How to Play Alley Skittles

By Jaques of London · Est. 1795 · Updated 2026-08-17

Alley Skittles is an indoor bowling game for two to twelve players, played on a long narrow lane called a skittle alley. Nine pins are arranged in a diamond formation at one end; players take turns attempting to knock down as many as possible using a wooden ball or a flat disc called a cheese, either rolled along the alley floor or swung on a suspended cord depending on the local variant.

The game rewards a mix of accuracy, consistency and tactical nerve, which is why it has remained a fixture in pub games leagues across the West Country, the Midlands and beyond. It scales effortlessly from a casual two-player knockabout to a full twelve-player team match, and the simple scoring system means anyone can follow the action without needing to keep complicated notes.

A little history

Skittles is one of the oldest documented pub games in Britain; written references to pin games of this type appear from the seventeenth century onward, and the game is widely noted in Victorian social histories as a staple of inn yards and purpose-built alleys attached to public houses. The specific alley format, as distinct from outdoor or table variants, became particularly entrenched in the West Country and parts of the Midlands, where dedicated leagues were running by the late nineteenth century. Beyond that broad outline the precise origins of the alley format are unclear, and local rules still vary considerably from region to region.

Setting up

1. Clear the alley and check the surface is level and free of debris.
2. Place the pin mat at the far end of the alley, centred on the lane.
3. Set nine pins on the mat in a diamond formation: one pin at the front (nearest the bowler), two in the second row, three in the third row, and two pins plus the kingpin in the fourth and fifth positions. Confirm the diamond apex faces the bowler.
4. Mark or agree the bowling line at the near end of the alley. No part of the bowler's foot may cross this line during delivery.
5. Decide the number of rounds to be played (league standard is typically three balls per turn, three turns per player per leg, two legs per match, but agree this before play begins).
6. Determine the batting order. A coin toss or mutual agreement is fine; in team play, alternate home and away bowlers each turn.
7. Designate a pin-setter for the first leg, or agree to share the duty in rotation.

How to play

1. The first player in the order steps up to the bowling line and takes their allotted balls (standardly three per turn).
2. They roll or deliver the ball down the alley toward the pins. The ball must travel along the alley floor; lobbing is not permitted.
3. Count and record the number of pins knocked down on the first ball. Any pin that falls and then stands back up, or rebounds from the side boards and knocks another pin, counts as down if it is flat or clearly off its spot when play stops.
4. The pin-setter resets only the pins that are still standing after each ball. Fallen pins are removed from the alley and not replaced until the bowler has used all three balls for that turn.
5. The second and third balls are delivered in the same manner. Record cumulative pin count for the turn.
6. A spare (all nine knocked down across two balls) and a strike (all nine on the first ball) are recognised in some local scoring systems; agree before play whether bonus rules apply.
7. After the player completes their three balls, the pin-setter resets all nine pins fully for the next player.
8. Play passes to the next player in order. Continue until all players have completed the agreed number of turns.
9. In team play, tally each team's total pins at the end of each leg. The team with the higher total wins that leg; match victory usually goes to the best of two legs, with a deciding third leg if required.
10. If a ball leaves the alley entirely before reaching the pins, the delivery is void and the ball is not replaced. The bowler loses that ball.

Winning and scoring

The winner is the individual or team with the highest total pin count at the end of the agreed number of legs. In casual play, simply add up all pins knocked down across all turns; the highest aggregate wins. In more formal or league play, each leg is scored separately and the player or team winning the most legs takes the match. Where a scoring variant awards bonus points for strikes (nine down on one ball, sometimes called a flopper) or spares (nine down across two balls), those bonuses are added to the pin total before comparison. Tied scores at the end of regulation play are typically resolved by a single sudden-death extra end, with each player or one representative per team bowling one ball; highest pin count wins, and if still level, play continues until the tie is broken.

The fine points

The most common dispute concerns the fallen-pin rule. A pin is counted as down only if it is horizontal or clearly displaced from its spot when the ball comes to rest and all motion on the alley has stopped. A pin leaning against the backboard but still technically upright is not counted as down. If the pin-setter accidentally knocks a standing pin while clearing fallen ones, that pin is reset and not counted. Any pins disturbed by a dead ball (one that has left the alley and returned) are also reset without credit.

Foot-faulting at the bowling line is the other regular flashpoint. The standard ruling is that if any part of the bowler's foot crosses the line during the delivery action, the ball counts as a dead ball and the delivery is lost. In social play this rule is often applied only on the first offence with a warning, but in league or competitive settings it should be applied strictly from the first delivery. Agree the house rule on this before play begins to avoid arguments mid-match.

How to win more often

• Target the front pin (headpin) slightly off-centre rather than dead-on. A direct centre hit often produces a split that leaves pins standing in the rear rows.
• Watch where your misses go. If you consistently leave pins on the left, adjust your starting position at the bowling line slightly to the right before your next ball.
• In a team match, put your most consistent scorer last in the order. Knowing the target total adds useful pressure and your steadiest player handles that better than your biggest hitter.
• Do not over-swing for power. On a wooden alley, a firmly rolled ball at medium pace has more directional control than a hard throw, and control beats brute force almost every time.
• Study the pin-setter's reset. Pins placed even slightly off their spots change the geometry of a good strike line. If you notice a misplaced pin before you bowl, it is within your rights to ask for a correct reset.

Variations

Long Alley Skittles

Common in parts of the West Country, Long Alley uses a longer lane of roughly 24 feet and a larger, heavier cheese rather than a round ball. The cheese is skimmed along the floor rather than rolled, demanding a distinctive low, flat delivery. Scoring rules are broadly the same but the increased distance makes consistent strikes considerably harder, and league play in this format is treated as a distinct discipline from standard Alley Skittles.

Roller Skittles (Table Variant)

Played on a compact table-top alley rather than a full-length floor lane, Roller Skittles uses a small rubber or wooden ball on a string attached to a central post. The ball is swung around the post to knock the pins, rather than rolled down a lane. The core objective of clearing all nine pins in the fewest throws remains the same, but the swinging mechanic makes it a distinct game suited to smaller spaces such as pub corners or living rooms.

Devil Among the Tailors

A table skittles variant in which the nine pins are arranged in a tight square formation and the ball hangs on a cord from a gallows-style post. The player swings the ball outward and lets it arc back into the pins. The name is traditionally associated with this particular tabletop format. Scoring is by total pins knocked down across a set number of swings, and the compact setup makes it one of the most portable skittles formats available.

Team Skittles with Handicap

Used in mixed-ability league play, this variation assigns each player a handicap based on their rolling average from previous sessions. A weaker player's raw pin total has a set number of bonus pins added before the team total is calculated. Handicaps are reviewed at the end of each full league round and adjusted accordingly. This format keeps matches competitive when teams have significantly different skill levels and is common in pub leagues that run across a full season.

Alley Skittles: frequently asked questions