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Bowling Terms


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ABC
This stands for the American Bowling Congress. ABC was the official rule-making body of tenpin bowling in the United States. It was the men's bowling association. In 2005, this association was dissolved and became part of the USBC which incorporates the men's, women's and youth associations.
Absentee
See Blind
Action
Motion of the pins caused by the bowler's technique; generally, the combination of accuracy, rotation (also see), and other factors, causing pin motion which is horizontal, rather than vertical, since a horizontally spinning pin covers more of the lane.
Address
Bowler's starting position. (stance)
All the way
Finishing a game from any point with nothing but strikes. AKA: Off the sheet
Alley
Slang: bowling establishment, ie a bowling center, the playing surface or lane.
Anchor
Last man to roll in team competition. Usually the best bowler; i.e., the bowler most likely to get a strike in the "foundation frame" (the ninth frame) and most likely to "strike out." The term originated in 1913 when a bowler (Hans Arfsparger) for the Anchor Brewing team in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, bowled in the fifth position and struck out 94 times in succession.
Anchorman
This is last bowler in your lineup. It is often where you place your best bowler on the team so that he/she knows what needs to be bowled to win.
Angle of Entry
The direction the ball travels when going into the 1-3 pocket for right handed bowlers and the 1-2 for left handed bowlers.
Apple
Bowler who fails to come through in a clutch situation. (choke)
Approach
The approach is the area that is at least 15 feet long on which a bowler uses to walk to the foul line.
Armswing
This is the arc of the arm that is used to deliver the bowling ball down the bowling lane.
Arrows
Sighting targets imbedded in the lane to help player align start position.
Automatic foul detector
Light beam at the foul line which sounds an alarm if the bowler's foot crosses it. Penalty for doing so is loss of pins for that ball; the bowler shoots at a new rack of ten pins (which counts as a spare if all are knocked down).
Automatic Pinsetter
First used in the 1940s, the original editions took note of the pins left, swept the entire area, and reset the pins for the spare. This invention is credited for the great bowling boom of the 1950s; the inventor received $1 million from AMF.
Axis Leverage
Drilling or layout pattern with the center of gravity (c.g.) located on the bowler's positive axis point (P.A.P.) and the pin in the leverage position.
Axis of Rotation
(Example, 0, 45, and 90 degrees) This is a measure of the direction of the initial rotation on the ball with respect to the lane. It is a measurement of the angle between the initial spin axis and the foul line running across the lane. A zero degree axis of rotation is all forward roll. The rotation on the ball is in the direction of the forward travel. The rotation will help keep the ball in the initial direction. The ball will not hook very much. It will roll out early. Therefore, a bowler with this style will need balls drilled to go long. A 90-degree axis of rotation is most likely all side roll. The rotation is perpendicular to the initial direction. The rotation is trying to make the ball hook at a 90-degree angle to the initial direction. This gives the ball more potential to hook. This style causes the ball to skid further down the lane and then hook more. A bowler with this style will most likely need balls drilled to hook earlier; such as axis weight, or pins closer to their axis.
Axis Tilt
(Example, a spinner versus a full roller) This is a measure of the angle of the initial spin axis to a horizontal plane. A full roller or high track style would have little or no axis tilt. The initial spin axis would be parallel or close to parallel with the lane surface. One rotation of the ball would cover the major diameter of the ball. A spinner would have an initial spin axis tilted up from the lane. The ball track would be far away from the thumb and finger holes. One rotation of the ball would cover a much smaller diameter than other bowlers. The spinner style will get the ball further down the lane before it hooks.
Axis Weight
Axis weight is a drilling pattern designed to produce little or no track flare and get the ball into an early roll with little backend reaction. Axis weight has the pin located on or near the bowler's PAP. The core is positioned along the initial spin axis. This places the core in a stable position. The ball will be initially rotating about the minimum RG axis, which is a stable core position. Therefore, it will continue to rotate about this axis creating no track flare. This reduces the backend reaction. Since the ball is rotating about the low RG axis it is easier for the bowler to rotate it off their hand which gets the ball into an earlier roll.



 

 



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