What to expect in a "PBA Experience" League

[Bendial]

Hi Guys,

I had my first lesson with a coach on Saturday and it was fantastic. Already seeing improvements in my game! Anyway, after the lesson, the league director of the center came by to try and get me into one of their leagues. She sold me on the PBA Experience League as they were looking for a few more low average players to fill some empty spots. It sounded like a lot of fun and I really like the center, and especially the people there, so I signed up! I'm a little nervous though because I don't even do that well on THS lol (still trying to get my average above 140, right now I'm around 130ish), so I have no idea what to expect. With a 130 average on THS I probably expect a 90-100 average in Sport shot. In my arsenal I have a DV8 Misfit, DV8 Marauder Madness, a Brunswick Meanstreak Brawler (THANKS BowlingBoards.com!!!!), and a plastic spare ball. I think the meanstreak and the marauder madness are probably going to be seeing the most play. Any advice on what to expect on these oil patterns?

[vdubtx]

I think your expectations going in should be to bowl as well as you can. The patterns are tough and demand accuracy. If you get outside on most of the patterns your ball will likely not even get close to the pocket. With that said, you can learn a ton and improve a ton also as when you go back to a THS, you will have more accuracy on your shot and will see increase in your average. Be sure your spare game is up to snuff as that will be very important in the Sport conditions.

Most of all, just have fun. You aren't at the point(yet) to get discouraged with your games being low. Keep plugging away and do your thing.

[I suck at bowling]

Normally you should expect a drop of 10-30 pins in average, depending on the skill of the bowler. My sport average is about 8 pins lower, but I've seen bowlers with THS averages of 180 average in the mid 140s on sport shots. It all depends on the bowlers equipment, spare shooting, the ability to repeat shots, and the ability to adjust quickly.

Sport patterns are frustrating, but they will make you a much better bowler!

[Bendial]

Great advice thank you Gentlemen :) comfort and growth do not co-exist, and this applies to bowling as well :)

[TCJ]

I've found that Sport patterns make you much more focused on being accurate and controlling ball speed because errors in either WILL punish you. It's also best to learn to shoot straight at spares and really concentrate on that part of your game because you just can't recover from missed spares like you can on a THS. For me, I went from a 196 average THS to bowling a 137 average on the Shark pattern. I've bowled on it before but it's been a long time and my spare game was off. In practice afterwards I upped my average to 179 (where it really should be!) because I finally found something that worked. Hopefully I can carry that to next week.

[Greenday]

Personally, I think it should really help your game (As far as strike shots go). I find that after having to be super accurate on a sports shot for so long, when I go back to a THS my scores are much better.

Just relax, expect a few less strikes, and focus on spare shooting. Spare shooting is the key to doing well on sports shots.

[J Anderson]

I don't even do that well on THS lol (still trying to get my average above 140, right now I'm around 130ish), so I have no idea what to expect. With a 130 average on THS I probably expect a 90-100 average in Sport shot... Any advice on what to expect on these oil patterns?

The USBC publishes an average conversion table for figuring tournament handicaps for bowlers with only a sport average to use. Its been a while since I looked at it, in fact I think it has been revised since then, but I recall that sport averages less than about 140 are not adjusted upwards. The same thing happens with sport averages over 220. The largest adjustments are for sport averages between 170 and 190. To read the table backwards, it looks like THS bowlers with averages from 190 to 210 take the biggest drop when trying sport conditions.

Long story short; you'll probably still average around 130 in the sport league.

With the possible exception of Cheetah, there is no room to miss outside at the start. Miss outside and its not going to come back anywhere near the headpin. If you're lucky, some of the better bowlers will "burn up" a portion of the lane that will give them a slight margin for error later.

Since there isn't as much oil in the center of the lane as a THS you will have to adjust more often to keep hitting the pocket.

Relax, enjoy! I first tried the PBAX league in the summer of '09. I thought I'd be totally outclassed by everyone and was pleasantly surprised when I finished around the middle of the pack.

[I suck at bowling]

The USBC publishes an average conversion table for figuring tournament handicaps for bowlers with only a sport average to use. Its been a while since I looked at it, in fact I think it has been revised since then, but I recall that sport averages less than about 140 are not adjusted upwards. The same thing happens with sport averages over 220. The largest adjustments are for sport averages between 170 and 190. To read the table backwards, it looks like THS bowlers with averages from 190 to 210 take the biggest drop when trying sport conditions.

Long story short; you'll probably still average around 130 in the sport league.

With the possible exception of Cheetah, there is no room to miss outside at the start. Miss outside and its not going to come back anywhere near the headpin. If you're lucky, some of the better bowlers will "burn up" a portion of the lane that will give them a slight margin for error later.

Since there isn't as much oil in the center of the lane as a THS you will have to adjust more often to keep hitting the pocket.

Relax, enjoy! I first tried the PBAX league in the summer of '09. I thought I'd be totally outclassed by everyone and was pleasantly surprised when I finished around the middle of the pack.

http://bowl.com/Sport_Bowling/Sport_Bowling_Tools/Average_Adjustment_Chart/

BAM!

Chart isn't accurate though.

It says I should be averaging in the 190s, lol.

if only. -__-

[J Anderson]

http://bowl.com/Sport_Bowling/Sport_Bowling_Tools/Average_Adjustment_Chart/

BAM!

Chart isn't accurate though.

It says I should be averaging in the 190s, lol.

if only. -__-

Either my memory is getting worse or they really changed the chart.

[DrOcktagon]

I think your expectations going in should be to bowl as well as you can. The patterns are tough and demand accuracy. If you get outside on most of the patterns your ball will likely not even get close to the pocket. With that said, you can learn a ton and improve a ton also as when you go back to a THS, you will have more accuracy on your shot and will see increase in your average. Be sure your spare game is up to snuff as that will be very important in the Sport conditions.

Most of all, just have fun. You aren't at the point(yet) to get discouraged with your games being low. Keep plugging away and do your thing.

Nice avatar :cool:

[vdubtx]

Nice avatar :cool:
Ditto :D

[scruffwhor]

My first day in my Pro shot league was this past Thursday. I haven't bowled in a league since I was 15. I was thinking I would be the low man on the totem pole as far as ability, but I was surprised. I think regardless of your average and ability, you stand to gain a lot of beneficial experience in a pro shot league. That's why I signed up in the first place.

So far its been a lot of fun, people are there to bowl there best, and have some fun with strangers. No one seems overly competitive, yet. :rolleyes:

[budda]

The most important thing is to have fun. Dont set your goals to high. Its great practice.
Hope you enjoy it!

[Bendial]

Yeah I'm definitely not going into this with a competitive mindset. I know I SHOULD be, but since I just started bowling in January and I'm still learning, I need to have a "sponge" mindset, and not beat myself up. My biggest enemy is myself, getting frustrated, giving up, angry, etc. Nothing makes bowling worse than not being relaxed.

[Tampabaybob]

Here's a link that might give you some insight as to what you'll be bowling on.

http://wiki.bowlingchat.net/wiki/index.php?title=PBA_Patterns

These patterns are tough enough even if you know what the pattern is and where the heavy and dry areas are. But knowledge is power and if you can find out what shot they're putting out each week, you'll be that much further ahead of the game. Good luck.

[UBowling]

My favorite leagues are those with a sport pattern. The Summer sport league I am on now is a singles format which is really cool.

The sport conditions punish those who miss their target most. For lower average players, if they play straighter, they seem to decrease in average the least. The best piece of advice I can give you is to research the lane pattern and see where the pros like to play it. Usually if you play it in the similar area, you will have a good look. The most important aspect is your break point and launch angle to get there.