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by Randy OoneyMy Nickel’s Worth by Randy Ooney
My Nickel’s Worth by Randy Ooney
Playoff
Even in the heat, summer always seems to fly by faster than winter in Minnesota. It won’t be long before league bowling will be gearing up for the long hard winter once again. Meanwhile, our professional sports teams are all on the sidelines wondering what it would be like to make the playoffs. I cannot see why it should be so difficult. Years ago Major League baseball had an American and National League. The two winners played each other in the World Series and pitchers took their at bats in all games. The NFL was similar, with only a championship game. The NHL had six teams and I think the league winner got the Stanley Cup.
Then commissioners, owners, and television stations realized that if they had a few playoff games, they could double the price of tickets, double the price of advertising, and double the size of their stock portfolios. So why not have a few playoff games. Give more teams a chance and inspire fan interest. The playoff games multiplied like rabbits; more and more teams had a chance. At one time there were 21 NHL teams and 16 of them made the “playoffs” every year. NFL Football continues to add divisions and wild card provisions with a tie breaking system that takes two years of college algebra to figure out. NBA basketball has to be careful that their playoff system does not overflow into the start of next season. Now Bud Selig has gotten into the act by adding another wild card in each league. We have no worries this year, but the Twins will rise again, and I can’t wait until Target field hosts a World Series game in November after a two foot snowfall. Remember Halloween of 1991. Drock was shoveling for four days.
In a month or so, most bowling leagues will be having a meeting. You know, that’s when team captains, officers, and other interested league members show up and argue about the length of the season, the price of bowling, ringer substitutes, lane conditions, food at last year’s banquet, food at the banquet two years ago, food at a banquet in 1968, and after lengthy discussions, the motions are tabled until next year’s meeting.
Now that I’ve warmed up the page, years ago most bowling leagues had a straight season, and the team with the best record was the champion. Sometime in the late 60’s or early 70’s, leagues started incorporating a split season with a year end championship rolloff. One flaw there was if the same team won both halves, they were named champions and no rolloff was held. A few years ago, I bowled in a league which had Roger Blad as secretary. He installed a system of three triads, and once a team won one, they were in and were not eligible for another. The fourth position was a wild card for the team with the best overall record that had not won one of the triads. Then a four team playoff was held on the last night. It was a round robin where each team bowled one game against each other team. You would need to consult the NFL for tie breakers. It gave more teams a chance, so you may want to mention it at your league meeting next month. That should keep the bar open late.
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