I found this article pretty interesting about Glenn Allison's 900 series - When was the first 900 series bowled ?

Not aware of any 900's thrown in sanctioned competition prior to Allisons.  Ray Orf threw an 890 that was disallowed in the 60's.  I think there were several 900's thrown on shellac in the 30's.  Not sure any were in sanctioned competition, as many leagues and matches were not sanctioned in those days.  The fact is that most of the records set in the 30's probably would not have passed on the most lenient of lane standards.  Shellac was generally not oiled, but the way it was applied and the way it wore down created a measurable physical groove to the pocket. 

Even into the 60's the ABC really didn't care about using oil to create a wall, because most lane blocking was done by creating physical depressions in the surface for a track.  The first rule concerning oil patterns was not introduced until 1975.  Lane blocking with oil had been around since the introduction of lacquer in the late 40's, but the soft polyester balls that carried so much better than hard rubber boosted scoring dramatically in the 70's, and prompted the ABC to adapt an even oil rule, that was in effect when Allison shot his 900.  Therefore not only would his 900 have passed under current rules, but it would have passed under any rules except those in place between 1975 and 1988.   

The fact that it was only done once is testimony to its difficulty.  People should remember however, that at that time the yellow dot was a pretty high tech soft shell polyester ball, and we were bowling on less than half the volume of oil that is used today, with much lower viscosity to boot.  I had my career high series of 793 with a yellow dot ( same series as Allison used ), playing inside 4th arrow.  Even the urethane balls of the 80's were not that much better than yellow dots.  It was the short patterns that allowed guys to hook them so much.  Resin balls, were another matter.  The carry was just so phenomenal with them that award scores had to go through the roof.     

Not all yellow dots were created equal.

A big and often overlooked advantage of resin is that with so much friction off the dry it is possible, even necessary, to throw a lot more ball speed.  In the polyester era friction was at a premium and too much speed meant poor carry.  You just couldn't get the ball to get into a roll until the oil got shorter if you had speed.  Those messengers today come from a combination of speed and revs.  Much more of a finesse game with yellow dots to maximize carry. 

yellow dot!  loved that ball.  Shot a high 279 on wood playing the twig.

Never!  Won't happen.

Regards,

Luckylefty

Not sure who could come out of the woodwork