British Tenpin Bowling Association
Encyclopedia
The British Tenpin Bowling Association (BTBA) is the official governing body of ten-pin bowling
in the United Kingdom
. It is the official sanctioning body, recognised by FIQ
, the sport's world governing body, for all competitions, leagues and tournaments held in the UK, and is the organisation responsible for the protection, integrity and development of the sport. It also oversees coaching for tenpin bowling at all levels, and is the official awarding body for formal coaching qualifications. The BTBA also publishes Go Tenpin, a monthly magazine to keep members up to date with the latest news in the sport.
The current chairman of the BTBA is Mrs Pat White.
. The two principal American manufacturers of tenpin machinery - AMF
and Brunswick
- had expanded their operations to the UK when it became apparent that they had virtually saturated their home market in the USA at the end of the 1950s. The American Bowling Congress (ABC) took an interest in this expansion and helped British bowlers to set up their own governing body.
The BTBA was formed on 26 May 1961 The General Secretary was Maurice Glazer, at that time a professional photographer in Dalston
, East London. His shop became the first official residence of the Association. One of its original roles was to provide official recognition for newcomers to the fledgling sport of tenpin bowling as it grew in popularity across the UK.
It standardised rules and playing regulations, laid down guidelines and provided an independent governing body to which reference could be made in the event of disagreement.
The rule-book was copied almost verbatim from the ABC version. The annual membership subscription was five shillings), which at the prevailing exchange rate was the Sterling equivalent of the ABC's annual subscription of US$1. With about half-a-million members the ABC found this rate to provide them with adequate funds, but it was insufficient to run the BTBA, given that only a few thousand British bowlers were members.
Authority was delegated to each of the counties under the auspices of local area representatives. Some of the area representatives soon came into conflict with the bowling centre proprietors, for example insisting on costly re-surfacing of lanes, which they argued was unnecessary. The proprietors rebelled and set up their own rival organisation, the Tenpin Bowling Proprietors Association
(TBPA), in 1967. An Annual General Meeting
of the BTBA saw this conflict rise to a head and most of the governing council resigned, leaving Glazer to regroup and bring back all decisions to the BTBA head office. It took several years to achieve a rapprochement with the proprietors.
Glazer continued to follow his instincts in what he believed to be the best interest of British bowlers, became President of FIQ and was awarded an MBE
for his service to the sport.
The BTBA has continued to have a considerable impact on the sport.
Ten-pin bowling
Ten-pin bowling is a competitive sport in which a player rolls a bowling ball down a wooden or synthetic lane with the objective of scoring points by knocking down as many pins as possible.-Summary:The lane is bordered along its length by semicylindrical channels Ten-pin bowling (commonly just...
in the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
. It is the official sanctioning body, recognised by FIQ
Fédération Internationale des Quilleurs
The Fédération Internationale des Quilleurs is the world governing body of nine-pin and ten-pin bowling...
, the sport's world governing body, for all competitions, leagues and tournaments held in the UK, and is the organisation responsible for the protection, integrity and development of the sport. It also oversees coaching for tenpin bowling at all levels, and is the official awarding body for formal coaching qualifications. The BTBA also publishes Go Tenpin, a monthly magazine to keep members up to date with the latest news in the sport.
The current chairman of the BTBA is Mrs Pat White.
History
The first British tenpin bowling centre opened at Stamford HillStamford Hill
Stamford Hill is a place in the north of the London Borough of Hackney, England, near the border with Haringey. It is home to Europe's largest Hasidic Jewish and Adeni Jewish community.Stamford Hill is NNE of Charing Cross.-History:...
. The two principal American manufacturers of tenpin machinery - AMF
American Machinery and Foundry
American Machine and Foundry or AMF was founded in 1900 and was once one of the largest recreational equipment companies in the United States.-History:...
and Brunswick
Brunswick Corporation
The Brunswick Corporation , formerly known as the Brunswick-Balke-Collender Company, is a United States-based corporation that has been involved in manufacturing a wide variety of products since 1845. Brunswick's global headquarters is in the northern Chicago suburb of Lake Forest, Illinois...
- had expanded their operations to the UK when it became apparent that they had virtually saturated their home market in the USA at the end of the 1950s. The American Bowling Congress (ABC) took an interest in this expansion and helped British bowlers to set up their own governing body.
The BTBA was formed on 26 May 1961 The General Secretary was Maurice Glazer, at that time a professional photographer in Dalston
Dalston
Dalston is a district of north-east London, England, located in the London Borough of Hackney. It is situated northeast of Charing Cross. The area is identified in the London Plan as one of 35 major centres in Greater London...
, East London. His shop became the first official residence of the Association. One of its original roles was to provide official recognition for newcomers to the fledgling sport of tenpin bowling as it grew in popularity across the UK.
It standardised rules and playing regulations, laid down guidelines and provided an independent governing body to which reference could be made in the event of disagreement.
The rule-book was copied almost verbatim from the ABC version. The annual membership subscription was five shillings), which at the prevailing exchange rate was the Sterling equivalent of the ABC's annual subscription of US$1. With about half-a-million members the ABC found this rate to provide them with adequate funds, but it was insufficient to run the BTBA, given that only a few thousand British bowlers were members.
Authority was delegated to each of the counties under the auspices of local area representatives. Some of the area representatives soon came into conflict with the bowling centre proprietors, for example insisting on costly re-surfacing of lanes, which they argued was unnecessary. The proprietors rebelled and set up their own rival organisation, the Tenpin Bowling Proprietors Association
Tenpin Bowling Proprietors Association
The Tenpin Bowling Proprietors Association is the trade association for the Ten-pin bowling industry in Great Britain. Formed in 1961, along with the British Tenpin Bowling Association, and in response to the rapid development of this sector, the TBPA was formed as an umbrella organisation...
(TBPA), in 1967. An Annual General Meeting
Annual general meeting
An annual general meeting is a meeting that official bodies, and associations involving the public , are often required by law to hold...
of the BTBA saw this conflict rise to a head and most of the governing council resigned, leaving Glazer to regroup and bring back all decisions to the BTBA head office. It took several years to achieve a rapprochement with the proprietors.
Glazer continued to follow his instincts in what he believed to be the best interest of British bowlers, became President of FIQ and was awarded an MBE
MBE
MBE can stand for:* Mail Boxes Etc.* Management by exception* Master of Bioethics* Master of Bioscience Enterprise* Master of Business Engineering* Master of Business Economics* Mean Biased Error...
for his service to the sport.
The BTBA has continued to have a considerable impact on the sport.