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Skittles (sport)
Encyclopedia
Skittles is an old Europe
an lawn game
, a variety of bowling
, from which ten-pin bowling
, duckpin bowling
, and candlepin bowling
in the United States
, and five-pin bowling
in Canada
are descended. In the United Kingdom
, the game remains a popular pub game in England
and Wales
, though it tends to be found in particular regions, not nationwide. A continental
version is popular in Germany
, Austria
and Switzerland
. In Australia
, other varieties of bowling are more popular, but the similar game of kegel
, based on German nine-pin bowling
, is popular in some areas. In Catalonia, bitlles, a local version of this game was formerly popular.
s, usually spherical but sometimes oblate, and several (most commonly nine) , small bowling pins. The general object of the game is to use the ball(s) to knock over the skittles, either specific ones or all of them, depending upon game variant. Exact rules vary widely on a regional basis.
known as bowls
, and is thus distantly related to billiard sports, some of which also retain the use of skittles. The skittle dates to the earliest known forms of bowling and ground billiards, even as far back as ca. 3300 BCE in Ancient Egypt
. In recent times, LOS Galacticos have promoted the sport to younger generations. Keeping the historical background at the forefront of the younger players development.
In the Stroud and District Skittle League, teams are made up of 10 players (Men's Sections) each having 8 hands of 3 balls. In the Ladies Sections each team consists of 8 players each having 10 hands of 3 balls. Games are played in two equal halves. The league runs from early September through to the following May.
In the Cheltenham Skittles League, skittles is played with either a team of 12 (winter skittles) or 6 (summer skittles). Each player plays 6 hands of 3 balls. However, in Gloucester, the players play 10 hands of 3 balls, and a team is made up of 10 players.
The Berkeley and District Skittles League was formed in 1957 and has in excess of 100 teams playing in 7 divisions in a geographical area of around 8 miles in diameter in the southern end of the county. Teams are made up of 8 players and each player bowls 8 hands of 3 balls. The pins (skittles) used in the League vary in size, but are between 9 and 10 inches high and between 4 and 5 inches in diameter at the widest (centre) point and are either made of wood (traditionally sycamore
or beech
) or plastic. Balls are between 4½ to 5 inches in diameter and again are either made of wood (lignum vitae
) or a composite rubber. Alleys, on which games are played, are between 30 and 55 feet in length and are generally of a wooden construction, although one alley is linoleum
over a concrete base. The League runs from September through to the following April.
In the Cirencester & District Men's Skittle League, teams are made up of 9 players each having 6 hands of 3 balls. The league runs from early September through to the following May
The winter league comprises 70 teams competing in five divisions, five cups competitions(KO, Front Pin, Man v Man, Champion of champions & Charity eight-a-side) and also singles & pairs competitions.
The Malmesbury and District League is played with nine players per team, divided into three legs. Each player has six goes with three balls. Two points are awarded for each winning leg, and a further four points are awarded to the overall winning team, so ten points are available per game. Games typically last around 1 hour 40 minutes and are played Tuesday to Friday. This is one of the larger leagues in the area with 95 teams playing on 20 different alleys within a ten mile radius of Malmesbury Abbey
. The league begins in September and concludes in April, although various cup matches occur in August and April.
The Swindon & District Friday Skittles League is played with twelve players per team, divided into four "legs" hence each is called a HORSE - (because a horse has four legs). Points are awarded thus - 2pts per Horse, plus 6pts for winning. There are currently 36 teams in three sections. The league runs from September to June. There are Cup Knockout Competitions throughout the season.
Depending on where the leagues play, there may be 6 players per side (normally in summer leagues), or 8 per side (winter).
There are mixed leagues (males & females in each team) and there are all male leagues and all female leagues.
In 2008, the new "Huntspill & Highbridge league, possibly for the first time anywhere, started a league consisting
Traditionally, Somerset skittles uses wooden balls (made from apple wood or similar) and wooden pins. Times have changed and for various reasons, some alleys now use composite rubber balls and nylon pins.
In North Somerset, teams are of 12 (winter leagues) and 9 (summer leagues). Players may be organised in sets of 3 or 4 (teams of 12 only, obviously).
Bristol alleys have, in the past been known for their "camber". Some alleys were (and still are) raised in the middle, making bowling an accurate art.
Some Bristol rules and terms:
Pin diamond:The pins are laid out in a diamond or 'frame', the lead or 'front' pin and behind it the middle or 'fat Annie' which is slightly wider at the girth than the rest of the pins, and the back pin- identical to the front pin. On each shoulder of the front pin are the 'quarters'- left and right, front and back. On the shoulder of the quarters are the outside 'copper' pins, left and right. In Bristol skittles, the front pin and the back pin are painted with a red band, top and bottom. The quarter pins are painted with a white band, top and bottom and the middle pin a single red band around the girth. The coppers are unpainted. There is enough of a gap between all the pins for the balls to pass through without knocking anything down.
Cush pin:In Bristol skittles at least if a falling pin hits the side wall and rebounds back into the 'frame' taking down another pin(s) this is called a cush pin. It is left to the alley or home team to decide whether cush pins count towards the total scored or whether the frame needs to be reset, and should be published on the score board prior to play. However if a ball leaves the diamond and bounces back before felling pins the frame must be reset.
Front first or All-in?:Skittles is played either front first or all-in. I.e., in all-in skittles each and every pin that is felled counts towards the total scored. In front first skittles, the front pin must be felled before any score is recorded. In other words, in a worst case scenario, should one fell all pins except the front pin with one's first two balls (of three), the maximum score that one could record for that 'up' can only be 1 pin.
Duck:In front first skittles the dreaded duck comes into play more often than in all-in skittles. This is where the front pin remains standing after one's 'up' despite any other pins being felled. This 'up' is recorded as a 'duck' or zero score towards one's total and is usually marked with a cross or an asterisk. Finishing a game with only ducks recorded is considered a big faux-pas!
Old Market:In Bristol skittles the term Old Market refers to the felling of the front pin, the middle pin and the back pin with one ball and is considered slightly bad luck because the remaining frame of pins offers less chance for a decent frame score with the middle column of pins felled. The term Old Market is thought to refer to the road Old Market Street in central Bristol, where the road is wide and straight and cuts a swathe through the densely-populated buildings.
Spare:A spare is scored when all pins are felled by the first one or two balls. In such a case the frame is reset and the player continues until all three balls have been rolled. The maximum score in a 9-pin frame is therefore 27, although this is extremely rare if not unheard of. On some alleys a 12-spare is not uncommon. Once the front has been felled the front pin of the reset frame does not need to be hit again.ya
in 1946, and is a founder member of the Three cities Association. 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.
The rivalry between the District and the younger Friendly leagues(WFSL)in Worcester has always been great however in season 2004/05 it was decided by the District League that players signed on for a team registered for their competition were free to play for a team affiliated with the WFSL. Up to that point playing for a team in the WFSL while being signed on to a team affiliated with the Worcester and District would lead to a lifetime ban from the District League.
Until the end of season 2009/10 the scoring system was different for both leagues, with the Worcester and District League opting for the traditional 2 points for a win and 1 for a draw, and the WFSL opting for a system which awards 1 point for winning a leg and 6 points for the game, a total of eleven points. 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.
, both the men's and ladies' winter leagues are made up of 12 players. Men's Matches are played on Monday and Wednesday Nights and Ladies on Thursdays.
League and Cup games are played on Thursday evening’s, 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 team mates to play skittles; this makes Thursday night one of the busiest in the Malvern area’s pubs and clubs.
Each team consists of 9 players (although teams can sign as many players as they wish), league matches consist of 5 ‘legs’ (each player bowling 3 balls), the winning team of each ‘leg’ gaining one point. The team scoring most ‘pins’ overall is also awarded 6 points. League matches are enhanced with team (Ken Baker Cup), 4 a side, doubles & singles cup competitions all played on Thursday evenings.
The Evesham League game has been structured upon the Long alley-Western type of game, whereby 9 pins are formed in the shape of a diamond facing the player The pins are normally placed upon a steel plate, which bear markings to identify placement of each pin The League allows pins to be made from either wood or high density polyurethane and the design is based upon the 10" Gloucester pin Balls can be made from wood or composite material and are approximately 4 ¾ " in diameter The League stipulates that the front pin facing the player should always be marked and is known as the 'King' pin. The two pins next to the 'King' pin are also marked and these are known as the 'Quarter' pins All the alleys within the Evesham League are wood and are based upon general guidelines in terms of length and width.
Each Team consists of 10 Players, each player playing six legs consisting of 3 balls per leg. The game consists of 6 legs for each team, each player bowling once(3 balls) per leg. Points are awarded on the basis of each leg won, plus a further 6 points for an overall win , making a full six leg win 12 Points. Many years ago the League introduced a system of play, whereby each player bowls alternatively against a player of the opposing team for each leg. This proved to be a successful format creating tension and excitement down to the last leg - last man.
As with all variations of skittles the pins are laid out in a diamond and played on an alley, with the pins placed on painted squares known as plates. In the Worcestershire Leagues there is no set measurement for this, instead the size of the diamond should be 'not less than 3 ft 10in and no greater than 4 ft 2in'.
The pins and balls are known as the 'Kit' and the balls should be made of Wood, Tufnol or Rubber and 'must not exceed five and a quarter inches in diameter and no less than four and three quarter inches in diameter'. Despite guidelines for the diamond and balls there is no uniform size of pin needing only 'to be uniform size and painted white, one and a half inches around the top.
The Alley itself should be 'clean and well lit, with a bowling line approximately 33 ft to the front pin of the diamond'. However this rule is not strictly enforced with some alleys being shorter than others. The Alley itself can be either Lino or Wood.
The front pin is known as the 'King' and is painted with a white, one and a half inch wide vertical stripe. The two pins to either side are known as the 'Quarter pins' and are marked with either a triangle or the numbers 1 and 2, in order to identify them. Traditionally the 'King' is the heaviest pin, with the 'Quarters' being heavier than the rest of the pins but not heavier than the 'King'. Directly behind the 'King' is the middle pin which is known as the 'Birdie', as the other pins form a 'cage' around it. The back pin sits directly behind the 'Birdie', the 'Back quarters' directly behind the 'Quarter' pins, and the 'Wingers' on the outside of the diamond. The 'Birdie', 'Back Quarters', 'Back Pin' and 'Wingers' are non-specific pins and are not marked so any of the six unmarked pins can be placed on any of the six plates.
Because of the lack of guidelines on pin size, the pins themselves vary in size. this leads to some 'Kits' being higher scoring than others and some alleys being higher scoring than others, due to variations in length and diamond size
Scoring pins
All balls must touch the Alley before the 'Line' to be deemed as legal. However the 'Linesman' (a member of the opposing team who sits and watches the line) must call 'Over' before the ball strikes a pin. If he fails to do this the pins felled will count.
In Worcester skittles all pins are live until they land in the pit behind the diamond, or leave the alley on an open side. They can rebound off a side wall back into the diamond taking down other pin(s). In some alleys, such as the Saracens Head in Worcester, the Diamond is flanked by two side walls making the possibility of a spare, achieved by bouncing pins off the wall more of a possibility. It is more than common to hear the cries of 'let it roll' go out in the alleys of the city to stop an over enthusiastic 'sticker up' (a young lad or girl employed to put the pins back up after they have been knocked down) removing a pin from the alley before it has finished knocking down the others. 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.
Spiders and Spares
A Player scoring no pins after bowling three balls in the leg is known as scoring a 'Spider'. A spider is recorded by drawing legs and a face onto the zero on the board and is greeted with delight when 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. This is not greeted so favourably. The maximum score in a 9-pin frame is 27, however this is virtually unheard of, the highest spare in the history of the Worcester and District was thought to be a 24 scored by Gary Sandbrook whilst playing for the Independents Skittle team in the early 1990s. Spares are not uncommon however, and a good score in the Worcester game is 40 plus.
version uses 9 pins (made of hornbeam) and a cheese. The cheese is thrown at the pins using a swinging motion whilst stepping forwards. After an initial throw, the remaining pins (the 'broken frame') may end up in a variety of formations - each of which has a distinctive (and usually London-based) name, such as a London Bridge or a Portsmouth Road. Knocking down all the pins at once is known as a 'floorer' and is highly respected. A player who manages to throw three floorers in succession is lauded.
While it was once a popular game played in pubs all over London
(generally sited by the Thames river), it is now only played at two venues: one in Hampstead
and one in Norbury
. 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 barge
s.
, the teams are made up of 6 players playing 6 legs of three balls. Currently there are 3 leagues of 9 teams and each Team plays the others 3 times during the season. Season runs from September to April.
of Cornwall
, Devon
, Dorset
. In Dorset some games are played by bowling a technique known as the 'Dorset flop'. This is where the bowler crouches on the alley and throws himself and the ball forward landing on his stomach and letting the ball go between two bowling lines. In some parts of Somerset
the ball has to hit a pitch plate (a diamond painted on the alley)in order for it to be a legal ball. It is also popular in South Wales
.
Other leagues within the Cardiff area are The Cardiff Combined clubs league with 9 men's and 9 women's divisions and the Whitchurch and district skittles league
In the Newport and District skittle league (started abt 1927) the teams are made up of 12 players playing in groups of four v four (three sections) each playing 3 legs of 3 balls, the league did have 7 men's divisions of up to 15 teams but now down to 4 divisions (2009/10)
They also play in the summer (started abt 1979) a mixed league that are the same rules. And a Conservative league, however the scoring is slightly different. 1 point for each leg and 2 points for the game.
Nomination:In this variant of the game, the player has to nominate the pin that will be hit first before the throw. Unless this pin is knocked over the player will not score. The names given to the pins may vary from region to region, in Wiltshire they are usually referred to as "front pin", "front right quarter", "front left quarter", "outside right" (or "right winger"), "centre pin", "outside left" (or "left winger"), "back right quarter", "back left quarter", and "back pin".
Four-pins:In this variant of the game, only four pins (the two coppers, the front and back pins) are put up and must be hit with the front pin first. It is often used in conjunction with nomination as well. Currently used in North Somerset Cup games.
London Bridge:A variant of nomination but with only the landlord and two coppers set up, i.e. one has to hit a pin with each ball and nominate which one each time.
Killer or German skittles: A game for any number of people. Each starts with 3 lives. Each bowls only one ball at a time. The first bowls at a full frame and the skittles are not stuck up until all nine are hit down. Each time a player fails to hit a single pin (but they can hit as many as they like), he or she loses a life. The winner is the last one left with a life intact. Usually played for money, e.g. £1 or 50p a game each player - the winner takes the pot. Found in the Somerset and Bristol areas.
Six-ball Westbury:Another game for any number of people. Each player has one hand of 6 balls at a full frame. If all nine pins are knocked down within the hand then they are reset, meaning that a player may score anywhere between 0 and 54. The winner is the player with the highest score. Similar to killer in that it is usually played for money with the winner taking the pot.
, also known simply as quilles de 9 or just quilles, is a complicated variant with similarities to both British skittles and petanque
. It is popular only in the southwest of the country. It is an indoor game which is played on a hard-packed surface. The skittles are placed on a square court, each resting on a round piece of wood called pitere or pitet, 2.20 m apart from each other. A skittle measures about 96 cm and weighs 3 kg, and is made of beech
wood. The bowl (ball) weighs about 6 kg and has a 30 cm diameter; it is made of walnut
wood. There is also an eight-pin version, quilles de huit (8), and a version played with a mallet, quilles au maillet, which is obviously related to ground billiards and its variants such as croquet
and paille-maille, and which has experienced a resurgence in Gascony
since 1973.
is played with nine pins, in broadly organized leagues and is also popular in many other countries with long German connections, including Austria
, Switzerland
, Serbia
, Slovenia
, Croatia
, Hungary
and Liechtenstein
. The game was once also the dominant bowling game in the United States
(but today only survives in rural Texas
), and also led to an Australian variant.
to county
) in order to score points with the aim to scoring exactly 41. Points are recorded in descending order. If a player should score too many points ("go bust", as in darts
) they return to a score of 9 left, unless their previous score was above this in which case they return to that score.
The game is played frequently in pubs
and Gaelic athletic
clubs in various parts of the island with team leagues and cup matches.
, a version known as kegel
is played, strongly influenced by German nine-pin bowling
or kegeln.
, specifically Northamptonshire
, Bedfordshire
, Buckinghamshire
, Leicestershire
and east Warwickshire
, nine skittles are placed on a hooded table, hence the name "hood skittles". The hood skittles table is leather bound, and has leather- to the sides and the back, with a curved hood of leather or netting stretched up from the rear like a pram
, approximately a metre over the of the table. Behind the area where the skittles are laid out in a diamond is a lower surface or trough. The table playing surface stands about 1 metre high and the thrower about 3 metres from the front of the table when in a pub around Leicester
or Rugby
, or about 3.3 metres when playing in Northhamptonshire or Buckinghamshire. The player throws oblate "cheeses" rather than spherical
balls, similar to those used in the game of bowls
.
The skittles are about 15 cm high, square at the bottom but widening higher up then tapering to a shallow point, which leaves them slightly top heavy. Traditionally the skittles and the cheeses are made of English hardwood. The cheeses measure about 10 cm across, and 4 cm high, one and a half inches high.
For each turn a player throws 3 cheeses at the skittles which start standing in the classic diamond pattern. If all the skittles are toppled after the first or second throws, they are reset and the player throws his remaining cheeses at the newly set skittles, adding his scores together. Theoretical a player might knock down all nine skittles with the first throw and do the same on their second throw, offering the possibility of the skittles being set up a third time for the final cheese and a maximum theoretical score of 27 points.
It is permitted for the players to bounce the cheese off the cushioned side walls and in some places bouncing the cheese off the rear wall is also permitted. In most versions, the toppled skittles are left where they lie while the player continues to throw the rest of their skittles, though in some areas in Leicestershire and Rutland players remove dead skittles before each new throw. Once the player has thrown all three cheeses his total is noted and the skittles are all set up afresh for the next player.
The area around the table where one or two members of the opposition stand in order to manage the table (i.e., standing up skittles once three throws have been made or removing dead skittles) is known as the woodyard.
and reminiscent of the older Cornish
game, smite, itself based on the Finnish
skittles game
mölkky
.
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
an lawn game
Lawn game
A lawn game is any outdoor game that can be played on a lawn. Many games that are traditionally played on a pitch are marketed as "lawn games" for home use in a front or back yard.Common lawn games include:*Horseshoes*Lawn darts*Croquet*Cornhole*Bocce...
, a variety of bowling
Bowling
Bowling Bowling Bowling (1375–1425; late Middle English bowle, variant of boule Bowling (1375–1425; late Middle English bowle, variant of boule...
, from which ten-pin bowling
Ten-pin bowling
Ten-pin bowling is a competitive sport in which a player rolls a bowling ball down a wooden or synthetic lane with the objective of scoring points by knocking down as many pins as possible.-Summary:The lane is bordered along its length by semicylindrical channels Ten-pin bowling (commonly just...
, duckpin bowling
Duckpin bowling
Duckpin bowling is a variation of 10-pin bowling. The balls used in duckpin bowling are 4-3/4 in to 5 in in diameter , weigh 3 lb 6 oz to 3 lb 12 oz each, and lack finger holes...
, and candlepin bowling
Candlepin bowling
Candlepin bowling is a variation of Bowling that is played primarily in the Canadian Maritime provinces, Ontario, Quebec, and the New England states of Maine, Massachusetts and New Hampshire, where it is more common than ten-pin bowling....
in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, and five-pin bowling
Five-pin bowling
Five-pin bowling is a bowling variant which is played only in Canada, where most bowling alleys offer it, either alone or in combination with ten-pin bowling. It was devised around 1909 by Thomas F. Ryan in Toronto, Ontario, at his Toronto Bowling Club, in response to customers who complained that...
in Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
are descended. In the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
, the game remains a popular pub game in England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
and Wales
Wales
Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...
, though it tends to be found in particular regions, not nationwide. A continental
Continental Europe
Continental Europe, also referred to as mainland Europe or simply the Continent, is the continent of Europe, explicitly excluding European islands....
version is popular in Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
, Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
and Switzerland
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
. In Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
, other varieties of bowling are more popular, but the similar game of kegel
Kegel (bowling)
Also spelled Kegeln.Kegel is an Australian bowling game, in which a player rolls a wooden or plastic ball along a smooth, hard indoor lane . The object of the game is to knock down the nine kegels at the other end of the lane. Kegel is based on traditional German games and is therefore closely...
, based on German nine-pin bowling
Nine-pin bowling
Nine-pin bowling is a bowling game played primarily in Europe. European championships are held each year. Over 90,000 members are on teams in Germany, often playing in officially registered Bundeskegelbahnen to be found in almost every sizable town...
, is popular in some areas. In Catalonia, bitlles, a local version of this game was formerly popular.
Game play
Skittles is usually played indoors on a bowling alley, with one or more heavy ballBall
A ball is a round, usually spherical but sometimes ovoid, object with various uses. It is used in ball games, where the play of the game follows the state of the ball as it is hit, kicked or thrown by players. Balls can also be used for simpler activities, such as catch, marbles and juggling...
s, usually spherical but sometimes oblate, and several (most commonly nine) , small bowling pins. The general object of the game is to use the ball(s) to knock over the skittles, either specific ones or all of them, depending upon game variant. Exact rules vary widely on a regional basis.
History
The game shares its ancestry with the, outdoor lawn gameLawn game
A lawn game is any outdoor game that can be played on a lawn. Many games that are traditionally played on a pitch are marketed as "lawn games" for home use in a front or back yard.Common lawn games include:*Horseshoes*Lawn darts*Croquet*Cornhole*Bocce...
known as bowls
Bowls
Bowls is a sport in which the objective is to roll slightly asymmetric balls so that they stop close to a smaller "jack" or "kitty". It is played on a pitch which may be flat or convex or uneven...
, and is thus distantly related to billiard sports, some of which also retain the use of skittles. The skittle dates to the earliest known forms of bowling and ground billiards, even as far back as ca. 3300 BCE in Ancient Egypt
Ancient Egypt
Ancient Egypt was an ancient civilization of Northeastern Africa, concentrated along the lower reaches of the Nile River in what is now the modern country of Egypt. Egyptian civilization coalesced around 3150 BC with the political unification of Upper and Lower Egypt under the first pharaoh...
. In recent times, LOS Galacticos have promoted the sport to younger generations. Keeping the historical background at the forefront of the younger players development.
Gloucestershire
In the Tewkesbury and District Skittles League teams consist of 10 players playing 8 hands each. The league runs from early September through to the following April. The league was formed in September 1960.In the Stroud and District Skittle League, teams are made up of 10 players (Men's Sections) each having 8 hands of 3 balls. In the Ladies Sections each team consists of 8 players each having 10 hands of 3 balls. Games are played in two equal halves. The league runs from early September through to the following May.
In the Cheltenham Skittles League, skittles is played with either a team of 12 (winter skittles) or 6 (summer skittles). Each player plays 6 hands of 3 balls. However, in Gloucester, the players play 10 hands of 3 balls, and a team is made up of 10 players.
The Berkeley and District Skittles League was formed in 1957 and has in excess of 100 teams playing in 7 divisions in a geographical area of around 8 miles in diameter in the southern end of the county. Teams are made up of 8 players and each player bowls 8 hands of 3 balls. The pins (skittles) used in the League vary in size, but are between 9 and 10 inches high and between 4 and 5 inches in diameter at the widest (centre) point and are either made of wood (traditionally sycamore
Sycamore
Sycamore is a name which is applied at various times and places to three very different types of trees, but with somewhat similar leaf forms....
or beech
Beech
Beech is a genus of ten species of deciduous trees in the family Fagaceae, native to temperate Europe, Asia and North America.-Habit:...
) or plastic. Balls are between 4½ to 5 inches in diameter and again are either made of wood (lignum vitae
Lignum vitae
Lignum vitae is a trade wood, also called guayacan or guaiacum, and in parts of Europe known as pockenholz, from trees of the genus Guaiacum. This wood was once very important for applications requiring a material with its extraordinary combination of strength, toughness and density...
) or a composite rubber. Alleys, on which games are played, are between 30 and 55 feet in length and are generally of a wooden construction, although one alley is linoleum
Linoleum
Linoleum is a floor covering made from renewable materials such as solidified linseed oil , pine rosin, ground cork dust, wood flour, and mineral fillers such as calcium carbonate, most commonly on a burlap or canvas backing; pigments are often added to the materials.The finest linoleum floors,...
over a concrete base. The League runs from September through to the following April.
In the Cirencester & District Men's Skittle League, teams are made up of 9 players each having 6 hands of 3 balls. The league runs from early September through to the following May
Herefordshire
In the Hereford & District Invitation Skittle League, skittles is played with either a team of 12 (winter skittles) or 6 (summer skittles). In the Winter league each player plays four hands of three balls, and in the Summer League they play six hands of three balls.The winter league comprises 70 teams competing in five divisions, five cups competitions(KO, Front Pin, Man v Man, Champion of champions & Charity eight-a-side) and also singles & pairs competitions.
Wiltshire
In the Devizes Skittles League, skittles is played with a team of 9 players. Each player plays 4 'legs' of 3 balls. The league runs from August to April.The Malmesbury and District League is played with nine players per team, divided into three legs. Each player has six goes with three balls. Two points are awarded for each winning leg, and a further four points are awarded to the overall winning team, so ten points are available per game. Games typically last around 1 hour 40 minutes and are played Tuesday to Friday. This is one of the larger leagues in the area with 95 teams playing on 20 different alleys within a ten mile radius of Malmesbury Abbey
Malmesbury Abbey
Malmesbury Abbey, at Malmesbury in Wiltshire, England, was founded as a Benedictine monastery around 676 by the scholar-poet Aldhelm, a nephew of King Ine of Wessex. In 941 AD, King Athelstan was buried in the Abbey. By the 11th century it contained the second largest library in Europe and was...
. The league begins in September and concludes in April, although various cup matches occur in August and April.
The Swindon & District Friday Skittles League is played with twelve players per team, divided into four "legs" hence each is called a HORSE - (because a horse has four legs). Points are awarded thus - 2pts per Horse, plus 6pts for winning. There are currently 36 teams in three sections. The league runs from September to June. There are Cup Knockout Competitions throughout the season.
Somerset and Bristol
The rules & team formats of "Somerset" skittles vary. Major skittles areas include Bridgwater, Wells, Yeovil, Taunton, Weston Super Mare, and Burnham-on-Sea. Bristol is also included in the "Somerset" skittles "set".Depending on where the leagues play, there may be 6 players per side (normally in summer leagues), or 8 per side (winter).
There are mixed leagues (males & females in each team) and there are all male leagues and all female leagues.
In 2008, the new "Huntspill & Highbridge league, possibly for the first time anywhere, started a league consisting
Traditionally, Somerset skittles uses wooden balls (made from apple wood or similar) and wooden pins. Times have changed and for various reasons, some alleys now use composite rubber balls and nylon pins.
In North Somerset, teams are of 12 (winter leagues) and 9 (summer leagues). Players may be organised in sets of 3 or 4 (teams of 12 only, obviously).
Bristol alleys have, in the past been known for their "camber". Some alleys were (and still are) raised in the middle, making bowling an accurate art.
Some Bristol rules and terms:
Pin diamond:The pins are laid out in a diamond or 'frame', the lead or 'front' pin and behind it the middle or 'fat Annie' which is slightly wider at the girth than the rest of the pins, and the back pin- identical to the front pin. On each shoulder of the front pin are the 'quarters'- left and right, front and back. On the shoulder of the quarters are the outside 'copper' pins, left and right. In Bristol skittles, the front pin and the back pin are painted with a red band, top and bottom. The quarter pins are painted with a white band, top and bottom and the middle pin a single red band around the girth. The coppers are unpainted. There is enough of a gap between all the pins for the balls to pass through without knocking anything down.
- Pins vary hugely in size from team to team, league to league, but in Bristol skittles all are symmetrical and wider around the middle. Usually in the higher leagues the pins are much narrower and conversely in the lower leagues the pins wider, although not always the case.
Cush pin:In Bristol skittles at least if a falling pin hits the side wall and rebounds back into the 'frame' taking down another pin(s) this is called a cush pin. It is left to the alley or home team to decide whether cush pins count towards the total scored or whether the frame needs to be reset, and should be published on the score board prior to play. However if a ball leaves the diamond and bounces back before felling pins the frame must be reset.
Front first or All-in?:Skittles is played either front first or all-in. I.e., in all-in skittles each and every pin that is felled counts towards the total scored. In front first skittles, the front pin must be felled before any score is recorded. In other words, in a worst case scenario, should one fell all pins except the front pin with one's first two balls (of three), the maximum score that one could record for that 'up' can only be 1 pin.
Duck:In front first skittles the dreaded duck comes into play more often than in all-in skittles. This is where the front pin remains standing after one's 'up' despite any other pins being felled. This 'up' is recorded as a 'duck' or zero score towards one's total and is usually marked with a cross or an asterisk. Finishing a game with only ducks recorded is considered a big faux-pas!
Old Market:In Bristol skittles the term Old Market refers to the felling of the front pin, the middle pin and the back pin with one ball and is considered slightly bad luck because the remaining frame of pins offers less chance for a decent frame score with the middle column of pins felled. The term Old Market is thought to refer to the road Old Market Street in central Bristol, where the road is wide and straight and cuts a swathe through the densely-populated buildings.
Spare:A spare is scored when all pins are felled by the first one or two balls. In such a case the frame is reset and the player continues until all three balls have been rolled. The maximum score in a 9-pin frame is therefore 27, although this is extremely rare if not unheard of. On some alleys a 12-spare is not uncommon. Once the front has been felled the front pin of the reset frame does not need to be hit again.ya
Worcester and District Skittle League
The Worcester and District Skittle League, 12 players, playing 5 legs of 3 ball (winter league, men only, Tuesday nights) is the oldest skittle league running in the county, having been restarted post-warWorld War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
in 1946, and is a founder member of the Three cities Association. The Worcester and District is the county representative in the Three City Cup competition, played between Worcestershire
Worcestershire
Worcestershire is a non-metropolitan county, established in antiquity, located in the West Midlands region of England. For Eurostat purposes it is a NUTS 3 region and is one of three counties that comprise the "Herefordshire, Worcestershire and Warwickshire" NUTS 2 region...
, Gloucestershire
Gloucestershire
Gloucestershire is a county in South West England. The county comprises part of the Cotswold Hills, part of the flat fertile valley of the River Severn, and the entire Forest of Dean....
and Herefordshire
Herefordshire
Herefordshire is a historic and ceremonial county in the West Midlands region of England. For Eurostat purposes it is a NUTS 3 region and is one of three counties that comprise the "Herefordshire, Worcestershire and Gloucestershire" NUTS 2 region. It also forms a unitary district known as the...
between September and May each season.
The rivalry between the District and the younger Friendly leagues(WFSL)in Worcester has always been great however in season 2004/05 it was decided by the District League that players signed on for a team registered for their competition were free to play for a team affiliated with the WFSL. Up to that point playing for a team in the WFSL while being signed on to a team affiliated with the Worcester and District would lead to a lifetime ban from the District League.
Until the end of season 2009/10 the scoring system was different for both leagues, with the Worcester and District League opting for the traditional 2 points for a win and 1 for a draw, and the WFSL opting for a system which awards 1 point for winning a leg and 6 points for the game, a total of eleven points. 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.
District Cup Competitions
The District League compete for a number of cup competitions, with matches taking place on both Tuesday and Friday evenings. The premier cup competition being the Team Knock Out, but also the King Pin Cup (a variation in the rules applied so the front pin, or King pin as its known in Worcester has to be knocked over before scoring can commence) and the Mick Potter Memorial Trophy. There are also Singles (solo players) and Doubles (Teams of two) as well as a Six a side Trophy held each year.The County Cup
The County Cup is played between the representative sides of the WFSL, Worcester and District, Worcester Ladies, Malvern Men's League and the Malvern Ladies League. It is played on a Round Robin basis, with ten fixture dates (to include one bye), a play off, and a final. The Evesham League is not included, possibly due to too many rule variations (player v player format, mixed teams).Worcester Friendly Skittle League (WFSL)
In the Worcester Friendly Skittle League (WFSL) of WorcestershireWorcestershire
Worcestershire is a non-metropolitan county, established in antiquity, located in the West Midlands region of England. For Eurostat purposes it is a NUTS 3 region and is one of three counties that comprise the "Herefordshire, Worcestershire and Warwickshire" NUTS 2 region...
, both the men's and ladies' winter leagues are made up of 12 players. Men's Matches are played on Monday and Wednesday Nights and Ladies on Thursdays.
Malvern Men's Skittle league
Malvern Men’s Skittle League has been running for over 35 years within the Malvern area . This includes Great Malvern, Malvern Link, Madresfield, Barnards Green, Cradley, West Malvern, Hanley Swan, Colwall and Suckley.League and Cup games are played on Thursday evening’s, 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 team mates to play skittles; this makes Thursday night one of the busiest in the Malvern area’s pubs and clubs.
Each team consists of 9 players (although teams can sign as many players as they wish), league matches consist of 5 ‘legs’ (each player bowling 3 balls), the winning team of each ‘leg’ gaining one point. The team scoring most ‘pins’ overall is also awarded 6 points. League matches are enhanced with team (Ken Baker Cup), 4 a side, doubles & singles cup competitions all played on Thursday evenings.
Evesham Skittles League
The league was formed in the early 1970's and is based around the Vale of Evesham and surrounding districts It is mostly played in Public Houses, Working Men's Clubs, British Legion Clubs, Social and Recreational Clubs within a 12 - 15 mile radius of Evesham in Worcestershire. The league consisted of six divisions with a total of 72 teams competing These teams play from Monday to Thursday during the season, which stretches from early September through to late May. Teams comprise of both Men and Women.The Evesham League game has been structured upon the Long alley-Western type of game, whereby 9 pins are formed in the shape of a diamond facing the player The pins are normally placed upon a steel plate, which bear markings to identify placement of each pin The League allows pins to be made from either wood or high density polyurethane and the design is based upon the 10" Gloucester pin Balls can be made from wood or composite material and are approximately 4 ¾ " in diameter The League stipulates that the front pin facing the player should always be marked and is known as the 'King' pin. The two pins next to the 'King' pin are also marked and these are known as the 'Quarter' pins All the alleys within the Evesham League are wood and are based upon general guidelines in terms of length and width.
Each Team consists of 10 Players, each player playing six legs consisting of 3 balls per leg. The game consists of 6 legs for each team, each player bowling once(3 balls) per leg. Points are awarded on the basis of each leg won, plus a further 6 points for an overall win , making a full six leg win 12 Points. Many years ago the League introduced a system of play, whereby each player bowls alternatively against a player of the opposing team for each leg. This proved to be a successful format creating tension and excitement down to the last leg - last man.
Worcestershire Rules Variations
The Alley, Pin diamond, Pins and Balls.As with all variations of skittles the pins are laid out in a diamond and played on an alley, with the pins placed on painted squares known as plates. In the Worcestershire Leagues there is no set measurement for this, instead the size of the diamond should be 'not less than 3 ft 10in and no greater than 4 ft 2in'.
The pins and balls are known as the 'Kit' and the balls should be made of Wood, Tufnol or Rubber and 'must not exceed five and a quarter inches in diameter and no less than four and three quarter inches in diameter'. Despite guidelines for the diamond and balls there is no uniform size of pin needing only 'to be uniform size and painted white, one and a half inches around the top.
The Alley itself should be 'clean and well lit, with a bowling line approximately 33 ft to the front pin of the diamond'. However this rule is not strictly enforced with some alleys being shorter than others. The Alley itself can be either Lino or Wood.
The front pin is known as the 'King' and is painted with a white, one and a half inch wide vertical stripe. The two pins to either side are known as the 'Quarter pins' and are marked with either a triangle or the numbers 1 and 2, in order to identify them. Traditionally the 'King' is the heaviest pin, with the 'Quarters' being heavier than the rest of the pins but not heavier than the 'King'. Directly behind the 'King' is the middle pin which is known as the 'Birdie', as the other pins form a 'cage' around it. The back pin sits directly behind the 'Birdie', the 'Back quarters' directly behind the 'Quarter' pins, and the 'Wingers' on the outside of the diamond. The 'Birdie', 'Back Quarters', 'Back Pin' and 'Wingers' are non-specific pins and are not marked so any of the six unmarked pins can be placed on any of the six plates.
Because of the lack of guidelines on pin size, the pins themselves vary in size. this leads to some 'Kits' being higher scoring than others and some alleys being higher scoring than others, due to variations in length and diamond size
Scoring pins
All balls must touch the Alley before the 'Line' to be deemed as legal. However the 'Linesman' (a member of the opposing team who sits and watches the line) must call 'Over' before the ball strikes a pin. If he fails to do this the pins felled will count.
In Worcester skittles all pins are live until they land in the pit behind the diamond, or leave the alley on an open side. They can rebound off a side wall back into the diamond taking down other pin(s). In some alleys, such as the Saracens Head in Worcester, the Diamond is flanked by two side walls making the possibility of a spare, achieved by bouncing pins off the wall more of a possibility. It is more than common to hear the cries of 'let it roll' go out in the alleys of the city to stop an over enthusiastic 'sticker up' (a young lad or girl employed to put the pins back up after they have been knocked down) removing a pin from the alley before it has finished knocking down the others. 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.
Spiders and Spares
A Player scoring no pins after bowling three balls in the leg is known as scoring a 'Spider'. A spider is recorded by drawing legs and a face onto the zero on the board and is greeted with delight when 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. This is not greeted so favourably. The maximum score in a 9-pin frame is 27, however this is virtually unheard of, the highest spare in the history of the Worcester and District was thought to be a 24 scored by Gary Sandbrook whilst playing for the Independents Skittle team in the early 1990s. Spares are not uncommon however, and a good score in the Worcester game is 40 plus.
Greater London
Also known as nine-pins, the Greater LondonGreater London
Greater London is the top-level administrative division of England covering London. It was created in 1965 and spans the City of London, including Middle Temple and Inner Temple, and the 32 London boroughs. This territory is coterminate with the London Government Office Region and the London...
version uses 9 pins (made of hornbeam) and a cheese. The cheese is thrown at the pins using a swinging motion whilst stepping forwards. After an initial throw, the remaining pins (the 'broken frame') may end up in a variety of formations - each of which has a distinctive (and usually London-based) name, such as a London Bridge or a Portsmouth Road. Knocking down all the pins at once is known as a 'floorer' and is highly respected. A player who manages to throw three floorers in succession is lauded.
While it was once a popular game played in pubs all over London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
(generally sited by the Thames river), it is now only played at two venues: one in Hampstead
Hampstead
Hampstead is an area of London, England, north-west of Charing Cross. Part of the London Borough of Camden in Inner London, it is known for its intellectual, liberal, artistic, musical and literary associations and for Hampstead Heath, a large, hilly expanse of parkland...
and one in Norbury
Norbury
Norbury is a town in the London Borough of Croydon, also crossing the London Borough of Merton. It shares the postcode London SW16 with nearby Streatham. Norbury is south of Charing Cross.-History:...
. The origins of this skittles game are vague, but it is thought by some to have been started by Dutch
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
sailors, possibly playing on the decks of moored barge
Barge
A barge is a flat-bottomed boat, built mainly for river and canal transport of heavy goods. Some barges are not self-propelled and need to be towed by tugboats or pushed by towboats...
s.
Guernsey
In the Sarnia Skittles League of GuernseyGuernsey
Guernsey, officially the Bailiwick of Guernsey is a British Crown dependency in the English Channel off the coast of Normandy.The Bailiwick, as a governing entity, embraces not only all 10 parishes on the Island of Guernsey, but also the islands of Herm, Jethou, Burhou, and Lihou and their islet...
, the teams are made up of 6 players playing 6 legs of three balls. Currently there are 3 leagues of 9 teams and each Team plays the others 3 times during the season. Season runs from September to April.
Other
The game is also very common in the southwest countiesCounties of the United Kingdom
The counties of the United Kingdom are subnational divisions of the United Kingdom, used for the purposes of administrative, geographical and political demarcation. By the Middle Ages counties had become established as a unit of local government, at least in England. By the early 17th century all...
of Cornwall
Cornwall
Cornwall is a unitary authority and ceremonial county of England, within the United Kingdom. It is bordered to the north and west by the Celtic Sea, to the south by the English Channel, and to the east by the county of Devon, over the River Tamar. Cornwall has a population of , and covers an area of...
, Devon
Devon
Devon is a large county in southwestern England. The county is sometimes referred to as Devonshire, although the term is rarely used inside the county itself as the county has never been officially "shired", it often indicates a traditional or historical context.The county shares borders with...
, Dorset
Dorset
Dorset , is a county in South West England on the English Channel coast. The county town is Dorchester which is situated in the south. The Hampshire towns of Bournemouth and Christchurch joined the county with the reorganisation of local government in 1974...
. In Dorset some games are played by bowling a technique known as the 'Dorset flop'. This is where the bowler crouches on the alley and throws himself and the ball forward landing on his stomach and letting the ball go between two bowling lines. In some parts of Somerset
Somerset
The ceremonial and non-metropolitan county of Somerset in South West England borders Bristol and Gloucestershire to the north, Wiltshire to the east, Dorset to the south-east, and Devon to the south-west. It is partly bounded to the north and west by the Bristol Channel and the estuary of the...
the ball has to hit a pitch plate (a diamond painted on the alley)in order for it to be a legal ball. It is also popular in South Wales
South Wales
South Wales is an area of Wales bordered by England and the Bristol Channel to the east and south, and Mid Wales and West Wales to the north and west. The most densely populated region in the south-west of the United Kingdom, it is home to around 2.1 million people and includes the capital city of...
.
South Wales
In the Cardiff and District skittles league the teams are made up of 12 players playing 5 legs of three balls. The league was founded in 1909 and is still very popular in the region with 10 men's divisions.Other leagues within the Cardiff area are The Cardiff Combined clubs league with 9 men's and 9 women's divisions and the Whitchurch and district skittles league
In the Newport and District skittle league (started abt 1927) the teams are made up of 12 players playing in groups of four v four (three sections) each playing 3 legs of 3 balls, the league did have 7 men's divisions of up to 15 teams but now down to 4 divisions (2009/10)
They also play in the summer (started abt 1979) a mixed league that are the same rules. And a Conservative league, however the scoring is slightly different. 1 point for each leg and 2 points for the game.
British rules variants
Front pin first:In this variant of the game, pins are only counted if the front pin is knocked over first. If the front pin is missed, any pins that are knocked over are not reset. In Devon Summer League, this rule is played frequently. In Bristol, this is the form of the game played and "all in" skittles tends to be looked down upon as involving less skill. In Worcestershire this type of game is also known as king pin.Nomination:In this variant of the game, the player has to nominate the pin that will be hit first before the throw. Unless this pin is knocked over the player will not score. The names given to the pins may vary from region to region, in Wiltshire they are usually referred to as "front pin", "front right quarter", "front left quarter", "outside right" (or "right winger"), "centre pin", "outside left" (or "left winger"), "back right quarter", "back left quarter", and "back pin".
Four-pins:In this variant of the game, only four pins (the two coppers, the front and back pins) are put up and must be hit with the front pin first. It is often used in conjunction with nomination as well. Currently used in North Somerset Cup games.
London Bridge:A variant of nomination but with only the landlord and two coppers set up, i.e. one has to hit a pin with each ball and nominate which one each time.
Killer or German skittles: A game for any number of people. Each starts with 3 lives. Each bowls only one ball at a time. The first bowls at a full frame and the skittles are not stuck up until all nine are hit down. Each time a player fails to hit a single pin (but they can hit as many as they like), he or she loses a life. The winner is the last one left with a life intact. Usually played for money, e.g. £1 or 50p a game each player - the winner takes the pot. Found in the Somerset and Bristol areas.
Six-ball Westbury:Another game for any number of people. Each player has one hand of 6 balls at a full frame. If all nine pins are knocked down within the hand then they are reset, meaning that a player may score anywhere between 0 and 54. The winner is the player with the highest score. Similar to killer in that it is usually played for money with the winner taking the pot.
France
Jeu de quilles de neuf ("nine-pin skittle game") of FranceFrance
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, also known simply as quilles de 9 or just quilles, is a complicated variant with similarities to both British skittles and petanque
Pétanque
Pétanque is a form of boules where the goal is, while standing inside a starting circle with both feet on the ground, to throw hollow metal balls as close as possible to a small wooden ball called a cochonnet or jack. It is also sometimes called a bouchon or le petit...
. It is popular only in the southwest of the country. It is an indoor game which is played on a hard-packed surface. The skittles are placed on a square court, each resting on a round piece of wood called pitere or pitet, 2.20 m apart from each other. A skittle measures about 96 cm and weighs 3 kg, and is made of beech
Beech
Beech is a genus of ten species of deciduous trees in the family Fagaceae, native to temperate Europe, Asia and North America.-Habit:...
wood. The bowl (ball) weighs about 6 kg and has a 30 cm diameter; it is made of walnut
Walnut
Juglans is a plant genus of the family Juglandaceae, the seeds of which are known as walnuts. They are deciduous trees, 10–40 meters tall , with pinnate leaves 200–900 millimetres long , with 5–25 leaflets; the shoots have chambered pith, a character shared with the wingnuts , but not the hickories...
wood. There is also an eight-pin version, quilles de huit (8), and a version played with a mallet, quilles au maillet, which is obviously related to ground billiards and its variants such as croquet
Croquet
Croquet is a lawn game, played both as a recreational pastime and as a competitive sport. It involves hitting plastic or wooden balls with a mallet through hoops embedded into the grass playing court.-History:...
and paille-maille, and which has experienced a resurgence in Gascony
Gascony
Gascony is an area of southwest France that was part of the "Province of Guyenne and Gascony" prior to the French Revolution. The region is vaguely defined and the distinction between Guyenne and Gascony is unclear; sometimes they are considered to overlap, and sometimes Gascony is considered a...
since 1973.
Germany, Central Europe, and the United States
The German sport kegeln or nine-pin bowlingNine-pin bowling
Nine-pin bowling is a bowling game played primarily in Europe. European championships are held each year. Over 90,000 members are on teams in Germany, often playing in officially registered Bundeskegelbahnen to be found in almost every sizable town...
is played with nine pins, in broadly organized leagues and is also popular in many other countries with long German connections, including Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
, Switzerland
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
, Serbia
Serbia
Serbia , officially the Republic of Serbia , is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeast Europe, covering the southern part of the Carpathian basin and the central part of the Balkans...
, Slovenia
Slovenia
Slovenia , officially the Republic of Slovenia , is a country in Central and Southeastern Europe touching the Alps and bordering the Mediterranean. Slovenia borders Italy to the west, Croatia to the south and east, Hungary to the northeast, and Austria to the north, and also has a small portion of...
, Croatia
Croatia
Croatia , officially the Republic of Croatia , is a unitary democratic parliamentary republic in Europe at the crossroads of the Mitteleuropa, the Balkans, and the Mediterranean. Its capital and largest city is Zagreb. The country is divided into 20 counties and the city of Zagreb. Croatia covers ...
, Hungary
Hungary
Hungary , officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is situated in the Carpathian Basin and is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine and Romania to the east, Serbia and Croatia to the south, Slovenia to the southwest and Austria to the west. The...
and Liechtenstein
Liechtenstein
The Principality of Liechtenstein is a doubly landlocked alpine country in Central Europe, bordered by Switzerland to the west and south and by Austria to the east. Its area is just over , and it has an estimated population of 35,000. Its capital is Vaduz. The biggest town is Schaan...
. The game was once also the dominant bowling game in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
(but today only survives in rural Texas
Texas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
), and also led to an Australian variant.
Ireland
The Irish sport is a game played with five 3 inches (76.2 mm) pins and three 9 inches (228.6 mm) pieces of wood (skittles). Pins are numbered from 1 to 5, each representing a number of points. Throwers must toss the skittles towards the pins over a distance of approximately 8 metres (this varies from countyCounties of Ireland
The counties of Ireland are sub-national divisions used for the purposes of geographic demarcation and local government. Closely related to the county is the County corporate which covered towns or cities which were deemed to be important enough to be independent from their counties. A county...
to county
County
A county is a jurisdiction of local government in certain modern nations. Historically in mainland Europe, the original French term, comté, and its equivalents in other languages denoted a jurisdiction under the sovereignty of a count A county is a jurisdiction of local government in certain...
) in order to score points with the aim to scoring exactly 41. Points are recorded in descending order. If a player should score too many points ("go bust", as in darts
Darts
Darts is a form of throwing game where darts are thrown at a circular target fixed to a wall. Though various boards and games have been used in the past, the term "darts" usually now refers to a standardised game involving a specific board design and set of rules...
) they return to a score of 9 left, unless their previous score was above this in which case they return to that score.
The game is played frequently in pubs
Public house
A public house, informally known as a pub, is a drinking establishment fundamental to the culture of Britain, Ireland, Australia and New Zealand. There are approximately 53,500 public houses in the United Kingdom. This number has been declining every year, so that nearly half of the smaller...
and Gaelic athletic
Gaelic games
Gaelic games are sports played in Ireland under the auspices of the Gaelic Athletic Association. The two main games are Gaelic football and hurling...
clubs in various parts of the island with team leagues and cup matches.
Australia
In some parts of AustraliaAustralia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
, a version known as kegel
Kegel (bowling)
Also spelled Kegeln.Kegel is an Australian bowling game, in which a player rolls a wooden or plastic ball along a smooth, hard indoor lane . The object of the game is to knock down the nine kegels at the other end of the lane. Kegel is based on traditional German games and is therefore closely...
is played, strongly influenced by German nine-pin bowling
Nine-pin bowling
Nine-pin bowling is a bowling game played primarily in Europe. European championships are held each year. Over 90,000 members are on teams in Germany, often playing in officially registered Bundeskegelbahnen to be found in almost every sizable town...
or kegeln.
Glossary
- Any Old How - the term used to describe a ball that has missed its intended target, but has knocked over quite a few pins that count towards the score.
- Backboard - a small optional plank behind the player and/or playing mat- some players like to rest their heels on it during play.
- Ball - the wooden ball rolled at the skittles.
- Beaver - when a player knocks down no pins in a hand.
- Birdie - Worcestershire term for the pin in the centre of the frame, immediately behind the front pin. Also known as "bird in the cage" or the "Landlord".
- Bobby - Also known as the front or king pin.
- Bolter (South Wales) - a ball that fails to hit any pin.
- Broken frame - a frame with some pins knocked over.
- Cheese - a round, flattened wooden discus (often made of lignum vitaeLignum vitaeLignum vitae is a trade wood, also called guayacan or guaiacum, and in parts of Europe known as pockenholz, from trees of the genus Guaiacum. This wood was once very important for applications requiring a material with its extraordinary combination of strength, toughness and density...
), shaped like some types of cheese, which in some variants of the game is thrown instead of rolling a ball. It may also be rolled, like the oblate ball used in the game of bowlsBowlsBowls is a sport in which the objective is to roll slightly asymmetric balls so that they stop close to a smaller "jack" or "kitty". It is played on a pitch which may be flat or convex or uneven...
. It is particular used in deck skittles. - Chute - see Trough.
- Copper - the pin on the extreme left or right of the frame. In Worcestershire the term 'Copper' is an alternative name for the front pin or 'King' as it's also known.
- Cush - the rails on either side of the alley, usually made from timber. Some alleys have ditches/gutters instead (similar to ten pin bowling).
- Cush ball - a ball that is bowled & hits the cush. In most variants of the game the pins that are then knocked down are not counted in the players score (see also sidey)
- Cut - when the ball hits the side of a pin.
- Dam Busters - The theme of which is hummed loudly in unison when a player accidentally bounces a ball down the alley!
- Ditch - an area behind the pins that has been dug into the floor. It catches the pins that are knocked down.
- Down - the scores for all players in one set during a single hand, combined, e.g. "we just got a 24 down"
- Duck - a player's score when he or she doesn't knock down any pins on their turn.
- Fat Annie - Bristol and Somerset term for the middle pin, as in Birdie above.
- Flattener - a ball that knocks down all nine pins.
- Flopper - when a player knocks down all nine pins with one ball or cheese.
- Flopper ball - the ball that achieves a flopper
- Floorer (South Wales) - when a player knocks down all nine pins with one ball
- Foul - a ball delivered illegally over the foul line
- Frame - the full set of pins (usually nine) standing upright.
- Front-for-one - (Bristol) Where the front pin is struck without felling anything else with a single ball.
- Good strike - Denotes when after the first ball the remaining Pins stood up are able to be knocked down with the second ball for a spare.
- Hand - a player's turn at the game
- Hill gap - The Gap between the front pin and the front quarter pin
- King pin - (Worcestershire) The pin at the front of the frame. Also name of type of skittles where front pin has to be floored before any pins count
- Landlord - the pin in the centre of the frame, immediately behind the front pin. Also known as "bird in the cage".
- Line - the mark on the alley that denotes where the ball must be delivered (before the line in Worcestershire, in - between two lines in Bristol etc.)
- Linesman - A member of the opposing side tasked with watching the Line for foul balls
- Long Three - the term used to describe three pins that are situated in a straight line when they are the only pins left standing & the player is trying to hit them down.
- Leg - known as a set elsewhere comprising 6, 8, 9, 10 or 12 players.
- No Ball - same as foul.
- Old Market - (Bristol) Where the three front, middle and back pins are all felled by a single ball. Considered bad luck as it offers a poor remaining frame.
- One ball skittler - (Bristol, Worcestershire) Where a player uses only one ball to good effect. Frowned on by purists.
- Over - same as foul.
- Pin - a skittle.
- Pit - same as Ditch.
- Pitch - the long rectangular strip along which balls are thrown and at the end of which the pins stand
- Plate - the strip on the floor which the balls have to hit when they leave the skittlers' hands. In Worcestershire,Bristol and North Somerset the plate is the square which the pins are stood on.
- Punch - when the ball hits the pin dead centre & ploughs through afterwards knocking down the pin behind but not the pins either side.
- Quarter - the two pins to either side and behind the front pin
- Red Arrows - Front pin and the next two skittles left and right of it plus the third pin behind the front pin
- Running three - three pins running diagonally left to right or right to left.
- Set - three or four players who play against the opposing teams set
- Sidey - a ball played that hits the side of the alley.
- Skittle alley - a long narrow building in which skittles is usually played.
- Skittle may be an onomatopoeic word that describes the noise made when the skittles fall.
- Skittler's Nine - (Worcestershire) A term given to a nine achieved where a spare has not been possible, i.e. when the front pin has punched the middle and the back pin out.
- Spare - when a player knocks down all nine pins with 2 balls, allowing a third throw with the pins re-set.
- Split - The pins left after the first ball has been played.
- Spider (Worcestershire) - when a player fails to knocks down any pins in a hand with his or her three balls.
- Spot - The marks on the plate which the pins are placed.
- Sticker or sticker-up - a person who puts knocked-over pins back upright.
- Strike - hitting over all the pins within one turn.
- Sunshine (New South Wales) - same as spider
- V/c - used to denote a beaver or sunshine when chalking, also an alternative for those names in North Somerset - said to stand for "very close"
- Trough - a feature on most skittle alleys (constructed out of wood or plastic with a slope)that is used by the sticker-up to return the balls to the players end of the alley for the next go.
- Winger (Worcestershire) - Either of the two pins at the extreme right and left of the frame.
- Wraxall 8 (North Somerset) - used to denote when a player scores 8 with the front pin still standing
Table skittles
Table-top versions of the game also exist. These include:- Hood skittles: a miniaturized version in which the pins are on a special table which is closed on three sides with a leather hood; a 'cheese' is thrown at the pins underarm
- Devil among the tailorsDevil among the tailorsDevil among the tailors is a pub game which is a form of table skittles.The game involves 9 small skittles arranged in a 3 x 3 square, usually within a shallow open-topped wooden box sitting on a table-top. The wooden ball hangs from a string or chain attached to the top of a vertical wooden post...
: another miniaturized version, in which a small ball is attached by a chain or string to a vertical pole, allowing it to be swung through the air in an arc to strike the pins.
Hood Skittles
In the English MidlandsEnglish Midlands
The Midlands, or the English Midlands, is the traditional name for the area comprising central England that broadly corresponds to the early medieval Kingdom of Mercia. It borders Southern England, Northern England, East Anglia and Wales. Its largest city is Birmingham, and it was an important...
, specifically Northamptonshire
Northamptonshire
Northamptonshire is a landlocked county in the English East Midlands, with a population of 629,676 as at the 2001 census. It has boundaries with the ceremonial counties of Warwickshire to the west, Leicestershire and Rutland to the north, Cambridgeshire to the east, Bedfordshire to the south-east,...
, Bedfordshire
Bedfordshire
Bedfordshire is a ceremonial county of historic origin in England that forms part of the East of England region.It borders Cambridgeshire to the north-east, Northamptonshire to the north, Buckinghamshire to the west and Hertfordshire to the south-east....
, Buckinghamshire
Buckinghamshire
Buckinghamshire is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan home county in South East England. The county town is Aylesbury, the largest town in the ceremonial county is Milton Keynes and largest town in the non-metropolitan county is High Wycombe....
, Leicestershire
Leicestershire
Leicestershire is a landlocked county in the English Midlands. It takes its name from the heavily populated City of Leicester, traditionally its administrative centre, although the City of Leicester unitary authority is today administered separately from the rest of Leicestershire...
and east Warwickshire
Warwickshire
Warwickshire is a landlocked non-metropolitan county in the West Midlands region of England. The county town is Warwick, although the largest town is Nuneaton. The county is famous for being the birthplace of William Shakespeare...
, nine skittles are placed on a hooded table, hence the name "hood skittles". The hood skittles table is leather bound, and has leather- to the sides and the back, with a curved hood of leather or netting stretched up from the rear like a pram
Baby transport
Baby transport consists of devices for transporting and carrying infants. A "child carrier" or "baby carrier" is a device used to carry an infant or small child on the body of an adult...
, approximately a metre over the of the table. Behind the area where the skittles are laid out in a diamond is a lower surface or trough. The table playing surface stands about 1 metre high and the thrower about 3 metres from the front of the table when in a pub around Leicester
Leicester
Leicester is a city and unitary authority in the East Midlands of England, and the county town of Leicestershire. The city lies on the River Soar and at the edge of the National Forest...
or Rugby
Rugby, Warwickshire
Rugby is a market town in Warwickshire, England, located on the River Avon. The town has a population of 61,988 making it the second largest town in the county...
, or about 3.3 metres when playing in Northhamptonshire or Buckinghamshire. The player throws oblate "cheeses" rather than spherical
Sphere
A sphere is a perfectly round geometrical object in three-dimensional space, such as the shape of a round ball. Like a circle in two dimensions, a perfect sphere is completely symmetrical around its center, with all points on the surface lying the same distance r from the center point...
balls, similar to those used in the game of bowls
Bowls
Bowls is a sport in which the objective is to roll slightly asymmetric balls so that they stop close to a smaller "jack" or "kitty". It is played on a pitch which may be flat or convex or uneven...
.
The skittles are about 15 cm high, square at the bottom but widening higher up then tapering to a shallow point, which leaves them slightly top heavy. Traditionally the skittles and the cheeses are made of English hardwood. The cheeses measure about 10 cm across, and 4 cm high, one and a half inches high.
For each turn a player throws 3 cheeses at the skittles which start standing in the classic diamond pattern. If all the skittles are toppled after the first or second throws, they are reset and the player throws his remaining cheeses at the newly set skittles, adding his scores together. Theoretical a player might knock down all nine skittles with the first throw and do the same on their second throw, offering the possibility of the skittles being set up a third time for the final cheese and a maximum theoretical score of 27 points.
It is permitted for the players to bounce the cheese off the cushioned side walls and in some places bouncing the cheese off the rear wall is also permitted. In most versions, the toppled skittles are left where they lie while the player continues to throw the rest of their skittles, though in some areas in Leicestershire and Rutland players remove dead skittles before each new throw. Once the player has thrown all three cheeses his total is noted and the skittles are all set up afresh for the next player.
The area around the table where one or two members of the opposition stand in order to manage the table (i.e., standing up skittles once three throws have been made or removing dead skittles) is known as the woodyard.
Scattles and smite
Scattles is a version of skittles in which all the pins are numbered. Players take turn in throwing the baton at the pins with a view to totalling exactly 50 points. If more than one pin is knocked over, the score received is that quantity of pins. But if only one pin is knocked over, the value on it is scored. If a player exceeds 50, their total reduces to 25. Pins are then placed upright where they stand, thus scattering. Scattles is made by Jaques of LondonJaques of London
Jaques of London, formerly known as John Jaques of London and Jaques and Son of London is a long-established family company that manufactures sports and game equipment...
and reminiscent of the older Cornish
Cornwall
Cornwall is a unitary authority and ceremonial county of England, within the United Kingdom. It is bordered to the north and west by the Celtic Sea, to the south by the English Channel, and to the east by the county of Devon, over the River Tamar. Cornwall has a population of , and covers an area of...
game, smite, itself based on the Finnish
Finland
Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside...
skittles game
Finnish skittles
Finnish skittles is a centuries old game of Karelian origin. The aim in Finnish skittles is to throw wooden skittle bats at skittles, trying to remove them from the play square using as few throws as possible...
mölkky
Mölkky
Mölkky is a Finnish throwing game invented by Tuoterengas company in 1996. It is reminiscent of kyykkä, a centuries old throwing game with Karelian roots. However, mölkky does not require as much physical strength as kyykkä, and is more suitable for everyone regardless of age and condition...
.
External links
- International Federation of Bowlers (FIQ, Fédération Internationale des Quilleurs) – A team's views on the physics and other scientific aspects of English skittles.
- Wellington (Somerset) Mens Skittles League