Play 5 Pin Bowling

Learning to play 5-pin bowling is actually not that much different than the more traditional American version of ten-pin bowling. Of course, differences do exist. Some of the biggest being that the ball, pins and lane are much smaller and you are only trying to knock down five pins instead of ten. Nevertheless, the basics between the two games are very similar and if you have any experience with ten-pin bowling, it will not take you too long to learn to play five-pin bowling.  

Things you'll need:

• Small bowling ball
• Five small bowling pins
• A place to play

1. Major differences between five-pin bowling and ten-pin bowling. The first thing you have to get used to when you play five-pin bowling is the size of the equipment. Unlike, ten-pin bowling, the ball is only about two or three pounds, has no finger holes and is the size of a softball. In addition, the pins, which are smaller in relation to the ball, do not just simply fall over when they are struck. They are designed to move and wobble, making knocking them much harder to fall over.
2. The frame. In traditional ten-pin bowling, the bowlers get two attempts per frame to knock down all the pins; however, when you play five-pin bowling, you get three attempts to knock down all the pins.
3. The scoring. The scoring in five-pin bowling is also very unique. Not every pin is worth the same amount. The three rear pins are worth two points, the two pins in front of those are each worth three and the head pin is worth five points, adding up to a total of fifteen points.
4. Scoring a strike or a spare. Recording a strike or a spare in five-pin bowling is somewhat similar to ten-pin bowling. If you knock down all you pins on your first throw, you get a total of fifteen points. In addition to these fifteen points, you get to add the score of your next to rolls. So a bowler has the potential of scoring forty five points in a single frame. If you knock down all the pins by your second throw, you will get fifteen points, plus you will add the score of you next throw.
5. Other basics to know. In five-pin bowling, the maximum score, also known as a perfect game, is 450 points. Five-pin bowling has a lot of strategy. For instance, if you fail to knock down all the pins on a single throw, you still want to end up with a good score. Because the pins have different values, you will then have to choose which are the best pins to aim at.