Spare Tire Meaning in Bowling

A spare tire is a slang term for a game where a bowler fails to get a single strike but picks up many spares. While the score can still be respectable it lacks the high-point “bursts” that come from consecutive strikes. This term compares the round to a backup plan that keeps the car moving but isn’t as fast as a regular tire. Therefore a spare tire game proves a player is consistent even if they aren’t hitting the pocket perfectly. For example he called his 180-point game a spare tire because it was made entirely of clean spares. A spare tire is a game filled with spares but lacking any strikes. He called his 180-point game a spare tire because it was made entirely of clean spares.