This might seem like a silly question to some, but I've been out of the game for about 8 years. (Just started bowling leagues again this summer), and I noticed people playing the card game.  You know get a strike or spare get a card ect...  Anyways I was wondering if anyone could fill me in on a little refresher course on how to play (and how it works)!!!!!
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"To bowl or not to bowl that is the question"

You can always throw in different "house rules" to spice up the game.  One way I've played is 1 card for a spare, 2 for a strike, -1 for an open, and our college team when we practiced would sometimes play, and we played where you had to discard your entire hand if you missed a single-pin spare.
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Andrew Loose
"King of Them All"
"Evolutionary. Revolutionary."

We have a 4-man team in a scratch league, so we only reward strikes.
1 card for a strike.
2 cards for a double (and any subsequent strikes).

No limit to the number of cards per person until deck runs out. The max any player could have is 23 cards (X 1st frame, 2 cards each strike thereafter if they shoot 300).

Cost is $1 first game - high 5-card poker hand. No jokers.
Cost is $1 second game - LOW 5-card poker hand. One joker added (joker is wild for low).
Cost is $2 third game - both high and low 5-card hand. Two jokers for this game (joker is wild for low; aces/straights/flushes only for high).

Sounds complicated, but we've been playing poker for years and this is all second nature to us.

P.S. We had a lower average bowler on our team the last two years so we changed up to allow a card for 9-spare, but we also lost a card if we missed a single pin spare. The card wouldn't go back into the deck but would just be turned over in the player's hand. I think we'll probably keep the "lose a card for missing a single pin spare" rule this year even though the lower average guy isn't on our team anymore.
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You weren't unlucky when you left that corner pin, so shut up about it already!!

A buck to get in----a card for a strike---two for a double---MUST DISCARD WHEN YOU HAVE TO----no more than five cards in your hand at a time-----and you get as many cards as number of pins in the split you convert. Regular poker hand---no wilds.
 Then you can try this one------
 Quarter to start---if you double you get a quarter---split conversion  you get a quarter---if you go to take a quarter and yours is the only one left in everyone else has to put in a quarter but you. Anyone rolling 210 or better gets a quarter from everyone----high game in each game gets the quarters left in at the end of the game-----and at the end of the night high series gets the quarters.
 Also----have every missed spare---splits included---cost a nickle--a tthe end of the year take the earnings and go out to eat or put it towards entry fee for a team tourney event.
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Chris