CELPIP Reading Part 3 Practice Test: Five-Pin Bowling: A Toronto Original

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Bowling has been played in one form or another for centuries, but one version of the game is almost entirely Canadian. Five-pin bowling was created in the early 1900s by Thomas F. Ryan, who ran a bowling club in downtown Toronto. According to the story usually told, some of his customers, many of them businessmen who dropped in during their lunch hour, complained that the traditional ten-pin game was too tiring and took too long. Ryan responded by having a set of ten-pin pins shaved down to a smaller size and replacing the heavy ball with one that fit in the hand. The result was a lighter, faster game that could be enjoyed during a short break from the office.

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The equipment is what sets five-pin apart from its older cousin. The ball is small enough to be held in the palm of the hand, has no finger holes, and weighs less than two kilograms. The pins are smaller as well, and each one has a thick rubber band around its widest part, which makes the pins bounce and scatter in lively ways when they are struck. The lanes, however, are the same length as ten-pin lanes. As a result, many bowling centres in Canada are able to offer both games under one roof, sometimes switching some of their lanes from one game to the other.

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Scoring is also quite different. The five pins are set up in a V shape, and they are not all of equal value: the centre pin, known as the head pin, is worth five points, the two pins beside it are worth three points each, and the two pins at the corners are worth two each, for a total of fifteen. Instead of the two balls allowed in ten-pin, a player gets three balls in each of the game’s ten frames. Knocking down all five pins with the first ball is a strike, and because strikes earn bonus points, the highest possible score is 450. A perfect game is extremely rare, and many keen bowlers never manage one.

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Today, five-pin bowling is played almost exclusively in Canada, and for many Canadians it brings back childhood memories of birthday parties, school outings and Saturday-morning youth leagues. Because the ball is so light, even young children can play the same game as adults. However, the number of bowling centres has dropped over the past few decades, as rising costs and changing leisure habits forced many to close their doors. Those that remain have looked for new ways to bring in customers, adding music and coloured lights for evening “glow bowling,” as well as expanded food and drink menus. Supporters argue that the game is a piece of Canadian heritage worth keeping alive.