As in do you have to have enough people to make a team ? How many on a team ? Or can you get put on a team ?

I only bowled one league back in the 80's and it was on a military base so things may have been non standard.

it seems like one team is always short a bowler, let the league know before hand you are bowling solo and they can hook you up with that team.

While it's nice to have people you know to bowl on a team with, it's not a necessity. Like Brad said, there is often at least one team short a bowler. The amount of bowlers on a team is dependent on how the league is set up. I've seen leagues that were singles all the way up to 5 person teams.

Some of the best friends I have or will ever have came from bowling, so don't be afraid to jump in by yourself, we won't bite... much

Bowling centers are always looking for bowlers. Sometime this summer, go to the desk and tell them that you're looking to join a league. Tell them what you average and what type of league you're looking for. They'll either know of teams that are looking for people, or tell the officers of leagues so that they can find a team for you.

If I moved to a new city and didn't know anyone, that's exactly what I'd do.

Same here. Four years ago when I decided I wanted to get back into bowling after being out of it for more than a decade, I just went to the bowling alley and found out the date and time of the meeting of the league I wanted to join. Then I went to the meeting, joined up with a great group, and went from there. Once people got to know me I was asked to be on other teams and sub in other leagues over the next couple of seasons.

It was a little different this year when I moved to a different area. Since bowling at my old center was out of the question, the new one I talked to the manager about getting into the most competitive leagues. He hooked me up with a team on Monday nights, again a great group of guys, and we nearly won the whole thing. Now that people know me I'm being asked to bowl other nights, sub for other teams, and have been invited to join a team that's going to Nationals in 2010.

That's usually the way it happens when you come into a new area. Don't be afraid of walking in cold to a league meeting and telling the secretary you want to bowl. They'll put you on a team, and it's almost guaranteed most of the bowlers have been in your shoes at one time.

Of course it can be a [censored] shoot, and the opposite of the success stories read here. You can be put on a team with people you don't click with for one reason or another and going to league will seem like a chore, but it might open up other chances. I've only had it work out twice out of four times. It was my team that needed a bowler(s) though.

One time we only needed one bowler, and there was a guy who's team from the previous season broke up and we knew him already so it wasn't a problem. The second time was when we were two bowlers short when two bowlers decided not to bowl that season for personal reasons. A few people got a couple of newbies that were willing to bowl but were easy to get a long with most of the time.

The other two times was a different league in back to back seasons. After have seven people bail out on two spots we started league short the first season. A bowler without a team was willing to join our team, but didn't have his gear since he thought it was just going to be a meeting and never came back. The following season the two bowlers we finally did get decided not to return the following season. We picked up a couple bowlers the first week, but one really only wanted in the brackets but didn't want to pay for a spot and was a bit of a prima donna. The other would call us saying he wouldn't be able to make it, then he could, and then finally decided to quit for some reason or other.