Skittles (sport)

Usually played for small amounts of money, the winner takes the combined player entry fees (typically £1 or 50p per game each).

Players might claim a "tactical miss" when they have multiple lives remaining and fail to hit the only pin still standing.

Games are played one-against-one, a chalk (a point) being scored by knocking all the pins over in fewer throws than one's opponent.

After an initial throw, the remaining pins (the 'broken frame') may end up in a variety of formations - many of which have a distinctive name, such as a London Bridge or the Novices.

[1] The origins of this skittles game are vague, but it is thought by some to have been started by Dutch sailors, possibly playing on the decks of moored barges.

In the Stroud and District Skittle League,[4] teams are made up of 10 players (Men's Sections) each having eight hands of three balls.

The Berkeley and District Skittles League[6] was formed in 1957 and has in excess of 100 teams playing in seven divisions in a geographical area of around eight miles in diameter in the southern end of the county.

Both leagues host Singles, Pairs, Nomination, and Knockout Cup competitions (all decided by game aggregate score).

The rubber balls and resin pins are standardised across the league,[11] whilst alley dimensions vary slightly and may have a concrete, wood, or lino surface.

Major skittles areas include Bridgwater, Wells, Yeovil, Taunton, Weston-super-Mare, Burnham-on-Sea, Glastonbury and Street.

The highest known score in a game of 8 man skittles was in the Street and District league, this was by Ryan Church for the Carrot Crunchers.

[27] The Alley itself should be 'clean and well lit, with a bowling line approximately 33 ft (10 m) to the front pin of the diamond'.

In Worcester skittles all pins are live until they land in the pit behind the diamond, or leave the alley on an open side.

However, if a ball hits the cush, or wall or passes through the diamond and bounces back out of the pit before felling pins the frame must be reset.

A spider is recorded by drawing legs and a face onto the zero on the board and is greeted with delight when yayayayay the opposing team returns to the alley.

A 'Spare' where the pins are reset after being felled with balls to spare is denoted on the board by a circle drawn around the score.

The Worcester and District is the county representative in the Three City Cup competition, played between Worcestershire, Gloucestershire and Herefordshire between September and May each season.

However at the start of season 2010/11 the same scoring system as the WFSL was adopted by the Worcester and District in order to increase the competitive nature of the League and hopefully stem the declining interest in the sport.

In recent years, the popularity of Skittles has declined with the District League and WFSL both having to reduce the number of divisions from 5 down to 3.

The District League compete for a number of cup competitions, with matches taking place on both Tuesday and Friday evenings.

There are also Singles (solo players) and Doubles (Teams of two) as well as a Six a side Trophy held each year.

League and Cup games are played on Thursday evenings, over a 42-week period beginning in September running through to the following June.

With over 400 members from 31 teams who meet with their friends and teammates to play skittles; this makes Thursday night one of the busiest in the Malvern area's pubs and clubs.

The skittles are placed on a square court, each resting on a round piece of wood called pitere or pitet, 2.20 m (7 ft 3 in) apart from each other.

The bowl (ball) weighs about 6 kg (13 lb) and has a 30 cm (12 in) diameter; it is made of walnut wood.

The game is played frequently in pubs and Gaelic athletic clubs in various parts of the island with team leagues and cup matches.

The German sport kegel or nine-pin bowling is played in widely organized leagues through the country and is also popular in many other countries with long German connections, including Austria, Switzerland, Serbia, Slovenia, Croatia, Hungary and Liechtenstein and is currently gaining popularity in Australia.

A variant was once also the dominant bowling game in the United States, but today only survives in a small area of rural Texas.

Players take turn in throwing the baton at the pins with a view to totalling exactly 50 points.

[33] A table-top version of the game is also featured in the first season of the Netflix series Easy, specifically episode seven.