Close
Call: 800-667-0097
  • Customer Service
    • Contact Us
    • Find a Rep

All About the Game of Bowling: How to Play, History, and Terms to Know

In ten-pin bowling, players roll a bowling ball down a wooden lane toward a set of pins that are set up in a triangular formation. The goal is to knock down all of the pins with the ball. Players get up to two tries per frame, and they score points based on the number of pins they knock down. After ten frames, whoever has the most points wins.

Bowling is an ancient game, dating back many centuries. Bowling balls have been found in Egyptian graves from 3200 B.C.E., though written evidence of the game did not emerge until 1366. In this year, England's King Edward III issued a decree banning bowling because it was distracting his soldiers from archery practice. Europeans brought bowling with them to America during the colonial era, and it became quite popular. The world's first indoor bowling alley opened in New York City in 1840; before then, it was an outdoor game. This city was also where the American Bowling Congress was formed in 1895. This organization was created to standardize the rules of bowling, which further contributed to the game's spread.

Interest in bowling peaked in the mid-20th century, but the game is still played by millions of people all over the world today. It's also been considered for inclusion in the Olympics, although the closest it has come so far is being featured as a demonstration sport at the 1988 Summer Olympics in South Korea.

 

Bowling Terminology

  • Anchor: The last bowler in a bowling team's lineup, often the strongest player
  • Approach: The area behind the foul line where the bowler takes steps before releasing the ball
  • Arrows: Triangle-shaped markings on the lane used to help bowlers line up their rolls
  • Average: A bowler's typical score, calculated by dividing the total number of points scored by the number of games played
  • Backup Ball: A roll that curves in the opposite direction from the bowler's natural hook
  • Brooklyn: A ball that crosses over to the opposite pocket from the side where it was thrown from
  • Channels: The gutters on either side of the lane where the ball falls if it misses the pins
  • Clean Game: A game with no open frames
  • Coverstock : The outside covering of a bowling ball
  • Delivery: The act of rolling the ball down the lane
  • Foul: Stepping over the foul line during delivery, resulting in zero points for that roll
  • Frame: A scoring unit consisting of up to two rolls. There are ten frames in a game.
  • Gutter Ball: A ball that falls into the gutter before hitting any pins
  • Handicap: Additional pins added to a bowler's score to level the playing field when playing a more skilled opponent
  • Hook : A ball that curves toward the pins, typically due to spin
  • House Ball : A bowling ball provided by the bowling alley for general use
  • Kegler: A term for a bowler, derived from the German word for bowling pin
  • Lane : The long, narrow playing surface on which the ball is rolled
  • Leave: The pins still standing after the first ball of a frame
  • Open Frame: A frame in which the bowler fails to knock down all ten pins with two balls
  • Perfect Game : A game in which the bowler scores 12 consecutive strikes, totaling 300 points
  • Pocket : The area between the 1 and 3 pins for right-handers and the 1 and 2 pins for left-handers, where the ball is most likely to result in a strike
  • Release: The moment the ball leaves the bowler's hand
  • Scratch: Bowling without a handicap
  • Span: The amount of distance between the thumb and finger holes on a bowling ball
  • Spare : Knocking down all remaining pins with the second ball of a frame
  • Split: A situation where two or more pins remain standing and are separated by a significant distance
  • Strike : Knocking down all ten pins with the first ball of a frame
  • Turkey : Three consecutive strikes

 

Additional Resources on Bowling Rules, Techniques, and Strategy

 

Learn about the author: Nic Breedlove