How Rare Is a 900 Series? What It Takes to Strike 36 Times in a Row

On November 7, 2026, John Martorella Sr. finished a tournament at Domm’s Bowling Center in Rochester with a 300 game. A few lanes over, Steve Meyer bowled a 300, too. The difference was that Meyer had already bowled two more.

Ironically, of all the people there that Saturday, Martorella knew exactly what it felt like. He’d shot 900 in the same building just 14 years earlier.

After that, we couldn’t help but wonder just how rare a 900 series really is. Very. In almost three decades, only 43 bowlers have had one approved by USBC.

If USBC approves Meyer’s series, he’ll be the 44th bowler on the list. His 900 would be the 45th because Robert Mushtare did it twice. Read BowlingLife’s report from Rochester.

What does it take to bowl a 900 series?

Three games, 12 strikes apiece, all in the same set. The cruel bit is the last ball. You can throw 35 straight strikes, put the 36th ball in the pocket, leave a single pin and walk away with an 899. You might never get another shot at a perfect series.

Meyer's series was not the only one this year. In June 2026, Texas bowler Dylan Macon opened league night with two 300s. In the sixth frame of game three, he threw a shot he didn’t like and tripped the 2–8. Both pins fell, and the run stayed alive. By the tenth, he’d given himself something smaller than 900 to think about: beating the city record. Three strikes later, he was on his knees at South Plains Lanes.

What are the chances of bowling a 300 game or a 900 series?

Your strike rate is how often you strike on a full rack of pins. Strike six times in ten attempts and your strike rate is 60%.

The same bowler can have a different strike rate depending on the oil pattern. On a forgiving house shot, you can miss your target by a board or two and still find the pocket. On a tougher sport pattern, that same miss might leave you a spare. The more room you have to miss, the more often you can expect to strike.

Pick the row closest to your strike rate on the lanes you’re bowling on. Each estimate assumes your chance of striking stays the same from shot to shot, regardless of the previous result. More on the odds of bowling a 300.

Are bowlers shooting more 900s than they used to?

The busiest decade so far was the 2010s, when 21 series made the list. January 2016 alone produced two in three days. Michigan’s David Sewesky struck 36 times on January 10. Pennsylvania’s Dale Gerhard did it on January 12.

Equipment and lane conditions make for a good debate at the settee. Those totals alone can’t tell us how much either contributed. The first period covers just three years, the current decade is still underway, and the list records only approved scores. One of the most famous 900s of all is missing from it.

Why does the list start in 1997?

On July 1, 1982, Allison rolled three perfect games at La Habra Bowl in California. The dispute was over the oil on the lanes. After an inspection, the American Bowling Congress ruled that the conditions fell outside its specifications and declined to certify the score. A federal court upheld the decision. USBC reviewed the case again in 2014 and left the ruling in place.

That left the first line in the record book open for Jeremy Sonnenfeld. On February 2, 1997, the 20-year-old Nebraska bowler shot 900 in Lincoln. He even had to change pairs between games, finding the pocket on six different lanes. 

The teenager who did it twice and the pro who struck 37 times

Robert Mushtare was 17 when he rolled his first approved 900 at Fort Drum, New York, in December 2005. By February he had another. He’s still the only name that appears twice on the USBC list.

At the other end of the age range is John Buchanan III. He was less than three weeks shy of 71 when he shot his 900 in Evansville, Indiana, in 2017.

Then there’s Norm Duke, who bowled three straight 300s on the PBA Tour in 1996. His first two closed one round and the third opened the next. That split kept the games from counting as one series.

The first official PBA 900 actually came in PBA50 back in 2013, when Joe Scarborough opened an event in Florida with three perfect games. He struck on his first ball of game four, too. A split finally stopped him at 37.

Back in Rochester, Meyer already had more than 250 perfect games to his name. You might think the toughest part for someone with that much experience would be the very last shot. But Meyer told that, apart from the final frame, it was the first three frames of game three that gave him the most trouble. He had 24 strikes behind him, people were watching, and suddenly the first frame felt a lot like the tenth.

Every USBC-certified 900 series

These are the 44 approved series on USBC’s published list as of November 10, 2026. The location is the state where each series was bowled. Approval would make Meyer’s Rochester score the 45th certified series and Meyer the 44th bowler on the list.

900 series FAQ

How many bowlers have an official 900 series?

As of November 10, 2026, 43 bowlers account for 44 USBC-certified series because Robert Mushtare rolled two. If approved, Steve Meyer would be the 44th bowler with the 45th series.

What are the chances of bowling a 900?

At a constant 60% chance of striking on each independent shot, the chance is about one in 97 million three-game sets. The actual frequency among league bowlers is unknown.

Who bowled the first approved 900 series?

Jeremy Sonnenfeld bowled it on February 2, 1997, in Lincoln, Nebraska. Glenn Allison shot 900 in California in 1982, but the American Bowling Congress declined to certify it.

Can three straight 300s ever fall short of an official 900?

Yes. Norm Duke bowled three consecutive 300s on the PBA Tour in 1996. Two came at the end of one round and the third opened the next, so they counted in different sets.