Split (ten pin bowling)
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A split is a term in ten pin bowling used to describe a number of situations where two or more pins remain standing after the first ball of a frame with a gap between them, when the headpin (the "number 1 pin") is no longer standing after the first ball's delivery.
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[edit] 7-10 split
The most infamous of splits is the 7-10 split, often called "goal posts" or "bedposts", where the bowler is left with the leftmost and the rightmost pin the back row (the number 7 and number 10) to knock down with a single ball to achieve a spare. One of a number of successful attempts to obtain this split was in the film The Big Lebowski.
The only way to pick this up is to let a pin fly back from the pit area. This is very difficult to achieve by itself as a pin flying out from the pit is a fairly rare occurrence. Sliding the pin directly will not work since the ball will fall off of the lane before it gets far enough aside the 7 or 10 pin to slide it directly across. Despite this fact, many television shows and movies over the years have depicted the 7-10 split being converted by directly sliding one pin into another. In each case, the "conversion" was rigged by either moving the sliding pin over on a deck without pin spots (giving the ball extra room to slide the pin sideways and making it look like the pin was spotted correctly) or by having some help (human or mechanical) from the pit to "slide" the pin over. Barring such "Hollywood magic" in real life, a freak bounce out of the pit is the only way to convert a 7-10 split.
[edit] 6-7 and 4-10 splits
It is possible to hit the pin on the back row (the 7 or the 10) by hitting the pin in the third row (the 6 or the 4) at a very fine angle.
[edit] 7-9 split
This is similar to the 7-10, as they are both splits with pins on the back row of the deck. It is also just about as difficult to convert, because they require a pin to bounce back from the pit.
[edit] 5-7 split
Similar to a 6-7 split, but since the pins are closer, the 5 pin does not need to be hit at such a fine angle to hit the 7 pin. Another rare method is to deflect an extremely light ball (under 10 lbs) between the two pins.
[edit] 5-7-10 split
Simliar to above, one must use a light ball (under 10 lbs) to deflect the 5 pin into either the 7 or 10 pin and deflect your ball off the 5 pin into the other back pin.
[edit] 3-7 split
Similar to a 5-7 split, but since the 3 is one row further from the 7 than the 5, you must hit the right side of the 3 pin at only a slight angle.
[edit] Baby split (3-10)
Thise is the easiest split to convert since you have two options. You can deflect the 3 pin into the 10 pin. The other option is to deflect the ball between the two pins. This can be achieved with a ball of any weight since the pins are close enough together.
[edit] Equivalent splits
Since the pins are set up as an equilateral trinangle (a Pythagorean Tetractys), identically spaced splits can occur on different parts of the lane. Converting them would be done in the same manner.
7-9 = 8-10, 4-6
5-7 = 2-6, 3-4, 4-9, 5-10, 6-8
3-7 = 2-10
3-10 = 2-7, 2-9, 3-8, 1-4, 1-6 (technically the last two are not splits)
[edit] "Field Goals"
In popular culture today, many people will call a ball rolled through the middle of a split a "Field Goal", coming from the fact that in American football, you must kick the ball through two huge metal poles to get a field goal.
[edit] Recorded 7-10 split conversions
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