Duckpin bowling has been a part of Butler for decades, but its days here might be numbered.

The Knights of Columbus Hall on North Street is being sold to First United Methodist Church in February and the status of the six-lane duckpin bowling center in the basement remains in limbo.

"I'm trying to get the church to buy the bowling center and keep it intact," said K of C president Mitch Natali. "It'd be great for use by youth groups and other organizations.

"There's a concern about lane maintenance and other things. ... The church just isn't certain it wants to take on all of that."

Natali is the chief negotiator in the sale. He said K of C members maintain the bowling center and oil the lanes on their own.

Duckpin bowling has existed in Butler since the 1940s. The K of C has housed numerous leagues over the years and as many as four leagues still use the facility today.

If the church doesn't buy the lanes, Natali has other options. Freeway Lanes in Zelienople has expressed interest in buying the lanes and some individuals are exploring the possibility of buying the equipment and opening a duckpin bowling center elsewhere in town.

"Nobody has any formalized plans in place that way yet," Natali said. "Finding an available building is an issue."

Ginger Martin has worked the concession area of the duckpin bowling center for 15 years.

"A couple of leagues have already dropped out because they know we're selling it," Martin said of the center. "I already feel lost without them."

Duckpins are much smaller and are shaped differently from regular bowling pins. The balls are made of wood and are about the size of bocce balls.

Perfect games are rare in duckpin bowling. No perfect game has been rolled at the K of C lanes.

"The record here is somewhere between 260 and 270," said Ed Schott, 80, a former league regular, "Lamont McCandless had a chance to break it one night. He needed one pin on his last ball and he threw it in the gutter.

"There's a lot of history here. Duckpin bowling is a great game. It'd be a shame to see it go away."

But the sport is on life support. Duckpin bowling still exists in Franklin. There is a center in McKeesport as well, but not in many other Western Pennsylvania towns.

Dan Kos has been a duckpin bowler for 10 years and leads the Armco League with a 154 average. That league began play Sept. 14 and wraps up Feb. 22.

"We usually bowl until April, but we curtailed this season because of the sale of the building," he said. "There's no guarantee the lanes will be available past February.

"Everyone's just waiting to see what happens."

Duckpin generally is cheaper than regular 10-pin bowling. The Armco League charges $8 per night. For $5, youths can bowl duckpins at the center for two hours at a cost of $5.

Bruce Ball has bowled at the K of C center for 45 years. His average is 103 this year and has been as high as 133.

"I used to do regular bowling, but it ruined my (duckpin) game," Ball said. "This is No. 1 with me. It's challenging. Our time together here is priceless."

"It's a darn good time," Kos said. "This is far from a serious league, yet the game is so much harder than bowling."

Schott began duckpin bowling at the center in the 1950s. His father did it before him.

"There used to be a waiting list to bowl here on Monday nights," he said. "There just wasn't room for everybody."

Seven people bowled each night with the top five scores being counted in league play, Schott said.

"This was a popular thing back in the day," he said. "A number of people still enjoy it because it's harder and more challenging than regular bowling.

"We've had a number of 200 games rolled here, but a 150-average is pretty good in this game."

Natali said the future of duckpin bowling will be determined in the next couple of months.

"It's all up in the air right now," he said. "There are numerous possibilities. We're trying to keep it here because we feel like it belongs here."

Those interested in entering negotiations for the lanes can call Natali at 724-283-4505.