If you have ever been bowling, you know how much fun you can have with your friends and family. Heck, it can even be fun to go bowling by yourself — uhm — provided you know how scoring works in bowling!
Yes, at the onset, it looks fairly straightforward. If you knock down one pin, you get one point. If you knock down two pins, you get two points, and so on. Simple. And if you add that all up, you get a perfect 300 game. Except, you don’t. So, how points are determined in bowling may not be so simple, right?
Don’t worry; it isn’t as confusing as it sounds. Here is a simple guide to help you keep your score, so you can focus on fine-tuning your game.
How Scoring Works in Bowling
Have you ever noticed those little boxes inside the boxes (like picture-in-picture TV) on your scoresheet? Yes, the ones where they put your “x” in for a strike or “/” in for a spare. Well, those little boxes, and the numbers or x and slashes inside those little boxes is where the magic happens — and how points are determined in bowling.
For this example, we will use a perfect game. The basis of scoring for bowling begins with a point-per-pin scoring system. Each frame is added to the next to get a running score.
When a bowler scores a spare, the score of the next ball thrown is also added to that score. If a bowler scores a spare in the 1st frame, and knocks down nine pins on his next ball, the first frame score is 19.
When a bowler rolls a strike, the score of the next two balls thrown is added to that score. If a bowler scores a strike in the 1st frame, and then rolls a strike with his next ball, followed by another strike, the first frame score is 30 (remember a strike requires adding the next two balls thrown).
If you do that for 10 frames, then 10 multiplied by 30 equals the perfect game! And congratulations!
Score Big at Sparetimes
At Sparetimes, we offer bowling for the entire family, so come on out and have a great time with your entire crew. Learning how to keep score in bowling can also be a great way to teach math, (hint hint) mom and dad. Contact Sparetimes if you have any questions or to check lane availability today.
Categorised in: Bowling