be respectful of the facility and equipment. Return balls to the rack and shoes
to counter area after bowling (some facilities will give special instructions).
Clean up all areas used.
Encourage your teammates and be respectful!
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10.
Scoring
1.
If a bowler knocks down less than ten (10) pins on two (2) balls, they add the
actual pin count to the previous frame total.
A strike is worth ten (10) points plus a bonus of the next two (2) balls thrown.
A spare is worth ten (10) points plus a bonus of the next one (1) ball thrown.
A gutter ball is marked with a dash – (automatic scores put in a zero), a miss
on the lane is marked with dash and a circle around it.
The score in bowling is cumulative. If a strike or spare is made, you will have
to wait until the next one or two balls before adding the score (for that frame).
It is wise to keep a running total for each frame to prevent addition errors.
In the tenth frame there are three boxes. If you get a mark (strike or spare)
with the first two balls, then you need to bowl the bonus ball(s) to complete
the frame.
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Sample game
1
9
2
-
9
3
x
29
9+20
5
4
/
45
29+16
6
5
2
53
9
6
/
68
45 + 8 53
+15
5
7
-
/
X
93
120
68 + 5 73 +
20
93 +
27
73
8
8
9
10
7 / 5
140
155
X
120 +
20
140 +
15