I hear all the time that 200 used to be considered "PAR" for bowling in the average area. Now we use or hear that 220 is par.  Is this true?  The ABC tournament average was and is never near 200.  And I bet if we poll all bowlers nationwide that 200 would be high.  Different houses are different skill levels for sure.  Some are cake and others tough.  Some hear in town have more 300's in a league than my house has a season or for that matter several seasons together.  One house has a lefty averaging 260+ right now!!!!  While there are some houses on the easy side, maybe 200 would be par there.  Yet i would guess that if you took all there bowlers in that house 200 i would be high for par.

So what do you think is true par?  I think it is individual per house and tournament.

Nod

On that basis you could differ.  Bowling actually "allows" 2 balls per frame to knock down all the pins.  So 300 would be the max (best) just as in golf 18 would be the best.  Eighteen hole in ones?  Impossible i guess but this is all conjuncture anyways

Nod

Edited on 9/27/2004 2:28 PM

In golf you are not expected to get a hole in one on a par 3,..the hole is designed to give you three shots to obtain par. In bowling you are expected to strike on each first ball, or you are penalized by subtracting pins from your score, like taking too many strokes in golf. Bowling is not a game of addition, but subtraction. Everyone starts with 300 and you subtract from that...300 being par.
--------------------
www.dynothane.com

You have to define what is PAR?

In golf it is the normal score that an “expert” golfer would expect to make on a hole.

In bowling I would define it as the average score an “expert” bowler would expect to make on the condition.

The problem comes down to defining what an “expert” bowler is and what is the condition?

Around here all the houses run a normal 10 to 10 house shot. I would say “expert” bowlers would be able to carry 220+ in any house.

I’m always leery to condemn houses as dungeons or slots. I’ve seen many a top bowler come in to a strange house and claim a house was tough but you would find a dozen bowlers averaging 220 in the house. I’ve also seen teams go into a house and average 220+ but no one else does in the house.

Sadly an “expert” bowler on many different conditions simply does not match up to a particular house and they will struggle there while others flourish.

All the above factors make it nearly impossible to compare individuals from center to center.

So PAR is mostly relative to the condition and somewhat to the individual.

Yes par was actually the standard that a fine player was expected to achieve.
While achieving 2 putts per hole.

Naturally it was thought that some nut could go out and occassionally scorch par and shoot like 54 or so.  Or even 25 for 9.   Crazy good stuff but not par.

In bowling it is simple.  Par is what would Walter Ray shoot?

REgards,

Luckylefty