Where All High Scores Are Made

  For such a small device, and its decidedly simple application, the WAHSAM is beginning to create some serious buzz. The name is an acronym for “where all high scores are made,” and higher scoring is the unabashed aim of inventor John Jameson.

  WAHSAM is essentially a steel screw jack strategically placed under a lane’s flat gutter to give rigid support to the thin and (relatively) weak material. It significantly increases the gutter’s coefficient of restitution (in non-engineering terms, its ability to bounce an object that hits it), causing any pin that lands there to rebound—in a very lively manner. “I can actually drop a pin on the flat gutter and the pin will ricochet across the pin deck,” says Earl Berger, who put WAHSAMs under his 32 lanes at ABC North in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania.

  The concept is extremely simple, so simple that the USBC may not be able to do anything about it, even if WAHSAM were to usher in the next round of through-the-roof scoring.

  Most flat gutters are mounted on three cross members: at the start of the pin deck (where the round gutter ends); at the back of the deck; and in the middle. But there are about two feet between cross members, and those two feet allow a lot of “give” at the point where a pin lands. With the piece of flat gutter removed, the device—adjusted to a height one quarter inch higher than the material’s bottom—is placed just behind the four-six pin line. When the flat gutter is screwed back down, it presses firmly on the WAHSAM. The gutter material, which now has solid steel between it and the concrete floor, can no longer “give,” and pins bounce almost as though they were dropped on the concrete itself.

  Jameson, who also owns Innovative Bowling Products, came up with the idea some five years ago. He installed prototypes in his Columbia Bowling Center in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, then sat back and watched scores escalate. Knowing he had a winner, he applied for a patent, came up with a final product, and late last year went to the USBC for approval.         

  After some back and forth communication, the Specifications and Certification department determined that it has no jurisdiction in this area. “We do not standardize installation procedures,” says research engineer Paul Ridenour, who likens it to mounting a kickback plate on an extremely solid wall—the more solid the platform, the greater the coefficient of restitution and the more the pins bounce.

  And those proprietors are pretty well unanimous. Terry Brenneman, owner of Colony Park Lanes in York, Pennsylvania, is completely sold. “The number of award scores has definitely increased,” he says, pointing out that it’s the average bowler who has benefited the most, especially when it comes to spares. “It turns a lot of multi-pin spares into single-pin spares,” he says. Berger agrees. “I see more breakups of 2-4-5s and buckets. One of the pins falls because of a pin that bounced out of the gutter.”

  Berger’s had about four years to observe the effects of WAHSAM. “In 2006-07, we had more award scores than any center in our association,” he says, “and we used to be one of the worst scoring houses.” He says that shortly after the devices were installed, the house record of 869 was set.

  As of early May, only about a dozen centers had installed WAHSAM, according to Jameson. But those that have claim a significant boost in scoring. Here’s one testimonial he says is verbatim: “I noticed a big difference in shots that were not flush. Light hits mixed better and high hits were less susceptible to leave splits. We recently had a 164 average straight baller shoot 704.”

  And another: “Before installing WAHSAMs we averaged eight award scores per year. In the 12 months since they were installed, we had 278 award scores. It is by far, the best investment we ever made for our center!”

  Berger echoes that thought. “Our customers are happier, and it’s showing up in our retention rate,” he says. “If a bowler shoots that occasional 600, he or she is more likely to feel good about the game, and return. I’d do this again in a heartbeat”

  Jameson calls himself a purist at heart, and admits that he has “mixed feelings” about the impact his invention may have on the game. But he says to keep the rank-and-file bowler, a center must produce the scoring the customer expects. “You can have a great center, but if people are not bowling at a level they believe is their potential, they’re going to be miserable.”

  So the USBC is evaluating flat gutters. But even if it establishes a CoR standard for them, the big question is “how can that standard be enforced?” After all, this is an after-market application, and as Boje points out, it’s impractical to have an army of inspectors in the field, making sure that there are no supports, WAHSAM or otherwise, under the flat gutters. That would mean local association officials might have to bear the responsibility of pulling out gutter sections to see what’s underneath.

  Jameson believes his invention doesn’t really push the envelope. “We’re just doing it the right way,” he says. “You’re just tightening up your flat gutters. You’re stiffening them up.” So, armed with a letter stating that the USBC neither regulates nor certifies installation procedures, he’ll continue selling WAHSAMs, and making sure pins ricochet around decks all over the world.