If you’re an avid ten-pin bowling fan and a player like myself, I’m sure you have always wondered what five-pin bowling is and how its scoring system works, so I decided to do some research to find the answer.
So how does five-pin scoring work? Five-pin scoring works by assigning each of the five pins with different values, depending on their placement in the V-formation at the end of the lane. All five pins have a total of 15 points, and the player receives 15 points if he strikes down all the pins on his first try.
Thus, the perfect score in five-pin bowling is 450 points that requires a player to complete 12 consecutive pin-down strikes in a game without earning a foul.
What Is Five-Pin Bowling?
Five-pin bowling is another kind of bowling where the balls are significantly smaller with no finger holes. This indoor game aims to bowl the ball down the lane and hit all the pins down. These five pins are arranged in V-formation at the end of the lane.
To play, a player needs to hit or strike the pins. The pins are midsized between a duckpin and a ten-pin, and each has a thick rubber band around its middle to make them move farther when hit and broaden the targets.
Five-pin bowling is considered a challenging sport. Aside from a smaller ball that does all the work and fewer pins to strike, bowlers often need to rely on their precision and consistency more than the striking power.
Nonetheless, it is often the preferred bowling game for women and children who sometimes have difficulty launching a ten-pin ball at speed because of its size and weight. This is because a five-pin ball is a hand-sized, no-hole ball, making it easier to roll.
How to Score in Five-Pin Bowling?
The scoring for five-pin bowling is different compared to regular ten-pin bowling. This is because each pin has different corresponding points, and scores are given based on the pin’s hit.
For example, the center pin is worth 5 points; two side pins are worth 3 points each, and 2 points for the outside pins. Thus, the total points in a turn, based on the V-formation, is 15.
With five-pin bowling, each bowler is given up to three attempts to knock down all five pins. This sport can be played by up to four players, playing one at a time in ten turns. The player who obtains the highest score after the tenth round wins the game.
A player would earn a spare if it took two balls to knock down all the pins. When a player has a spare, they are allowed to roll 2 balls instead of 3 on the next turn. On the other hand, a player with a strike has one chance to roll the ball on the next turn.
What Is the Perfect Score in Five-Pin Bowling?
The perfect score in five-pin bowling is 450 points. To get the perfect score, a player must earn 12 successive strikes without a foul. A strike occurs when you knock down all five pins with one bowl, earning you 15 points.
A player who strikes down all five pins on the first ball gets 15 points. Points are doubled for a bowler who strikes in 2 consecutive throws. Three successive strikes within the game earn the player 24 points on the turn where the first strike was made. This is what leads to a perfect game consisting of 12 rounds for a player rather than 10.
What Are the Rules When Playing Five-Pin Bowling?
Five-pin bowling is a game that can be challenging to master; however, the rules are pretty straightforward. The game is played indoors on a polished lane where each player stands, with five pins placed at the end of each lane. The bowler will then attempt to knock out the pins.
The game is played in 10 turns or frames wherein each turn allows a bowler to hurl three bowls in succession in an attempt to knock out all 5 pins.
If the player clears the pins on the first throw, a “strike” is given. On the other hand, if the pins are all knocked down on the second attempt, the player earns a “spare.”
If you hit the center pin, you’ll earn 5 points and the other pins value between 2 and 3 points. You get a foul when your ball leaves the lane. A player receives a 15 point penalty from his score every time there is a foul. This process repeats up to the end of the 10th frame.
What Is the Difference Between Five-Pin Bowling and Ten-Pin Bowling?
Ten-pin bowling is considered the original bowling game, and five-pin bowling was invented to address the challenge of playing ten-pin bowling.
For example, five-pin bowling is easier to handle since balls are smaller and lighter. It’s also easier to play where children and women can enjoy the game with fun and ease.
Moreover, the pins are valued with the same score of 1 point each for a ten-pin game, while five-pin bowling has varying points of 5, 3, and 2.
Five-pin bowling allows a player to compensate for a missed pin on the next strike, minimizing loss after a wrong bowl. This strategy is not possible in ten-pin bowling.
Brief History of Five Pin Bowling
Five-pin bowling is an indoor sport that was invented by Thomas F. Ryan in 1909. It was devised in Toronto, Ontario, to address customer complaints on ten-pin bowling.
This is because many weren’t happy playing ten-pin bowling. After all, it was considered too strenuous and time-consuming. As a response, Ryan devised a new set of rules and mechanics to make the game easier and more enjoyable.
To do this, he reduced the size of the pins by 75% by asking his father to whittle down the pins, cut them from ten to five, and used hand-sized hard rubber balls, giving way to what is now known as five-pin bowling.
Since then, five-pin bowling grew and became a popular game in the Canadian region. It evolved with an explosion in the number of league bowlers. In fact, there was an estimated 120,000 league bowlers in Toronto alone in the 1950s.
After a decade, various five-pin bowling associations came to govern the sport. In 1963, a national youth bowling program in Canada had over 2 million registered five-pin bowlers. Today, five-pin bowling remains a favorite activity for Canadians of all ages and playing abilities.
Is Five-Pin Bowling Only Played in Canada?
Although some attempts were made to introduce the game in other parts of the world, five-pin bowling is currently only played in Canada, aside from several Canadian military outposts like Germany and Scotland.
Five-pin bowling is a Canadian sport that inspires national pride. It is a game that is historically and culturally significant to all Canadians. Nevertheless, bowling centers in Toronto offer both five-pin and ten-pin lanes and are open 24 hours with fast food outlets and big, full-service bars.
This sport was even recognized as a Heritage Sport in Canada in 2008 and celebrated its 100th anniversary in 2009. Nowadays, it continues to hold an important place in Canadian sports history. Many events and tournaments run all across the country, with two major events each year.
Nevertheless, even if you are not a pro or competitive player, you can still enjoy the game in many places that offer five-pin bowling as a leisure sport. In fact, one bowling alley in Toronto even has all 24 lanes set exclusively for five-pin bowling!
