What do you think constitutes a fair handicap?

[J Anderson]

on that sheet, 0 out of 100 won with 80% handicap. but in my above post about my g/f's team, they're team was in the bottom 3rd of a 20 team league in team average, and they won the championship.

I'm sure that the study didn't take the results from every certified league over a 4 year period. It is also possible that there were a few winners among the lower average teams, but so few compared to the sample size that the percentage rounds to 0.
That is a great story about your girlfriend's team. Everyone likes to see David beat Goliath with the probable exception of Yankee fans.

[martin]

90% of 200 for example. this means if your average is less than 200, you get 90% of the difference

so say your average is 150. the difference between 200 and 150 is 50. so you would get 90% of 50=45 pins handicap.

so if your a 150 against a 200, your only 5 pins apart after handicap.

since it's 90% of 200, if someone averages say 220, and your a 150, you would still only get the 45 pin handicap.

sandbagging=douchebags who intentionally play ****ty when it doesn't matter to have a lower average than what they are actually capable of/should average.

I know I should average 150, but I throw the ball in the gutter on some spares the first 2 weeks so my average for the league is 120. I get more handicap than i would at 150. after those 2 weeks I start throwing the 150 that I know I can average, but rather than "just hitting my average" I'm doing way better than average because I sandbagged it down.

thx 4 the explanation.. i think its fairer this way.. i don't know in other parts of my country, but in my city, they use a fix set of handicap based on grade.. Open = 0 handicap; Grade A = 5-10 handicap; grade B = 15-20 handicap..sort of unfair sometimes..

hmm sandbagging, can't they be prevented? for example, we know this bowler spares well.. then we he misses spares, can't he be suspected?

[chrono00]

hmm sandbagging, can't they be prevented? for example, we know this bowler spares well.. then we he misses spares, can't he be suspected?

some leagues will have rules against sandbagging resulting in suspensions ect.

but you'd have to have multiple people filing complaints with evidence blah blah, so it's tough to get anything done sometimes

othertimes, the people running the leagues are either sandbaggers themselves so they don't wanna punish it.

...or they just don't give a ****

[martin]

some leagues will have rules against sandbagging resulting in suspensions ect.

but you'd have to have multiple people filing complaints with evidence blah blah, so it's tough to get anything done sometimes

othertimes, the people running the leagues are either sandbaggers themselves so they don't wanna punish it.

...or they just don't give a ****

hmm... this type of ppl exist everywhere seemingly..

[J Anderson]

thx 4 the explanation.. i think its fairer this way.. i don't know in other parts of my country, but in my city, they use a fix set of handicap based on grade.. Open = 0 handicap; Grade A = 5-10 handicap; grade B = 15-20 handicap..sort of unfair sometimes..

hmm sandbagging, can't they be prevented? for example, we know this bowler spares well.. then we he misses spares, can't he be suspected?

The problem is that not all sandbaggers are obvious about it. It isn't all missing the five pin when the game is in the bag. the devious ones will switch to a ball that's not right for the lane condition, or move to a line that's not right, so it looks like they're still trying to bowl well and just getting lousy breaks.
And most of us don't want to wrongly accuse anyone of sandbagging, because most of us have gotten up and blown games that were going well by making simple mistakes

[MICHAEL]

I am new at bowling just started two years ago at age 61. I had bowled a few times back in the 70's with my mother/fater on a league with my wife. It was 80% on those
leagues. I think handicaps are ok, but not real fair for a bowler like me. I have a 182 average, but on any given weekend I can bowl a high 600 series. The other day, well a few weeks ago I bowled a 692 series, and have (last June on league) boweled a 298, even got a trophy at the end of the season for high game scratch, ((but that is with a group of bowlers over 60!! And there are some darn good bowlers on that league. getting back to the subject, my opinion is that bowlers should bowl scratch, but organize the
leagues such that you bowl with a group that is in your bowling range, or age group. Bowling on any given night can be explosive, even if your and average bowler! If it seems
more fair, esp when bowling for big prize money, then I think the 80 percent rule should rule! Just and old X Iron Workers opinion~ ( personally I don't care for handicap), but then I bowl on 3 times a week for fun!

[Okiebowler]

Handicaps should be based near the highest average of the league. If that is 250, then handicaps should be based at a percentage from 250.
What is a fair percentage? Handicap golf leagues usually use 90%. This seems fair for bowling. This gives higher handicaps teams a fair chance of winning a league if they work at their game and improve.

[billf]

Handicaps already favor the person/team with the highest handicap. The higher the handicap the better the chance of improving. I won most improved average my first two years. If I could raise my average another 30 pins again, that would be amazing. How is a bowler who is always around average suppose to beat a bowler who is getting 30 pins over their average per game? I'm all for handicaps but realize that the bowlers with the big handicap should be able to beat me fairly easily.

[TheSheibs]

I actually think that no handicaps should be used. I think that gives a person the mindset to think that as long as they are within so many pins they win. It's almost a gimme, in my opinion. My team lost three out of four last week because the other team had a 83 pin handicap. We won the scratch but with their handicap added lost some. Granted we didn't do that hot but still....If they are going to do handicaps then it should be no more than 50 or 60 pins. Anything more than that is ridiculous.

Also by giving a team/person the handicap pins added to their score. Is that really encoruaging them to try to improve? If they can win by having a high handicap, what's the point of trying your best?

[bowl1820]

I actually think that no handicaps should be used.

I looked at your profile says you have a 140 average, I wouldn't cast stones, You're getting a lot handicap yourself, shoot you'd be one of the ones the higher averages would be complaining about having too much handicap.

As for complaints about handicap, I'll fall back here on the old tried and true answer. Go bowl on a scratch league.

I know what everyone will say "Well we don't have scratch leagues here". Well if all the bowlers who are complaining would go to the house and say we want to start a scratch league you might get one started.

But nobody will do it.