Equipment Used in Bowling

Bowling is one of the most popular sports in the world. In bowling, players attempt to score the most points by rolling a ball along a flat surface in order to knock down objects called pins. There are several types of bowling games, but the official, and most popular, bowling game is ten-pin bowling.

In ten-pin bowling, players use a 16-pound, 8.5-inch diameter bowling ball to knock over ten pins at the end of a 60-foot long bowling lane. Usually, two players would compete against each other in three sets, with 10 rounds on each set.

Bowling equipment differs for bowling players and bowling center operators.

Bowling players have the following equipment:

Bowling balls - A round ball made from rubber, urethane, plastic, reactive resin, or a combination of these materials. Ten-pin bowling balls have three drilled holes in them - one for the ring and middle finger, and one for the thumb.

Bowling bags - Carries and protects one or more bowling balls.

Bowling accessories - Non-slip grip cream, grip sacks, bowling ball maintenance tools, hand and wrist grip supports, towels, gloves, bowling ball cleaning equipment and supplies

Bowling shoes - Narrow shoes with a very smooth sole

Bowling clothes - Bowling games usually take place in air-conditioned bowling centers. Casual attire can be worn.

Compared to bowling players, bowling center operators have different bowling equipment. Their most important concern in a bowling center is the bowling alleys. A bowling alley has different parts and equipment that require operation and maintenance.

These are the equipment required in bowling alleys:

Bowling lane - A long plane where a bowling ball rolls towards the pins. Long wooden boards are joined together to form a 75-foot long and 3.5-foot wide lane. The wooden plane is very smooth. It requires maintenance by cleaning and polishing.

Bowling machine - A device that places and rearranges the pins.

Bowling ball retriever - A device that retrieves the ball after every shot, and returns it, via a tunnel, to the player at the other end of the alley.

Players' area - At the end of the tunnel is a ball-sorting mechanism. A hand blow dryer may also be installed at the bowling ball sorter. A computer and display monitors show players the game points. The players would have seats and a table. A rack with extra bowling balls would usually be placed beside the seats.