Bowling Scoring Rules

Everybody loves a fun night at the bowling alley, but not everyone knows how to keep score. While automatic scorers do most of the work for us, keeping mental score is a fun mathematical challenge for kids and adults, and it's a great way to stay focused on the game.

  1. The Game

    • A regulation bowling game consists of 10 frames. During each frame, the bowler has two chances to knock down 10 pins, except in the 10th frame in which the bowler can earn bonus shots. Knocking down all 10 pins with the first ball is a strike. Knocking some down on the first ball and the rest on the second is called a spare. Knocking all 10 pins down with the second ball is a spare, and leaving pins standing is called an open frame.

    Scoring Strikes

    • Strikes and spares boost the player's score with bonuses. A player who rolls a strike earns a score of 10 pins for that frame, plus the number of pins he or she knocks down with the next two balls. For example, a player who rolls a strike in the first frame and nine pins in the second receives 19 pins for the first frame and has a running total of 28 pins after the second frame.

    Scoring Spares

    • Spares also carry a bonus. A player who rolls a spare receives 10 pins for that frame, plus the number of pins he or she knocks down with the next roll. For example, a player who scores a spare in the first frame and rolls a seven on the first ball in the next frame receives 17 pins for the first frame and has a running total of 24 pins.

    Consecutive Strikes

    • Consecutive strikes cause the score to skyrocket. Opening the game with a turkey--three strikes in a row--illustrates how many pins just a few strikes in a row can produce. For example, consider a player who opens the game with five strikes. The player receives 30 pins for the first frame--10 pins for the strike, then 10 pins each for the next two--30 for the second and 30 for the third, for a running total of 90 in the third frame.

    10th Frame

    • Each frame offers the player two chances to knock down the pins, except for the 10th frame. A player who throws a strike in the 10th frame earns two bonus shots. A player who throws a spare in the 10th frame earns one more shot. It is possible to throw three strikes in the 10th frame.

    Perfect Game

    • Because of the 10th-frame rule, it's possible to throw 12 strikes in a game. This produces a score of 300 and is referred to as a perfect game.

    Variation

    • In the Northeast region of the United States, candle-pin bowling is a popular tradition with a slightly different scoring system. In candle-pin bowling, the player is allowed three shots per frame--called a "box." Knocking down all 10 pins with the first ball is still a strike and knocking them down with two is still a spare, but knocking all 10 down with three balls is called a "10" and carries no scoring bonus.