in the US and 79 overseas. When Goldman Sachs acquired the company in 1996, its strategy was to clean up purchased properties and create a national chain of amusement complexes. That year, the company bought Bowling Corporation of America from closely held Charan Industries, adding 50 more bowling centers. In that same year it purchased 43 centers from American Recreation Centers. In 1997, the company acquired 15 centers from Conbow Corporation. By the start of 1999, AMF Bowling operated 421 centers in the United States, 46 in Australia, 37 in the United Kingdom, and 41 in eight other countries. After emerging from bankruptcy in 2005, the company sold its centers in Australia and the United Kingdom in 2004 and 2005. When it entered bankruptcy for the second time in 2012, the company observed, “In the 1960s and 70s… the typical bowler was a blue collar factory worker who belonged to one or more bowling leagues. Today’s typical bowler comes from a broader swath of the middle-class, and is unlikely to bowl in a league. Non-league bowlers bowl less often. And when they do bowl, they expect nicer amenities – automatic scoring, a variety of food and beverage options, and more attractive facilities.” As evidence of the shift, the company noted that, “according to the United States Bowling Congress, in 1998 the nation’s three largest league bowling organizations had over 4.1 million members. Just a decade later, membership had declined by 36% to 2.6 million.” To respond to the change in the average bowling customer, AMF constructed nine upscale 300 Centers with “high-end bars and lounges designed with a modern décor” that drew “significant business through group events.” However, the Great Recession of 2008 eroded AMF's ability to maintain and enhance its 262 existing US bowling centers and meant that people were bowling less often. At the time of the bankruptcy filing, AMF owned 27 bowling centers, leased 186 bowling centers through agreements with iStar Financial, and leased 57 under agreements with various other parties. The 2013 merger brought the remaining US and Mexico centers under the control of a new entity, Bowlmor AMF (now known as Bowlero Corporation), making it the largest owner and operator of bowling centers in the United States. In the three years prior to the reorganization, AMF Bowling had closed nine owned US centers and 33 leased US centers due to "declining operating performance, unattractive options