I just want to know what you guys/ladies think of the handicap being 100% of 230. I bowl on Tuesday nights. Through hard work and dedication to this sport of bowling, I have increased my average to 230. I am the only person in the league over a 220 average. I am 1 of 2 over 215. The league's average as a whole is only 187. I forgot to mention the league does not play just by team score (handicap score after each game) but also individual team members handicap games. So the team can win up to 4 single points (1 from each team member) and two team points for each individual game, which means up to 18 pts could be scored every night.

Last night, I compared my individual scratch games (178,202, and 278) to how everyone shot and noticed I would not stand a chance even had I thrown average the first two games. There were many handicap games of 250+, 270+, 290+ and a few 310+. To be precise, there were 40 handicap games over 260. So in other words and correct me if I am wrong, if I mess up (not strike) more than 2 times, I do not stand a chance in the league. It sounds like a sandbaggers format to me. Tell me what you guys think.

It's a handicap geared league.  Probably why there are no good bowlers in it.

My Wednesday league is 100% of 220 I just deal with it.  I bow that league and 2 other scratch leagues, it doesn't bother me.

I'm decent, competitive, and know how to roll the ball well, it's all I need.

90% of the highest average or just above is what you want to look at for any type of handicap event.

Our men's league uses 90% of 235. Generally we don't have anyone over 230 as carry sucks at that house. Highest averages end up being in the 215-225 range except for a couple seasons that had 230

 Who here started bowling because they could make money at it?

 Me, I started bowling because it was fun. NOT because it was a lucrative activity, but simply for the fun of it. It was never about the money, it was always about the fun and personal challenge.

Hell, we used to bowl for trophies, had a banquet for the entire league at the end, and everybody was happy with getting their dinner paid for.

 Back then, if you wanted to make money at it, you either bowled tournaments, or you bowled "pot" games (I believe some called it "action"). If you wanted to make a living at it, you turned professional where the real money was.

 MONEY. That has done more to kill bowling than anything else. When the "average" league bowlers focus changed from having fun at a social outing, to futilely donating money to a useless cause and getting nothing in return, the situation we are in today became inevitable.

 STOP MAKING AN ACTIVITY DESIGNED TO BE FUN INTO SOMETHING ELSE!

 Turning bowling league into a financial thing is the worst thing that ever happened.

 Forget the money, forget the handicap, and forget all the other bull***t too, just go bowling and try to remember why you started in the first place.

 BECAUSE IT'S FREAKING FUN!

I don't advocate what i going to write here. What if everybody got handicap...that is 100% of 300

I don't advocate what i going to write here. What if everybody got handicap...that is 100% of 300

Since most leagues set the handicap to be based on either what the highest average is or over it, that is what it ends up as anyways.  (everybody gets handicap)

You are correct Juggernaut but this is the money league. The other 6 nights of the week are fun leagues, family leagues, cruise leagues, youth leagues, senior leagues, and casual mixed leagues.

Back to the Topic at hand. Politics. Politics became involved whenever the league secretary, which btw is a serious sandbagger, realized I was on a team. Apparently, his team finishes within the top 5 every year, and he fears my 230 average will be a factor in him not winning.

Now the issue as hand. 230 is too high for that individual league. There are 180 bowlers in that league that shoot 200-250 every night. If the league moved the handicap to 100% of 230. I must shoot 260-310 to have a chance. Oh wait, the highest I could shoot is 300. So if that 170 bowler shots anything over 240, I loss no matter what. Even more realistically, one bad shot can put me in the 260's but someone with a 170 average can open 2-3 frames then a few spares and some strikes later he rips the 230 average bowler a new one.

Now Comparing a 180 bowler to a 230 bowler in a 100% of 230 league.
I will even put some simple mathematics and ratios to help you understand the advantages a 180 bowler has over a 230 bowler in a 100% of 230 league. As a 230 bowler, I can only shoot 70 games over average. Just one mistake holds me to only being able to shoot nearly 30 of those 70 games (270-299 range). I am going to make at least 2-3 mistakes on any given game allowing my scores to range between 206 and 270. SO when observing the situation realistically, I have 40 games over average that I will shoot regularly.A 180 bowler will shoot between a 180 and 200 regularly which is my 230-250 range. A 180 will throw a few games that range between 200 and 250 on any given night. If the bowler shoots between the 220 and 250 range, his handicap game is in the range of my one mistake game (270-299). Anything above 250, I lose no matter what. So mathematically he has 50 games that I can not beat no matter what. So when comparing a 180 bowlers odds to my 230 odds as a 3 part ratio (# of games a 180 bowler could shoot and beat me not matter what I shoot : # of games a 180 bowler could shoot and beat me If I were to have 1 open or "1 mistake": # of games a 180 bowler could shoot and I have a realistic chance of winning) you get a ratio of 50:30:20.
Let me explain ratios more simply for you. I just placed three different colored beans in a bowl. I placed 5 black beans to describe the games the 180 bowler could shoot and I would lose no matter what. I placed 3 red beans to describe the number of games the 180 could bowl and most likely win if I were to make just one mistake. I also placed 2 white beans to describe the realistic number of games I will shoot on any given night and still have a chance to win. You would have a ratio 5(180 avg wins) : 3(180 avg most likely win): 2(either one can win). MY 230 average odds of winning are 2 vs 10.

I started this post to get more information and view points from other bowlers. I wanted to say thank yall.