The Differences Between Candlepin Bowling and Ten Pin Bowling by
Demetrius Wilcox
11/1/13
2nd Period
Introduced just a few years before the standardization of ten-pin bowling, candlepin bowling became popular in Canada and the New England states. Comparing candlepin bowling to ten-pin bowling is like comparing baseball to cricket. While there are similarities, such as using ten pins and the same pin layout, there are many differences between the two sports.
The candlepin-bowling lane is similar to the ten-pin lane in length and width. It has gutters, a foul line and a pinsetter. However, the ten pin lanes are curved where it is difficult to roll the ball in a straight line. The candlepin lane has a level surface all the way across.
While there is one foul line in ten pins, there are three in candlepins. The first is the normal foul line where the bowler cannot step. The second is the lob line, which is ten feet from the foul line. Since bowlers can toss the ball rather than roll it, the ball must make contact before this line. The third line is in front of the number one pin. This is the dead wood line, which shows what toppled pins are legally playable.
Where ten pins have a distinct top and bottom, candlepins have a more cylindrical shape. Looking like candles, they are thinner than tenpins. Candlepins are taller than tenpins. However, they can weigh no more than two pounds eight ounces, where the ten pins weight more than three pounds.
While both forms of bowling use the same pin layout, it is more difficult to get a strike in candlepins. Since the pins in ten pins are heavier, when a well-placed ball hits one, this causes a domino effect by falling and hitting the other pins. In candlepins the pins do not fall as easy. Sometimes, because of their weight and shape, a pin may fall down and come upright again.
In ten pins, fallen pins are cleared away after the first attempt
