The league will last for 6 weeks in total; each team will bowl for five regular season weeks and the top 8 teams will advance to play in one playoff week. League nights will begin Wednesday, March, 27th at 6:30 pm. Practice will start every week at 6:15 pm. We will alternate league nights every other Wednesday (see schedule).
Please show up on time. We start at 6:30pm whether you are there or not. If you're running late, your teammates can set you to "SKIP". This allows them to skip your turn until you arrive. You can catch up on your frames once you get to the bowling alley. If you arrive after the first game is complete you will receive a blind score of a net 190 for that game (your average minus 10 pins).
GAME PLAY
Each week you will bowl two games against a different opponent. Highest net (factors in handicap) team score of each game wins. You will receive 2 points for each game won, and 1 point for the overall total of both games; a possibility of 5 points per night. If teams are tied, the points will be split evenly. The standings will go in order of highest to lowest points; tiebreaker will be the total net pins.
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DROPPED SCORES
We only count 5 scores for each team for each game. Rosters are made up of 6 players, and you are encouraged to show up with a full team of 6. If and only if you have a full team of 6, the lowest net score will be dropped.
If you only have 5 bowlers on a given night and can't find a sub, all 5 scores will count. No score will be dropped. If you have 4 bowlers, you can play with one blind score and no scores will be dropped. If you have 3 bowlers, you can play with two blind scores and no scores will be dropped. You must have at least 3 players/scores present to avoid a forfeit. Players can always pre-bowl if they can’t be there on a league night.
All scores that are dropped will not count against your handicap. This is to avoid sandbagging. So, no need to throw all gutter balls to bring your handicap down! It won’t work.
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In simple terms:
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6 players - Drop the lowest net score, add the other 5 net scores to get your total.
5 players - No scores are dropped, add all 5 net scores to get your total.
4 players - No scores are dropped, add the 4 net scores + one score of net 190.
3 players - No scores are dropped, add the 3 net scores + two scores of net 190.
2 players - You'll have a lovely date, but you forfeit.
1 player - That's sad. You forfeit.
SUBSTITUTE PLAYERS
6 bowlers make up a full team. You cannot bowl with more than 6 people per game. If any of your teammates can not bowl, you can always bring substitutes to fill out your team. Subs do not have to be HH employees. There is no additional cost for the sub to bowl. First time subs will be given a handicap of 85 for guys and 95 for girls (based on league averages). If they fill in multiple times, their handicap will adjust accordingly. If you can’t find substitutes and have to bowl shorthanded, you must record at least 3 players’ scores to avoid a forfeit.
HANDICAP
Handicaps are determined by the difference between your scoring average and a base score of 200. For example, if your scoring average is 125 your handicap would be 75. This means that 75 pins will be added to your score after each game. Handicaps for previous league members will be determined by their career scoring average. New players can provide their approximate scoring average or they will be assigned a handicap of 85 for men and 95 for women. Handicaps will adjust in week 2 for new players and week 3 for veterans. They will adjust each week after to reflect your current average from this season
PRE-BOWLING
If you know in advance that you cannot make it to a given bowling night during the season, you can always go to Boston Bowl ahead of time and pre-bowl your 2 games. You just need to tell the front desk you are with the HH Bowling League and you are there to pre-bowl. Please make sure to take a photo of your scores and send them to Mike Schilling for the stat sheet.
PLAYOFFS
The top 8 teams (based on points) will make the playoffs. The playoffs will be played on one night. The 8 teams will be placed in a playoff bracket based off of the regular season standings. The 4 winning teams will advance to the final royal rumble game. For the final match, the scores will reset and those 4 teams will bowl one final game. The team with the highest net score will be crowned league champions, have their names etched into the trophy, the league t-shirts, and now the website, FOREVER.
GLOSSARY
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SCRATCH SCORE - This is the term used for the player's natural score with no handicap added.
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NET SCORE - This is the term used for the player's natural score plus their handicap.
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BLIND SCORE - When bowling shorthanded, your team will receive an automatic fill-in score of a net 190. This is called a BLIND SCORE. This is the missing player’s average score, plus their handicap, minus 10 pins. It doesn’t make a difference what the bowler’s average is, the blind score will ALWAYS BE a net 190. This score will not affect the missing player's handicap.