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Nine-pin bowling (also known as ninepin bowling, nine-pin, kegel, or kegeln) is a bowling game played primarily in Europe. European championships are held each year. In Europe overall, there are some 130,000 players. Nine-pin bowling lanes are mostly found in Austria, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Belgium, Germany, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Estonia, Switzerland, Serbia, Slovenia, Croatia, Poland, North Macedonia, Hungary, France, Brazil and Liechtenstein.
In English-speaking countries, where Tenpin bowling (which originated in the United States) is dominant, facilities for nine-pin bowling are uncommon, though it remains popular in areas such as the Barossa Valley in South Australia where many German people settled in the 19th century. A modified version is played in the US state of Texas.
The nine pins are placed in a square shape whose diagonal coincides with the axis of the lane. In modern systems the pins are reset by a pinsetter which lifts up the pins, each connected by a string on top, and lowers them back into the square shape for the next throw. The pins usually have a weight of approximately .
The ball is in diameter and weighs approximately . (For younger or novice players, the ball is and weighs .) Unlike the ball used for ten-pin bowling, but like the ones used for other "small-ball" forms of bowling such as five-pin bowling, candlepin and duckpin bowling, the nine-pin ball has no finger holes, although there are also special balls with two finger holes designed for novice and amateur players.
Matches may be played by individual players, where the overall winner is the player with the most pins after all lanes are played, or in a team format.
Teams are composed of six players, with four players starting the match and two substitutions allowed. Players compete against each other for team points. A player who knocks down more pins on a lane gets one set point (each player gets a half point for a draw). The player with more set points after all four lanes are played gets a team point. If they have two set points each after bowling in each of the four lanes, the player with the higher total number of pins gets the team point. If they have the same number of pins, each team gets one-half team point. Players then rotate which member of the opposing team they play against. The team with more team points after all opponent pairings have been completed wins the match. Matches can end in ties.
League play is organized in many World Ninepin Bowling Association member countries, and national championships are held in many countries.
Today, nine-pin bowling has disappeared from all of the United States except Texas, where, by 1837, ninepin alleys were numerous enough that rather than a ban, the 1st Congress of the Republic of Texas chose to subject them to an annual tax of $150 (), and all forms of bowling have remained legal and subject to taxation in Texas ever since. By World War I most Texas bowling establishments, both private and commercial, had changed to ten-pin. However, nine-pin remained popular in predominantly German communities like Fredericksburg, New Braunfels and Bulverde, until the introduction of fully automated pin-setting machinery in the 1950s caused most of them to make the change as well. Those bowlers who still preferred the teamwork and camaraderie of nine-pins then moved to the nine-pins clubs in small outlying communities of Bexar, Comal, and Guadalupe counties.
The one exception to this is the last ball rolled by the last bowler in the frame. This bowler will receive credit for the number of pins knocked down. For example, if the last bowler has rolled their second ball for this frame, and three pins remain standing (six pins knocked down), that bowler will receive credit for those six pins, regardless if that bowler knocked these six pins down or not.
When a bowler takes a turn and knocks down the remaining pins, that bowler receives nine points for that shot, regardless of the number of pins knocked down to receive these nine points. If a bowler knocks down the remaining pins, except for the center pin, that bowler receives 12 points for that shot regardless of the number of pins knocked down to receive those 12 points.
Because bowlers face the pins their teammates have left, the better teams are those who have a mix of bowlers that can hit the left side, hit the right side, or can "roll ringers". This leads to specialization. A good team captain can also help their team by sending the bowlers in the order that maximizes their success.
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