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Author Topic: Handicap Question  (Read 988 times)

9andaWiggle

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Handicap Question
« on: December 30, 2003, 12:12:24 AM »
In what other sports/games does one get handicap of some form to make up the difference in skill levels among it's players.  I've been thinking, and I cannot think of any others.  Maybe golf?  Or are the different levels of players just categorized and play each other?  I'm not sure, as I'm an occasional golfer and never have played any leagues or tourneys.

Baseball - No
Football - No
Basketball - No
Hockey - No
Soccer - No
Boxing - No
Billiards - No
Darts - No
Horseshoes - No
Ping Pong - No

I'm curious as to why we do in bowling?  Seems in anything else we do, if you want to win, you study the game and practice until you get good enough.  Why not bowling?  In life, if you want more money, you go to school (take lessons) and apply that lesson in your work until you get promoted (practice).  Then you make more money (hopefully!)  So, why is bowling a socialist society? In life that would be like saying anyone who makes less than $50,000 will get however much it takes to get them to that level, and anyone who makes more will have that money deducted to bring them down to that level.  Everyone will now be equal regardless of whether you work (or practice) hard to earn the extra $ (or pins) or whether you sit on the couch and take the handout.

I am sure handicap was created to give lesser skilled bowlers a chance, but when I was on that losing little league team, we didn't get handed free runs to compete with the better teams.  I guess my questions is when/why bowling decided to incorporate handicap into it's competition?  And, in the long run, has it made bowling any better/worse off because of it?


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iommifan

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Re: Handicap Question
« Reply #1 on: December 30, 2003, 03:22:15 PM »
In a major city you maybe able to get enough people together to have a all scratch league, but when you move inland forget it. Most centers are lucky if they get 70% for a handicap league. Now if everyone had to bowl scratch then you would end up with about 2.5 teams per league. I know our center couldn't put together a scratch league by any means. I know the other local centers are about the same. Plus if you took away the second arrow wall most house patterns layout, there wouldn't be as many scratch players as you think.
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iommifan

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Re: Handicap Question
« Reply #2 on: December 30, 2003, 03:37:48 PM »
Golf also has another equalizer. The slope rating. If your local course is a real touch course and you enter a tournament that is held on a course that is a walk  through the park, your handicap isn't going to be what you think it is. And vice-versa. I know the course I play at is fairly difficult, if I went to one of our other courses in the area that isn't my handicap wouldn't be fair (not that I am good by any means). But I know people who golf at a couple of the other local courses (we have alot) and score high 80's. When they played at our club they broke 110!!!!! One didn't even post his score, gave up, lol. It's like going from a sport pattern to a blocked up ten board, wouldn't be fair.
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Pinbuster

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Re: Handicap Question
« Reply #3 on: December 30, 2003, 03:44:44 PM »
Most of those do not have handicap but almost all of them when played at the adult level are split into divisions so as said it is a defacto type of handicapping.

Golf does. It would be more like a 2/3 handicap in bowling where the low handicappers have a decided edge over the high handicapper. But since golf depends more on skill and less on luck and conditions results are more predictable.

Even in my little league days the teams the organizers picked the rosters for the teams (you signed up into a pool) and tried to spread around the talent so that no one team dominated. You had the occasional new kid in town that would upset this but overall it kept things pretty even.

Sawbones – I never bowled the Southwest. By the time I had the resources to pursue itgoing it had started down hill. My dad was on a team that won the team title in 1958. I happened across the team picture over Christmas. All that team has passed away now. Oh well time marches on.
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TTforshort

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Re: Handicap Question
« Reply #4 on: December 30, 2003, 03:55:15 PM »
9,

Handicapping is the only fair way to allow bowlers of all skill levels to compete against one another. If not for handicapping, I doubt many people would be in the sport.

Your use of the other sports is invalid. All of the sports listed, in one way or another, are handicapped. In boxing, featherweights don't box against heavyweights. Little league baseball players don't play against MLB. Every sports listed has a way to equalize their organization.

If you consider that ABC has no divisions in league bowling. No age limitations.
When bowlers get so elite that they no longer wish to compete in a handicap league, that is their option.

TT
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Edited on 12/30/2003 5:00 PM
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