No-Tap Bowling – Everything You Need to Know

Are you tired of playing the same 10-pin bowling ball? Yes, it is kind of tedious to do the same thing repeatedly. And here is where no tap bowling comes to play its part. It is a special rule that is helpful for beginner or less skilled bowlers to score similar to a pro bowler. Let’s dive into the web of no-tap bowling. I’m sure it will add a lot of fun to your typical bowling game. 

How Actually No-Tap Bowling Works?

All of the thoughts racing through your mind can lead to one major question: what is no-tap bowling? Well, it is a special rule game where you get a strike by hitting fewer than 10 pins. Usually, you will score more if you hit a strike. But that is not what everyone can do. 

So, it would be easier to score in bowling if you made a rule that you knock down 9 pins instead of 10, and that is called a strike. And that special rule is called “no tap bowling.” In this case, A “strike” is when you hit a certain number of pins, and the frame is done. 

Is No Tap Same As Regular Bowling?

In terms of how it is played, it is the same as traditional bowling. But the scoring system is a bit different. Instead of knocking 10 pins, You can get a strike even if you knock down less than that 

Usually, hitting 9 pins is the standard no tap. But it can be 8 pins as well. Thus, hitting a strike and scoring more is easier, and it adds fun to the game, except for that you have to play with the same bowling lane and ball.

What’s The Point Behind No-Tap Bowling?

The straightforward answer is to make bowling interesting. As a beginner, hitting a strike is something you always dream of. Now the question is, is it easy? Indeed the answer is NO. However, you can make some changes in the game to help enhance the scoring opportunity. For the less-skilled bowlers, these rules are mostly about giving them a good chance to score without too much trouble 

Strikes can be made if you hit more than 10 pins, not necessarily just 10. That is the case for less-skilled bowlers or for those who want to make the game simpler. In contrast, some pro bowlers use no tap in a different way. For example, if hitting 9 pins out of 10 is called a strike, then hitting all 10 pins is called gutter or score zero. 

Scoring In A No-Tap Bowling Tournament

Scoring is the main reason to change the rules to no-tap bowling. If you know how bowling scores work, this is almost similar with some tweaks. First of all, scoring is similar to the 10 pins bowling; your score is the number of pins you knock down. 

But the variation in the bonus points. For example, hitting a strike is not the same. You do not have to knock all 10 pins to score a strike in this case. Instead of that, it is considered a certain number of pins, usually 9 pins. And for the spares, you have to knock that certain number of pins within a frame to get the bonus. 

Are There Any Additional No-Tap Formats?

Generally, there are two types of no-tap formats. For beginners, hitting the specific number off the pins or above, is called strike, and the frame is considered complete. This is an easy format that plays in amateur tournaments to score more and make the game exciting. 

However, there is another format for the pro bowlers. In this format, hitting the exact number of pins is only called strike above, considered gutter. For example, if you are playing 9-pin no-tap, knocking down all the 10 pins is foul, this gives you zero points. 

Do You Know What 9-Pin No-Tap Bowling Is?

It is the most popular no-tap bowling game. Here hitting 9 pins is the way to get bonus points. Except for that everything is all the same including the bowling lane, ball, distance, etc. 

Very often some local and amateur tournaments use this format. Because it is easy to score, the games become interesting, and both the audience and players feel great excitement. 

How Does 9-Pin No-Tap Work?

This format also consists of 10 bowling pins per frame. But instead of knocking down 10 pins, you can get a strike or spare just by knocking down 9 pins. For example, knocking 9 pins or above is called strike, and new rack sets for the next frame. The rule is the same for spares. 

However, hitting less than 9 pins in a frame is still the same as 10-pin bowling. But in some cases, hitting more than 9 pins is considered gutter or zero points. And it is harder and requires a lot of skills to play bowling with this rule. 

Know About 9-Pin No-Tap Rules

Irrespective of the formats, either you knock down 9 or 10 pins, both count as a strike. And you know how strike impacts the scoreboard. Also, spares count on a total of 9 balls knocked within a frame. Except for that, everything else is similar to the 10-pin bowling game. 

However, you may be thinking about the difference between 9-pin bowling and 9-pin no tap bowling. Well, there are 9 pins in the pin spot in 9-pin bowling, but the no-tap has 10 bowling pins, but the scoring is different. 

Conclusion

So, that was all about no tap bowling. Since bowling isn’t one of the top popular games in the world yet, this no-tap format can make the game more interesting and attract more people into the bowling industry. 

No tap bowling is a gift for beginners. If they can score similar to a pro bowler, it will give them the motivation to play full-fledged bowling in the next step. Also, the hard method of this no-tap bowling is what can show some extraordinary skills of pro bowlers because you have to knock a specific number of pins to get a strike except all the pins.