Bowling handicap calculator
Work out a bowling handicap from an average for any percentage and basis (90% of 220, 100% of 220, 80% of 210), with a cap or negative handicap, and a chart.
Handicap per game
63
189 over a 3-game series · (220 − 150) × 90%
How to calculate a bowling handicap
- 01Take the league's basis score (say 220) and subtract the bowler's average.
- 02Multiply by the league's percentage (say 90%).
- 03Drop any fraction: that's the handicap added to every game.
The formula
Handicap = (basis − average) × percentage, with the fraction dropped. A 150 average in a 90%-of-220 league gets (220 − 150) × 0.9 = 63 pins a game.
USBC lets each league choose its own percentage and basis (Rule 100d-2), but if the league's rules say nothing, a handicap league must use 100%. USBC recommends a basis above the highest entering average, so nobody starts at zero.
Bowling handicap chart
| Average | 90% of 220 | 100% of 220 | 80% of 210 | 90% of 230 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 100 | 108 | 120 | 88 | 117 |
| 110 | 99 | 110 | 80 | 108 |
| 120 | 90 | 100 | 72 | 99 |
| 130 | 81 | 90 | 64 | 90 |
| 140 | 72 | 80 | 56 | 81 |
| 150 | 63 | 70 | 48 | 72 |
| 160 | 54 | 60 | 40 | 63 |
| 170 | 45 | 50 | 32 | 54 |
| 180 | 36 | 40 | 24 | 45 |
| 190 | 27 | 30 | 16 | 36 |
| 200 | 18 | 20 | 8 | 27 |
| 210 | 9 | 10 | 0 | 18 |
| 220 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 9 |
| 230 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
When it changes
A bowler's handicap is recomputed from their average every week. The handicap for a night always comes from the average before that night: bowl a big series and next week's handicap drops, not this week's.
Until a bowler has an average in the league, the handicap comes from their entering (book) average. A bowler with no average at all establishes one in their first session (USBC Rule 108c).
Caps, negative handicaps and teams
- A cap (e.g. no more than 80 pins) keeps a new bowler's handicap from swinging a match.
- A negative handicap takes pins off bowlers averaging above the basis: 100% of 200 with a 220 average gives −20. USBC allows it; USBC also notes that some secretary programs don't support it. Bowling League Online does.
- Team handicap is the sum of the bowlers' handicaps in the lineup that night, including absentees' and vacancies'.
Run your league in the browser
Scores on any phone or computer, USBC rules, a standings page for your bowlers. One league of up to 4 teams is free.
Questions
What is 90% of 220 for a 160 average?
(220 − 160) × 0.9 = 54 pins a game, or 162 over a three-game series.
Is the handicap rounded?
No: the fraction is dropped. (220 − 109) × 0.9 = 99.9 is a handicap of 99, the way league standing sheets show it.
What handicap does an absent bowler get?
Their own. An absentee score is the bowler's average minus 10 pins (USBC Rule 112), plus their usual handicap.
What about a vacancy?
USBC's default vacancy score for adult leagues is 120; many leagues set their own (140 or 150). Leagues usually give the vacancy the handicap of an average equal to that score.