Basic Scorekeeping

Frame

There are ten frames in one game. You have two chances to knock down the ten pins in each frame (see the explanations for strike and spare). Note that the tenth frame rewards you with a final bonus ball if you convert your spare (or make two strikes). You can thus throw nine strikes in the first nine frames and, if you get another two in the tenth, the bonus ball means the most strikes you can have in one game is twelve. This is called a perfect game..

Spare

Getting all ten pins down with one ball is not as easy as it seems! So, if you leave one or more pins standing after your first delivery, you get a second chance to knock all the pins down, this is your "spare" shot. If you knock all remaining pins down on the second shot you have made your spare. A spare is marked on the scoresheet with a "/". It takes skill to consistently make spares and the scoring system rewards you by adding in the pins from the next ball into the current frame. See also split.

Strike

When the bowler knocks down all ten pins with the first delivery of the ball it is called a strike. Clearly your score goes up by ten, but like a spare, you get a bonus - your next two deliveries are added to the score. Stringing strikes together will raise your score dramatically (See turkey). Marked on the scoresheet with an "X".