Bowling Average Calculator

1. Add up the scratch scores from every game you want to include and enter the total.
2. Enter how many complete games that total covers.
3. Optionally enter the score of your next game to see how it moves your average.
4. Optionally enter a target average to see the single-game score you need to reach it.

A bowling average is the mean scratch score of a bowler across a set of games. It is the single most important number in league bowling because it is used to place bowlers on teams, to set handicaps, and to decide which divisions and tournaments a player can enter.

Leagues record the average as a whole number and drop any fraction rather than rounding it. A bowler with 1,650 pins over 9 games has an exact mean of 183.33, and the recorded average is 183. Even 183.99 is still recorded as 183, which is why a single good game near the end of a season can matter so much.

Because the average covers every game in the period, it smooths out hot and cold nights. A new bowler with only a handful of games will see the average jump around, while a bowler with a full season of 90 or more games will find that each new game moves it by only a pin or two.

1. Add the scratch score of every game to get total pinfall.
2. Divide the total by the number of games.
3. Drop everything after the decimal point to get the recorded average.
4. To test a new game, add its score to the total and one to the games, then divide again.

The target calculation runs the same formula backwards. The pins you need after your next game are the target multiplied by the new number of games, so the score required is that figure minus the pins you already have. If the answer is above 300 the target cannot be reached in one game.

A league bowler has knocked down 4,560 pins over 30 games. Dividing 4,560 by 30 gives exactly 152, so the recorded average is 152. If the next game is a 180, the new total is 4,740 pins over 31 games, an exact average of 152.90 that is still recorded as 152.

To reach a 155 average after that game, the bowler needs 155 multiplied by 31, which is 4,805 pins. That is 245 more than the current 4,560, so a 245 game would do it. The example shows how slowly a large sample moves: a good 180 barely shifts a 30-game average.

Number of Games

The more games in the total, the less any single game changes the average.

Consistency

Converting spares steadily raises an average more reliably than chasing strikes.

Lane Conditions

Oil patterns vary between centres and leagues, so averages from a tough sport pattern are usually lower than house-shot averages.

Which Games Count

Leagues normally count only sanctioned league games, not practice or open play.

Typical recorded averages on a standard house pattern. Ranges vary between centres and leagues.

Your average also sets your handicap, which you can work out with the percentage calculator or the dedicated handicap tool linked below.

Joining a League

Secretaries ask for an established average to place you and set your handicap.

Tracking Progress

Recalculate after each night to see whether practice is paying off, in the same way a golfer tracks progress with a golf score calculator.

Setting Goals

Use the target field to see what a realistic next game needs to be, much as darts players plan a finish with a dart checkout calculator.

1. Rounding Up

League averages drop the fraction, so 183.9 is 183, not 184.

2. Adding Handicap Scores

Use scratch scores only; handicap pins are not part of your average.

3. Counting Incomplete Games

A game abandoned part-way should not be included in the total.

4. Mixing Periods

Keep last season and this season separate unless your league says otherwise.

The calculation is exact arithmetic on the numbers you enter; the result is only as correct as your total pinfall and game count.

Divide your total pins by the number of games and drop the fraction. 4,560 pins over 30 games is a 152 average.

No. Leagues truncate, so an exact mean of 183.9 is recorded as 183.

Many leagues use 12 or 21 games, but the number is set by your league rules, so check with the secretary.

Around 160 to 189 is a solid league average on a house pattern, and 200 or more is a strong one.

No. Your average is based on scratch scores; handicap is added separately and is worked out from the average.

It depends on how many games you have. After 9 games a 210 can lift it three pins; after 90 games it may not move at all.

Multiply your target average by your games plus one and subtract your current pins. The answer is the score you need.

The averaging method is the same, but the level bands on this page are for ten-pin bowling.

No. Everything is calculated in your browser and nothing you enter is stored or sent anywhere.

• Ten-pin bowling (Wikipedia).
• United States Bowling Congress (Wikipedia).
• Glossary of bowling (Wikipedia).
• Arithmetic mean (Wikipedia).