TEN PIN BOWLING

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Ten-pin bowling is a competitive sport and recreation in which a player (the "bowler") rolls a bowling ball down a wooden or "synthetic" (polyurethane) "lane" with the objective of scoring points by knocking down as many "pins" as possible.

The 41.5-inch wide, 60-foot long lane is bordered along it's length by "gutters" - semicircular channels designed to collect errant balls which also pose an obstacle to advanced bowlers, because a straight ball can not be rolled on a regulation lane at the angle required to consistently "carry" (knock down) all ten pins for a strike (most skillful bowlers will roll a more difficult-to-control "hook" ball to overcome this). There is a "foul line" at the end of the lane nearest to the bowler: if any part of a bowler's body touches the lane side of this line after the ball is "delivered" (rolled), it is called a "foul" and no pins knocked over by that delivery are scored (The bowler is allowed a shot at a new "rack" of ten pins if he fouled on the first roll of a frame.). Behind the foul line is an "approach" approximately 15 feet long used to gain speed and leverage on the ball before delivering it. 60 feet from the foul line, where the lane terminates, it is joined to a roughly 24-inch long, 41.5-inch wide surface of durable and impact-resistant material called the "pin deck" where each rack of pins is set.

The bowler is allowed ten frames in which to knock down pins, with each frame being composed of up to two rolls. The tenth frame may be composed of up to three rolls: the bonus roll(s) following a strike or spare in the tenth (sometimes referred to as the "eleventh" and "twelfth" frames) are "fill balls" used only to calculate the score of the mark rolled in the tenth. Bowling has a unique scoring system (see below) that is notoriously confusing to newcomers who attempt to score a game with multiple "marks" (strikes and spares). Bowling scores tend to be unintuitive: if a bowler was to knock down 9 pins with his first shot but miss his spare every frame, he would have a score of 90; if the same bowler were to make all of his spares and knock down 9 with the bonus ball, he would have a score of 190. If he were to carry all ten pins with each shot and strike with each of his bonus balls in the tenth frame, he would have shot a "perfect game" of 300.

Since being brought to the United States from Europe, ten-pin bowling (thought to be descended from the game of skittles) has risen in popularity as its technology has improved. The sport is most popular in the United Kingdom and the United States. Both nations maintain national regulatory organizations that govern the sport's rules and conduct and many of those countries' best players participate in tournaments on both the national and international stage. Because of the rise in popularity, many companies are now making bowling balls and apparel for professionals as well as for recreational bowlers. Bowling has also become more prevalent in the media in recent years, with the continued popularity of bowling publications and the appearance of films centered around the culture of the sport. However, the sport continues to face challenges in garnering mainstream coverage of the athletic aspects of the game.

LINKS and REFERENCE

• Hall, Loretta (Unknown). Bowling Ball - Background, History, Structural Evolution. http://www.madehow.com.

• TBPA (Unknown). A History of Bowling in the United Kingdom. www.gotenpin.co.uk.

• TenpinBowling.org Staff (2006). TenpinBowling.org: All about bowling. TenpinBowling.org.. 

• Masters, James (2005). Skittles, Nine Pins - Online Guide. Tradgames.org.uk. 

• Yahoo Staff (June 6th, 2005). Who invented bowling?. Yahoo.com.. 

• Woloson, Wendy (2002). St. James Encyclopedia of Popular Culture: Bowling. Gale Group.

• Rigali, James. H., Walter, John C. (July, 2005). Afro-Americans in New York Life and History: The integration of the American Bowling Congress: the Buffalo experience. Afro-American Historical Association of the Niagara Frontier, Inc.. 

• Qubica/AMF (2006). AMF Tenpin Bowling Facts. amfbowlingworldcup.com.

• United States Bowling Congress Staff (August 1st, 2005). bowl.com - Official Web Site of the United States Bowling Congress - Playing Rules. United States Bowling Congress.

• British Tenpin Bowling Association Staff (August 1st, 2005). BTBA - Official Web Site of the British Tenpin Bowling Association - Playing Rules. British Tenpin Bowling Association.

• World Tenpin Bowling Association (2006). http://www.wtba.ws/ - WTBA Rules & Regulations. WTBA.

• Pederson, Randy (2006). Professional Bowlers Association: Randy's Rants: Bowling Lingo. Professional Bowlers Association.. 

• Michael (2006). Tenpin Bowling Dot Org: The Game » Glossary: Bowling Lingo. Tenpin Bowling Dot Org..

• Bowler's Club 2005 Staff (January 14th, 2006). Elliot Crosby becomes the youngest player in the UK to shoot 300. Bowler's Club 2005. 

• Jocham, Joyce (March 23rd, 2006). Tang sets new national record as youngest 300 shooter. bowl.com. 

• Godfrey, David (March 29th, 2006). ENGLANDYAC.COM. Young Adults Club.

• Mcdonnell, Arthur J. (2006). The British Tenpin Bowling Association. British Tenpin Bowling Coaching Association.

• UK Sport Staff (2006). UK Sport - Drug Free Sport. UK Sport Association.

• bowlingdigital.com writers (2006). Just Don't Do It. Go Tenpin Magazine.

• Krakowka, Lisa (July, 1998). American Demographics: Bowling throws a strike. Media Central, Inc.. 

• Mintel International Group Ltd (July, 2004). Tenpin Bowling - UK. Mintel International Group Ltd.. 

• Clark, Tom (January 22nd, 2002). USAtoday.com - TV's been great for bowling, but needs to do more. USA today, Inc..

• Clark, Tom (June 2nd, 2004). WHY THE MEDIA HATES BOWLING. Luby publishing, Inc.

• Clark, Tom (October 30th, 2001). USAtoday.com - Bowling's three hurdles to gain respect. USA today, Inc..

UK

• British Tenpin Bowling Association Homepage - official BTBA website

• Tenpin Tour UK - A comprehensive listing of Tenpin Bowling Tournaments in the UK

• Yorkshire BTBA - official website

• Lancashire BTBA - official website

• National Association of Youth Bowling Clubs (UK)

• British Tenpin Bowling Coaching Association

• Tenpin Bowling Proprietors Association, Trade Association for Ten-pin bowling of Britain & Go Tenpin magazine website

USA

• BowlersHQ: Information on Bowling Balls, Bowling Bags, Bowling Shoes and Accessories

• Professional Bowlers Association (PBA) homepage

• United States Bowling Congress (USBC) homepage

• USBC Young American Bowling Alliance (YABA) homepage

• AMF Bowling Worldwide (AMF) homepage

Leading Ten-pin Bowling Magazines, Forums & News sites

• BowlingDigital - The Worlds No. 1 Ten-pin Bowling News site as advertised in Go Tenpin - The Best Bowling Magazine Online.

• 'Go Ten-pin' - Britain's Premier Ten-pin Bowling Magazine by the BTBA - The Worlds Best Bowling Magazine In Print & Online.

• BTBA Yorkshire Area Association Forum

• Bowlers Journal Online Second to the Best Bowling Magazine In Print & Online

• Bowlers Journal Forum

• Bowling This Month magazine

• Australia's Leading bowling forum

• The World of Tenpins - Bowling Columns in USA Today by Tom Clark

Other

• Bowlinglinks all over the World, sorted by categories

• Tenpin Bowling Australia Limited

• The Incredible World of Bowling Noir by William Preston Robertson

• PBA Tour Details

• World Tournement Details

• World Tournament Guide

• Commonwealth Tenpin Bowling Federation

• EBPA - European Bowling Proprietors Association

• Fédération Internationale des Quilleurs (FIQ) homepage

• Tenpin Bowling Association of South Africa

• Bowling Bombshells Screen Saver

• Ten-pin Bowling glossary

• Ten Pin Bowling Dot Org

• Free Online Bowling Game

• BBC Ten-pin history

• BBC's Children Ten-pin Bowling

• [2] about Guinness World Record holder Paeng Nepumoceno

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