New high series tonight!!! (my new thread to highlight the 'new' me....lol)

[boatman37]

657!!! A little more oil out there tonight. 3 600's in a row after only have 3 in the first 48 weeks since I came back. This year after 9 weeks I have 3 600's. My secret? Getting a little more consistent on my release after tweaking it a little and making better adjustments. Spare shooting has been better too.
So in the last 5 weeks my average is 198.26 and the last 3 weeks it is 207.66. Had a rough week in there (508).

So my progression lately has been start with the Squatch out around 7-8 board with pinky tight to ring finger. Towards the end of game 1 it starts coming in a little light so I tuck the pinky to get a little more rotation. That usually works until near end of game 2. At that point I either move in to the oil or change to my Black Widow Gold. Tonight I used the Squatch all night and stayed around the 7-8 board all night. Only adjustments was tucking the pinky and a little more speed in the 3rd game. Probably should have moved in in game 3 but I had been doing so good out there that I was reluctant to make that big of a move.

Tonight we bowled the 1st place team. Their averages are 213, 198, 218, 212, and 174. Ours were 177, 196, 181, 183, and 183. I had 2nd high series tonight with a 657. The guy on the other team with a 218 average had a 687. He was the only one that beat me tonight on our pair. I still missed too many spares tonight that I shouldn't have. Misses 2 of 3 7 pins, missed an 8 pin and missed a 4-7. Should have made every one of those. That would have been an extra 40-45 pins to my series.

Next week we bowl the PSO's team (owner of the center is on that team too and they are in 2nd place with a team average of 205).

So after 3 good weeks in a row (and 4 of 5) hoping I finally got this figured out. My average with the Squatch is at 198.26. The ball helped but the changes I made are the biggest reason. I am now consistent with my spares meaning I stand in the same place and target the same spot every time now. Until a few weeks ago for the 7 pin I pretty much picked a a spot each time I went up. Now I have more of a system. I have a spot for the 7 and anything on the left side I work from that spot. Right side I work from my strike ball spot.

https://i.postimg.cc/26Mfj2dW/2019-10-22.png (https://postimages.org/)

[p0ppyman]

Congratulations!

[bowl1820]

Good shooting Boatman!

[bubba809]

Great bowling Boatman!

[Mikeab07]

Congrats, great shooting!

[vdubtx]

Congrats!

[boatman37]

Thanks guys. Learned alot of what I did from everyone here too. Back in my previous bowling life you bought whatever ball you thought looked best and used it for 10 years. And you only had to bring that 1 ball with you every week....lol

[RobLV1]

At the risk of being accused of throwing cold water on the situation, if you hadn't missed four easy, makable spares, you would've shot 702! Strikes come and go from week to week, and from pair to pair. Spares save the bacon each and every time!

[boatman37]

At the risk of being accused of throwing cold water on the situation, if you hadn't missed four easy, makable spares, you would've shot 702! Strikes come and go from week to week, and from pair to pair. Spares save the bacon each and every time!

Yep. Frustrated about that. Last week my spare shooting was excellent. Last night I missed the 8 pin inside. I moved over 2.5 boards right but missed my mark inside. Missed the pin by about 1 inch. The 2 7's I missed I just barely missed inside. One had to have brushed it it was that close. The other was about 2 inches away. The 4-7 was just a bad shot. It went into the gutter about 10' before the pins. Just another bad shot. Last week I was 7/7 on 7 pins. I used my Squatch for the 8 pin but my Rhino for the others. I think it was more mental errors than anything. And believe me, I figured it out last night that I would have had at least a 690 if I had picked those up. But gotta say my spare shooting is much better than it was 2 months ago but still have some work to do.

On another note, scores were down last night. PSO shot a high series at 759, next was 687, 683, then a few others. I had 7th highest series of about 80 bowlers. We normally have about 5 700's each week. I did have high handicap series by 9 pins over the PSO...lol.

Talked to the PSO about teammates ball and struggles before we started and he said with everyone using sanded balls with high revs you need to move into the oil and if you aren't willing to do that then you will struggle. One of the top bowlers said last night that the heads are holding up okay but the mids are shot after the 1st game.

[boatman37]

Well spare shooting was tough tonight but luckily my strike ball was working well enough again. Missed easy spares. 3 7 pins, a 5 pin, and an 8 pin. Hard to believe. But was 7/7 on multi pin spares. Makes no sense. Definitely mental if I can make multi pin spares and miss the easy single pin spares.
So went up against the owner and PSO's team. The PSO rolled a 300/823 and 2 of their other guys rolled a 769 and 705. I was high series on our team again. 11 of my last 13 games are over 200 and my last 8 are over 200. 4 600's in a row so definitely improving. Average the last 4 weeks is 206.75. Average is up to 188.90.

Lanes were a little more oily tonight than lately, which was good as they have been dry. Used the Squatch pearl all night until 9th frame of game 3. Should have switched earlier but was stubborn about it. Used the Black Widow Gold the last 4 balls (9th and 10th). Threw 4 pocket strikes with it. I started game 3 with 2 pocket 7's so moved in a little to try to find oil. First ball I tugged and went across the head pin. Tried adjusting playing more inside but struggled to hit the pocket so went back outside and tried a little more speed. Couldn't get any consistency so 9th frame grabbed the BWG out of the bag. It goes a little more downlane than the Squatch so thought it might be a better choice for those conditions. 4 balls and 4 pocket strikes to finish with a 200. Rolled a 612. If I had covered those easy spares (at least 4 of the 5) I would have been over 650 again.

Oh, and threw a gutter in game 2 but it was after an open and I converted it for the spare so minimized the damage there. Just got a little too far outside and it didn't come back.

Last 4 weeks:
10/29 - 211, 201, 200 - 612
10/22 - 221, 236, 200 - 657
10/15 - 177, 200, 225 - 602
10/8 - 204, 213, 193 - 610

https://i.postimg.cc/T2b3N1mQ/2019-10-29.png (https://postimages.org/)

[Blacksox1]

Bowler of the month!

[boatman37]

Bowler of the month!

Thanks but still need to work on my spares. In the last 4 weeks my first ball average is 9.06 with 51% strikes but my single pin spares are only 69%. Multi pin spares are 73%. 12/19 (63%) on 7 pins in that time. Also 2 missed 8 pins and 1 missed 5 pin in that span. That's all of my single pin spares in that time. No excuse for missing the 5 and 8's and should have made at least 3 more of those 7's (would be 80% on 7's then). That is 6 more spares converted so an extra 70 or so pins. In 12 games that is about +6 to my average during that 12 games.

I threw a practice 7 in warmups and it was perfect. My first 2 in the game went wide and dropped into the gutter. My 3rd went slightly inside and barely missed. Made the 4th one.

But yeah, I have probably been the most over my average in the last 12 games than anyone else in my league. Just hope to continue and and improve those spares.

[boatman37]

Teammate just texted me. He has been struggling this year. Last year he finished at ~195 but this year he is at 180 right now. He has a 4 year old Roto Grip something or other. We bowled the PSO's team and he was talking to him. PSO used the Conspiracy Theory the other night and rolled a 300/823. Teammate just bought one.

[boatman37]

So for starters teammate got his new Conspiracy Theory tonight. Overall he had a rough night but think he started to understand the ball a little. He is about 12.2 MPH and he struggled with the ball rolling out due to the lower speeds. I had him move a little more into the oil and that helped but he struggled again in game 3. He had a 234 in game 2 but only about 150 and 170 the 1st and 3rd game.

So on to my game...tried the big hook in warmups but it went straight to the 4-7...lol. So tried the Conspiracy but didn't like the look so started with the Squatch and stuck with it till the end of game 3. Made a few minor adjustments and picked up speed to get it back to the pocket. Strikes were good tonight and spares were decent but still missed a few I shouldn't have. Missed a 7 pin barely to the inside and missed a 3-9. Missed 2 splits too. Towards the end of game 1 started hitting high so picked up a little speed to get back to the pocket. That was good until game 3 then started getting high again. Moved over a little but no luck so 8th frame of game 3 switched to BWG and got back to the pocket. Played up the 7-8 board all night. My goal was a 603 tonight but I hurt my back Saturday and it was a little sore but didn't affect me. A 603 would bump me over the 190 average mark. Ended with a 621. I wanted 3 200's again tonight but game 3 wasn't cooperating. After the 11th had 190 and needed a strike for an even 200. Left a pocket 7...ugh. So 199 in game 3. Started off with a 214 and 208.

13 of my last 16 games were over 200. In the last 5 weeks (15 games) I'm averaging 206.80. My average before this string was 177.00. Now it is 190.54. My worst series in the last 5 weeks is 602 (610, 602, 657, 612, and 621).

Biggest issue is the team is struggling. More than them struggling is our opponents having phenomenal nights against us. Last week we were over our average 2 of 3 games but the other team had killer games and we lost all 3. Tonight one of the guys on the other team had a 148 average but bowled 196, 165, and 131. Another had a 190 average and bowled a 634. Another had a 181 average and bowled a 609. Another had a 177 average and bowled a 592. Hard to beat that. Their team average was 897. Tonight they had 980, 929, and 932. Our average was 929 and we had 993 and lost, 1006 and won and 906 and lost. Just our luck this year.

So really believing I have my issues figured out here but still need some help with my spares. In the last 5 weeks I'm at 52% strikes and 70% spares (72% single pin). Average had I made all makeable spares would be 214.20 so have some work to do there. Luckily I have only left 3 splits in those 15 games. First ball average has been 9.17.

Tonight:
https://i.postimg.cc/pTKY5VQQ/2019-11-5.png (https://postimages.org/)

[J Anderson]

It seems like every so many years, I will be on a team that just seems to bring out the best in the opposition. Quite often it seems to happen if you won the previous season.

All you can control is how you throw the ball. There’s no defense in bowling. You can’t stop the other team from all shooting 300+ with handicap. Sooner or later you’ll run into a team that seems to get tapped every time they hit the pocket and can’t make a 10 pin to save their lives.

[boatman37]

So averages are down this year in our league with only a few doing better than last year. Oddly our PSO has high average at 234.20 but 2nd place is way down at 225.12. Last year high average was about 225 but there were about 5 bowlers from 220-225. The spread is larger this year. Right now those are the only 2 over 220. So I decided to see how I stack up this year compared to last. Last year I was 71st of 101 (70.20% of all bowlers in my league were ahead of me). This year so far I'm at 49 of 112 (43.75% better than me). That is with all bowlers with at least 1 game in. If you only take bowlers with at least 12 games in then I am 40th of 89 (44.94% so not much difference).

So compare year over year I moved up quite a bit compared to the rest of the league. We do have a couple of guys at 246 and 235 but they only have 3 and 6 games respectively.

Averages have been coming up the last few weeks so people are settling in and maybe figuring out what's been different this year.

[RobLV1]

Averages have been coming up the last few weeks so people are settling in and maybe figuring out what's been different this year.

It took until November?

[Timmyb]

It took until November?

I had two bad weeks at the beginning of league this year. Figured out what the lanes wanted, and went there. I've seen a number of the "good" guys struggle for some time this year, with all the P&M that comes with that. Change equipment. Change your line. Do something! Don't just sit back and assume your shot will come back. I set down a nearly new ball last year and went back to one that is 5 years old because that's what was needed. This year, I'm back to the newer ball, and 11 pins higher than my average last year. Too many guys are afraid to make a big move when their game just isn't working. Gotta get that out of your head!

[RobLV1]

So true! They changed the kind of oil that they use where I bowl. The shot is now in near the third arrow. It's amazing how many bowlers are still insisting on playing the second arrow. When it doesn't work, they change balls. When that doesn't work, they complain loudly and threaten to go bowl somewhere else!

[boatman37]

I wouldn't say it took until November, just that their averages are starting to get back to where they were so maybe a month or so ago they started bowling better. What a few have mentioned is that the line is very tight this year. If you miss wide it stays wide and you miss high it crosses over. I have been trying to find that line that gives me the most room for error instead of fighting it. My teammates are fighting it but they are bowlers that show up once a week and when they leave at the end of the night they don't think about bowling again until they walk in the following week. I have been trying to explain some of the issues but until this season I was lowest average on the team so I think they were reluctant to listen to me. Now I'm 2nd highest (of 5). They are the ones you mentioned that keep doing the same thing and hope the lanes come to them. The one left 3 10's in a row last week. I told him to move in to the oil or ball down. One of the top bowlers was standing beside me so I told him to explain to him why he was leaving 10's so I think he listened to him cause he fixed it. I still have a long ways to go but I've learned alot so hoping to start helping them.

But yeah Timmy, I have been using my Squatch to start the night then going to my oldest ball in my bag to finish up. In game 3 the Squatch starts leaving 7 pins (or back row pins in general) so I switch. The BWG retains more energy downlane and makes the turn a little later and has been perfect at the end of the night. The thing I need to work on is making that switch earlier. I have been holding out on changing balls hoping a little adjustment fixes it. After 3 or 4 frames of struggling I'll switch and the BWG is money the last few frames. The last 2 weeks I have used the BWG the last 4 frames and in those 8 frames I have 6 strikes so the switch works. Just that the 3 or 4 frames before the switch aren't as good. I have moved as much as 5 boards and still not any better so I 'give in' and change balls. So getting over that stubborness would probably get me an extra 20 or so pins that last game.

[boatman37]

So true! They changed the kind of oil that they use where I bowl. The shot is now in near the third arrow. It's amazing how many bowlers are still insisting on playing the second arrow. When it doesn't work, they change balls. When that doesn't work, they complain loudly and threaten to go bowl somewhere else!

I asked the owner if anything was different with the oiling and he said there wasn't but we are pretty sure something has changed. 3 of my teammates play the 2nd arrow and are old school and just move their feet and not their target. Funny you said that about the 2nd arrow Rob. My 'go-to' line is the 7ish board and I can usually stay there all night but if it does dry up too bad I need to go all the way to about the 12-13 board. Nothing in between works but we also have 2 lefties that target the 10 board too and stay there all night no matter what so by the time I need to move the 10 board line is gone too so I go just inside of them and use that dried up line as my 'cushion'. Been working so far....lol. If I get inside the 12-13 board my ball goes straight.

But yeah, I believe the reason I have improved while most of the league has struggled is because I am learning to adapt and change my game where others are sticking to their old game. Learned alot here about that.

[Timmyb]

I asked the owner if anything was different with the oiling and he said there wasn't but we are pretty sure something has changed. 3 of my teammates play the 2nd arrow and are old school and just move their feet and not their target. Funny you said that about the 2nd arrow Rob. My 'go-to' line is the 7ish board and I can usually stay there all night but if it does dry up too bad I need to go all the way to about the 12-13 board. Nothing in between works but we also have 2 lefties that target the 10 board too and stay there all night no matter what so by the time I need to move the 10 board line is gone too so I go just inside of them and use that dried up line as my 'cushion'. Been working so far....lol. If I get inside the 12-13 board my ball goes straight.

But yeah, I believe the reason I have improved while most of the league has struggled is because I am learning to adapt and change my game where others are sticking to their old game. Learned alot here about that.

A lot of times the staff hasn't changed the pattern, but may have changed to a different type or brand (not that there's a ton out there) of oil, which can have major affects on your shot. Or, the oiler is just being a moody bi**h that day.....

I don't hold to a set shot. Don't get me wrong, my bread and butter is right between 1 and 2, but I'm not beholden to that by any means. I go where the shot is. I'm a bit old school in I usually don't switch equipment during the night, but I'm not afraid to if need be.

[boatman37]

A lot of times the staff hasn't changed the pattern, but may have changed to a different type or brand (not that there's a ton out there) of oil, which can have major affects on your shot. Or, the oiler is just being a moody bi**h that day.....

I don't hold to a set shot. Don't get me wrong, my bread and butter is right between 1 and 2, but I'm not beholden to that by any means. I go where the shot is. I'm a bit old school in I usually don't switch equipment during the night, but I'm not afraid to if need be.

Oddly the owner was struggling pretty bad early on but has started to pick it up. He finished last winter season at 210 but right now is at 199 but 6 weeks ago he was at 189. Even the PSO, who is at 234 right now with 30 games in was at 223 6 weeks ago. Still really good but like I said, about 90% of the league was struggling until about a month ago.

I'm old school too but coming around...lol. I have been reluctant to change my ways but starting to realize that this game isn't the same as it was 20 years ago. We have quite few high revvers in our league but many of the top average bowlers have more of a straighter line. One of the top guys takes a 3 step approach and stops about 5' before the foul line and sets it down there and averages about 210.

[RobLV1]

I have been reluctant to change my ways but starting to realize that this game isn't the same as it was 20 years ago.

Try it's not the same as it was 20 weeks ago, or 20 days ago, or yesterday, for that matter. Treat each day as if it's the first time you ever bowled there, and you will undoubtedly improve.

[boatman37]

Try it's not the same as it was 20 weeks ago, or 20 days ago, or yesterday, for that matter. Treat each day as if it's the first time you ever bowled there, and you will undoubtedly improve.

Lol. I'm sure a bunch of my fellow league bowlers would agree with the 20 day thing.

I actually realized it awhile back but just couldn't figure out how to adapt until recently.

[boatman37]

So my wife had told me she was talking to one of the new teachers hired at her school and the teacher told my wife she went to school on a bowling scholarship. Wife told her I bowl and where and what nights and she said her mother bowls there the same night as me. She also told my wife that she coaches. So today we went to a charity fundraiser at my wifes school and the teacher and her mother were there so I talked to them. The daughter told me she was a certified coach so I asked what level. She said she isn't through USBC but some other guys coaching system? Anyway I mentioned that I really would like to fix my hop that I have occasionally. She instantly said 'so you have a timing problem'...lol. Yep. So I may hit her up for a a few lessons.
The mother told me the PSO she goes to was taught by Mo. It's over an hour from here but might be worth it. She also mentioned how different our lanes are this year. She said her average was 193 last year and she is about 175 now. She said it seems like there is alot more oil on the outside than there had ever been before. She also said the left and right lanes have been completely different from each other. I don't see that being on the left side but she said she sees it.

[J Anderson]

So my wife had told me she was talking to one of the new teachers hired at her school and the teacher told my wife she went to school on a bowling scholarship. Wife told her I bowl and where and what nights and she said her mother bowls there the same night as me. She also told my wife that she coaches. So today we went to a charity fundraiser at my wifes school and the teacher and her mother were there so I talked to them. The daughter told me she was a certified coach so I asked what level. She said she isn't through USBC but some other guys coaching system? Anyway I mentioned that I really would like to fix my hop that I have occasionally. She instantly said 'so you have a timing problem'...lol. Yep. So I may hit her up for a a few lessons.
The mother told me the PSO she goes to was taught by Mo. It's over an hour from here but might be worth it. She also mentioned how different our lanes are this year. She said her average was 193 last year and she is about 175 now. She said it seems like there is alot more oil on the outside than there had ever been before. She also said the left and right lanes have been completely different from each other. I don't see that being on the left side but she said she sees it.
Could the “other guy” have been Dick Ritger?

[boatman37]

Could the “other guy” have been Dick Ritger?

Sounds familiar. Didn't catch it that well as there was alot going on but that does sound familiar. Opinions on that?

EDIT: just checked Dick Ritgers site and see Kelly Kulick listed. I remember she talked about her today so that must be him.

[boatman37]

Another good night except a few missed spares that I should not be missing. Teammate had a new best at a 278 in game 1. Lanes were slightly drier than normal. Used the Squatch pearl first 2 games then started coming in high so 10th frame of game 2 switched to the Black Widow Gold. Had a 648 but would have been close to a 700 had I made the spares I shouldn't have missed. And we lost 2 of 3 again. My average the last 6 weeks is 208.33 Overall I'm at 192.66. The 190 tonight is my worst game the last 6 weeks and my lowest series in that span is 602. 14 of my last 18 games are over 200.

Tonight I missed 2 of 3 7 pins, a 2-4-7, a 2-7, a 5-8, and a 3-5. I know it's mental because I'm not even hitting my target when I miss these.

https://i.postimg.cc/Qt7PHXhL/2019-11-12.png (https://postimages.org/)

[Mikeab07]

Keep up the good work you can certainly see the scores trending in the right direction. Spare shooting should only improve as well especially if you sneak in a few lessons here and there.

[boatman37]

Checked league printout and I'm now 46th of 113 bowlers (40.70% above me). Goal is to get to 25% by the end of the season. Probably have to be at about 205 to get there.

EDIT: just looked and 199 average would put me in the top 25%. Definitely doable. 205 would put me about 15%

So my game averages are:

Game 1 = 192.25

Game 2 = 189.25

Game 3 = 196.50

Seem to struggle most in game 2. Don't think it's a transition thing although I don't usually make any adjustments until the end of game 2. I think it's more mental. I seem to let my mind stray a little. Not really stray but in game 1 I'm really into it and game 2 I'm more reserved and not as energetic. Game 3 I start getting my 2nd wind I guess you could say. So just not as focused or sharp in game 2.

[boatman37]

So struggled tonight. Lanes were very dry right from the start. In warmups I grabbed my Conspiracy out of the bag and hit it with a 3000 just in case (it was at 2000). Haven't used that ball in awhile. Started out with the ball coming in high and hitting like a marshmallow so I picked up my speed a little and that worked for awhile. Rolled a 215 but missed a 2-7 in the 3rd frame then missed a 7 in the 10th. Started game 2 and counting the 10th of game 1 left the 7 pin in 3 of 4 frames so switched to the BWG. Wasn't hitting the pocket with it until later in the game and ended with a 180. Game 3 it was so dry. I moved into the oil but kept tugging my shots. I know what is happening. My mind says the ball will not hook in the center so I try to make it hook. Need to get over that. Struggled with spares again. Not the ball. I am missing my target wildly. Left a bunch of back row pins pocket hits. Left the 9 pin twice and I never leave it. Tells me I had too much deflection (lefty). Just looked at my stats and in 2 years I have only left about 10 9 pins. Left 2 tonight.

I needed a weaker ball to go to after the BWG but the only thing I had was the Rhino and it goes almost straight. I did try it in warmups and it hooked just a little. Probably could have made it work. Have to think about this.

On a positive note we won all 3. My teammates were on fire. 2 of them (father and son) rolled 245's in game 1 then 235 and 225 in game 2. The son had a 708 and the father had a 652. Another teammate had a 605 then me and another teammate both had 565's. I was coaching the father through the transition and helped him quite a bit.

Speaking of on fire...our PSO had a 300, 289, and 233 (822). He rolled a 300 against us a 3 weeks ago with an 832. His average was 233 before tonight.

So been using the Rhino for 7 pins and usually miss wide and it slides into the gutter. Until a couple of months ago I had used my weakest strike ball for 7's and if I missed wide the ball would usually hold the ridge but with the Rhino it slides right off. Might sand that for a little more surface and try that then I can use it as my weaker ball.

https://i.postimg.cc/yxyYm3TS/2019-11-19.png (https://postimages.org/)

[boatman37]

Another struggle (hard to call a 570 a struggle) but spares were strong tonight but strikes were tough to come by. Firstly, we won all 3. That's 2 weeks in a row and before last week we hadn't won all 3 yet. Think we are out of last now.

Sanded the Conspiracy with a 3000 today (was 2000) and sanded my Rhino with a 3000 matte (was 3000 polished). I use the Rhino for 4 and 7 pins. I was 5/6 on 7 pins tonight and 80% overall on spares tonight. Tried the Conspiracy in warmups and threw 3 pocket strikes. Started with it but struggled. Oddly the track was at the lower part of the ball so what I would guess was a spinner? But my other balls had a normal track. Weird. Anyway, switched to the Squatch about 1/2 way into game 1. Towards the end of game 1 I picked up my speed and that helped. Switched to the BWG about the 4th frame of game 3 but had trouble tugging my shots all night. We had 5 lefties on our pair but I didn't make any moves until late in game 3 when I started coming in light.

Average the last 8 weeks (24 games): 203.54

https://i.postimg.cc/kXYnD3qF/2019-11-26.png (https://postimages.org/)

[boatman37]

Teammate just pre-bowled for tonight and rolled a 661 (has a 200 average) so that should help

[boatman37]

Another struggle tonight. I guess it's good that I consider a 570 struggling. A few months ago I would have said it was a great night. 2 weeks in a row I bowled 570. Funny thing is my teammate rolled a 530...2 weeks in a row now...lol. Again this week I was spot on in warm-ups. Started game 1 with a 3 bagger then it fell apart. Converted most spares but strikes were very hard to come by. Mainly my fault as I kept tugging the ball and pulling it right across the nose. Game 2 same thing. Started with 3 pocket strikes then fell apart again. Game 3 started again with 3 strikes but these were all Brooklyns. Lanes dried up quick. Lots of people balled down and moved way over.

Tonight was position round. We were in 7th and won the first 2 games then lost the last to take 5 of 7 points. We ended tied for 5th.

https://i.postimg.cc/htKL9B5Z/2019-12-03.png (https://postimages.org/)

[boatman37]

Looked at the score sheets from last night and most of the hi rev bowlers struggled in game 3. Lanes dried up bad. I was pretty consistent all night (181, 198, 191). I had moved in a few boards by the end and was throwing a little faster to combat the conditions. High game last night was only 269. We usually have a couple 279's and at least 1 in the 280's every night. That guy is a low rev straight shooter.

I was on a roll for about 6 weeks but the last 3 weeks I have 'struggled'. I say that cause I had 565, 570, and 570. Very consistent and not bad but not as good as I was for those 6 weeks. Just not striking lately but not bad on spares.

[RobLV1]

It seems that your "struggles" correspond to the arrival of really bad weather. Do you think there might be a connection?

[boatman37]

It seems that your "struggles" correspond to the arrival of really bad weather. Do you think there might be a connection?

not that i'm aware. Weather here hasn't been horrible but it did get a little colder out. Been around 35-40* lately. Approaches were a little less tacky the other night. Other than that not sure it is too much different than last month. I was thinking about my Squatch though. It is still OOB untouched but I have about 30-35 games on it now. But the ball seems to behave pretty well when I throw it right. The other night I tugged alot of my shots. My elbow was hurting the other night but it didn't affect my bowling, at least physically. I'm wondering if it might have affected me mentally though? That doesn't explain the previous 2 weeks though. But in warm-ups I hit 3 pocket strikes then all 3 games opened with 3 strikes (although game 3 those were all Brooklyns). It was the 4th frame on that I struggled every game. The lanes have been drier than usual and have broken down quicker. Might be from the weather.

Maybe just coincidence but looking at the scores from the other night the guys that had really good game 3's are mostly low rev straighter shooters. Also, just a note...a couple weeks ago I hit my Rhino with a 3000. The other night in warm-ups I tried it as my strike ball once and it actually hooked a little and right into the pocket for a strike. So at least I know I have that option if it gets really dry. Teammate was trying to get me to use it at the end of the night but my stubborness wouldn't let me...lol. And it wouldn't have fixed my tugging issue.

[J Anderson]

For the tugging issue; most often,(at least for me), tugging is caused by the feet getting ahead of the swing and the subconscious mind telling the body to yank the ball to catch up. I also see a lot of tugs when the lanes don’t allow much hook and bowlers start trying to make the ball hook. Lastly, bad swing mechanics can lead to the ball heading off in the wrong direction.

Given what you said about the lanes being dry I don’t think the problem was with you trying to make the ball hook.

[boatman37]

For the tugging issue; most often,(at least for me), tugging is caused by the feet getting ahead of the swing and the subconscious mind telling the body to yank the ball to catch up. I also see a lot of tugs when the lanes don’t allow much hook and bowlers start trying to make the ball hook. Lastly, bad swing mechanics can lead to the ball heading off in the wrong direction.

Given what you said about the lanes being dry I don’t think the problem was with you trying to make the ball hook.

I don't think so either. May have been a timing thing and that actually crossed my mind and I tried to focus on it but didn't seem to change anything. Once in awhile I catch myself pushing the ball away too late. Normally I start pushing away as soon as my first foot moves but notice sometimes there is a slight delay. When I get it right you can see the difference on the lane.

[RobLV1]

Before you arbitrarily dismiss weather changes, consider that the weather, both temperature and humidity, can have a significant effect on lane conditions. While bowling centers are air conditioned (both heated and cooled), the area under the lanes and behind the pinsetters are not. The oil, as well as the oil machine, is often stored in a non-temperature controlled area. As your changes have occurred over a three week period, and lots of bowlers have been affected, I'm pretty sure that the weather change has something to do with it.

[boatman37]

Before you arbitrarily dismiss weather changes, consider that the weather, both temperature and humidity, can have a significant effect on lane conditions. While bowling centers are air conditioned (both heated and cooled), the area under the lanes and behind the pinsetters are not. The oil, as well as the oil machine, is often stored in a non-temperature controlled area. As your changes have occurred over a three week period, and lots of bowlers have been affected, I'm pretty sure that the weather change has something to do with it.

It could be. I went from consistent 600's for 6 weeks in a row to 570's with no real reason. Just not striking like I was. How do you compensate for that? Changing lines? Balls? I did notice my Squatch and BWG have fallen off sooner than they had been. As it id now by the end of the night I'm ready for another ball down where I hadn't been before.

[boatman37]

After thinking about it, seems like my ball has not been skidding the last few weeks either. Seems like it's in a roll most of the way. I have been trying to pay attention to that but it's hard to tell when trying to watch so many things but it is getting easier. I try to see where it is at the arrows, the breakpoint, where it starts to roll and where it exits the pin deck. Oh, and watch the pins too...lol

[boatman37]

In a nutshell...started off great and went downhill from there. Seemed to be me more than the lanes or the ball. I got frustrated and by middle of game 3 I didn't even care to finish the night I was so frustrated. Game 1 went great. We won by 58 and we bowled 60 over our average. The team we bowled against averaged between between 155-187. In game 2 3 of their guys rolled 210, 226, and 244. 4 of their 5 bowlers are no thumb bowlers that just wing it and that game everything they threw struck. Most were Brooklyns. That was just frustrating and me leaving a 4-7-10 split. After that I started unraveling mentally. Game 3 I just couldn't hit the pocket. Hit light, hit high, no consistency that game. Used the Squatch all night. Ball has about 35 games on it since new and have not touched the surface. It might be possible the ball stops rolling like I'm used to so I sub-consciously change something. Not sure. Over the last 4 weeks I'm consistent. 565, 570, 570, and 568. But tonight I went 225, 184, 159. Game 1 was clean and game 2 was clean except for a 4-7-10 but game 3 was a mess.

It was just frustrating in game 2 seeing my teammates hit the pocket frame after frame and get a 9 count and the other team miss the pocket more than they hit it and get strike after strike and I know I let that get to me. I only had 2 strikes in game 2 and was still hitting the pocket pretty good there. By the end of game2 I wasn't having fun anymore. We beat our average by 20 pins and still lost by 107. I know I should only worry about myself and my team but tonight it just frustrated me. Not only the other team killing it in game 2 but me letting a good start get away from me.

https://i.postimg.cc/GhZgTg7h/2019-12-10.png (https://postimages.org/)

[RobLV1]

A few months ago, I was told that the center where I bowl was forced to change the brand of oil they use as the old brand was no longer being made. They changed to a new oil after summer sweeps week. Since the change, about three months ago, I have noticed a trend in scoring. After about one and a half games, there is a pronounced change in scoring patterns. In some cases, bowlers who have been striking at will can no longer carry. In other cases, bowlers who have not been able to carry, start throwing strikes. In either case, the lanes have changed, and the pattern stays the same week after week.

I notice the same change in your scoring. After a game and three frames of striking, you left eight pins in the fourth and fifth frames of the second game. For a lefty, eight pins are usually caused by the ball either hooking too late, or reacting two hard off of the spot. After that time, your leaves show that you were getting over/under reactions with one ball going high, and the next never making it back to the pocket. This is the same thing that I've been seeing.

The only way that I've found to combat this is to make a big move in with my feet, and throw to a spot that is further out, using a ball that goes very long, but has a high differential and a strong cover material. I need to clarify that I'm not talking about a one or two board move; I'm talking about a four or five board move. While this may take out out of your comfort zone, it's definitely worth learning.

[boatman37]

A few months ago, I was told that the center where I bowl was forced to change the brand of oil they use as the old brand was no longer being made. They changed to a new oil after summer sweeps week. Since the change, about three months ago, I have noticed a trend in scoring. After about one and a half games, there is a pronounced change in scoring patterns. In some cases, bowlers who have been striking at will can no longer carry. In other cases, bowlers who have not been able to carry, start throwing strikes. In either case, the lanes have changed, and the pattern stays the same week after week.

I notice the same change in your scoring. After a game and three frames of striking, you left eight pins in the fourth and fifth frames of the second game. For a lefty, eight pins are usually caused by the ball either hooking too late, or reacting two hard off of the spot. After that time, your leaves show that you were getting over/under reactions with one ball going high, and the next never making it back to the pocket. This is the same thing that I've been seeing.

The only way that I've found to combat this is to make a big move in with my feet, and throw to a spot that is further out, using a ball that goes very long, but has a high differential and a strong cover material. I need to clarify that I'm not talking about a one or two board move; I'm talking about a four or five board move. While this may take out out of your comfort zone, it's definitely worth learning.

Good info there. I had been consistent the last 3 weeks from game to game until last night. I 'assumed' it was me doing something different but couldn't figure it out. I do know a few times I hit light so tugged the next shot but doubt I did that for a whole game. First game was like a magnet to the pocket. The 2 8 pins were just a little high but that could have been the ball reading too late or harsher reaction. I know I didn't change anything purposely. Same ball, same line, speed, release, etc.

I did not make any moves the whole night. I had thought about moving in but thinking I was the problem figured I would just fix me. I know the one ball in the 3rd game I got it out a little too far and it snapped right back to the pocket for a strike so once it caught the dry it hooked hard but that was about 4 boards too far left (hit around the 3rd or 4th board at the breakpont).

Next week if I run into this again I am definitely going to move in and see what happens. One of my teammates last night has been struggling in game 2 for awhile. He is a righty, lower speed, medium rev. He has a Squatch pearl and a DV8 Nasty Rumor. He started with the Squatch then game 2 kept going back and forth then game 3 used the DV8 and moved way inside. He rolled 247, 177, 235. The move inside helped him. He moved about 5 boards. Game 2 he kept hitting high with either ball. We bowled against 4 no thumb bowlers that really rev the ball and 3 of them were righties so I'm sure that didn't help him.

[RobLV1]

I have to tell you honestly that the idea that you totally lost your look and never moved is mind boggling! Here's the deal: when you are playing the correct line, you don't have to be perfect. If you start struggling and automatically assume that it's all because of you, it's just your ego getting in your way. One of the best things that I ever wrote in BTM was that not listening to what the lanes are telling you is like not listening to your wife... both get you in a world of trouble!

[boatman37]

I have to tell you honestly that the idea that you totally lost your look and never moved is mind boggling! Here's the deal: when you are playing the correct line, you don't have to be perfect. If you start struggling and automatically assume that it's all because of you, it's just your ego getting in your way. One of the best things that I ever wrote in BTM was that not listening to what the lanes are telling you is like not listening to your wife... both get you in a world of trouble!

Oh...the wife...hmmmm. Gonna have to remember that one...lol. And yes I agree about the right line and not being perfect. I have been telling my teammates that and have actually pointed out to them when they find it and miss by a board or two and still carry pocket strikes. But I didn't move because I was inconsistent (or I thought it was me being inconsistent). One ball would be light, the next high so I wasn't sure where to move to and thought I just needed to be more consistent with my release.

You know, I have learned alot on here and tell my teammates when they need to make a move but struggle to follow my own advice alot of the time. I'm always telling my one teammate to move into the oil in the 3rd game when he starts leaving corner pins (the one mentioned earlier that struggled in game 2 last night then moved in in the last game and got it back). He says he isn't comfortable there and I tell him to get comfortable there. Then I don't listen to myself when I should...lol. But I have been trying the Rhino in warmups as a strike ball cause we have had a few nights where by the end of the 3rd game my BWG is a little too much. Haven't used the Rhino in a game yet. It seems to be about 4 or 5 boards weaker than the BWG. Funny thing is the Squatch and BWG are very similar and I stand in the same spot for both but the BWG reads a little further down lane, which works much better late in the night

[ALazySavage]

I know I have shared this on another post here, but my comment when I hear that someone doesn't move because they are not executing is as follows. I understand that you do not (typically) move off of a poorly executed shot, but when this is starting to happen repeatedly and you cannot carry my advice is to throw it bad somewhere else.

[boatman37]

I know I have shared this on another post here, but my comment when I hear that someone doesn't move because they are not executing is as follows. I understand that you do not (typically) move off of a poorly executed shot, but when this is starting to happen repeatedly and you cannot carry my advice is to throw it bad somewhere else.

Good point

[boatman37]

So looks like I won't have to wait till next week to try this out (if they lanes require it). Got a text this morning from a fellow bowler saying they need a sub for their team tonight so I'll be filling in. Same center as my other league and many of the same bowlers but this one is a mixed league. Never been a sub before ever in my life so....lol. Will report back with how it goes. Think I'm gonna have the PSO replace the inserts in my BWG They are a little looser and I don't get the same roll I do with my others and lately it feels like it has been falling off my fingertips and just rolling. It's still going to the pocket but sure it could have much more effect if I could get some more skid out of it.

[boatman37]

Threw the Squatch on the spinner. Used my CTD pads and started with 2000 then 3000 then 5000P. Factory is 500 Siaair with factory compound then factory polish so we will see how it works. The finish looks similar but I will have my pads with me in case I need to add a little surface in warmups. It has about 35 games on it and had some lane shine that the cleaner wouldn't fix. Got it all out now. Have a feeling if anything it might not have enough friction but we will see. I also have the Conspiracy and the BWG. The Conspiracy works good in heavier oil. I could get away with the BWG at the start of the night if need be as it is pretty close to the Squatch but can make it work early on if need be.

Hoping it will be as close to OOB as it can be as it really worked well. If anything slightly more surface would be ok but don't really want it any less surface

[boatman37]

Well didn't go well. Lanes were very slick compared to Tuesday night. Tried the Conspiracy and the Squatch but no carry. Moved inside the 10 board and kept leaving the 5, 8, or 9. Moved way out to the 5 board to find dry and started getting carry. Game 2 kept hitting the pocket but no strikes. Kept it clean until 7th frame where I left the 6-8-10. I had just moved out to the 5 board on this shot. Being frustrated I threw as hard as I could to try to pick it up but got off balance and fell about 5' down the lane. Pretty embarrassing...lol. 3rd game started hitting a little better but still struggled. The Squatch looked good even though I struggled. Early on when I hit the pocket you could hear the dull thud with both balls. Out at the 5 board I had a tight line but it was the only place I could strike from. The team won 2 of 3 and said they got 4 of 5 points so they were happy.
Found out at the end of the night that the Friday night pattern is about 2-3' longer than the Tuesday night pattern.

EDIT: Really needed a stronger ball tonight. The Conspiracy was the strongest one in my bag and it was never getting into the roll phase but I didn't try it way outside where I was throwing the Squatch in games 2 and 3.

https://i.postimg.cc/NfzDYK45/2019-12-13-Friday-night-league.png (https://postimages.org/)

[boatman37]

Bad night. Dry lanes. Wrong ball. Bad spare shooting. Started with the Squatch and started out good but missed 3 easy spares. Game 2 Squatch again but when I did hit the pocket couldn't get the carry. Had a few perfectly placed shots that left a 7, 6, and 9 pin. Game 3 switched to the BWG. When I played outside I left the 7. When I played inside I either left splits or hit light. 10th frame tried my Rhino that I only use for 7 pins and struck out with 3 pocket strikes. So I was glad that the Rhino worked in a pinch but frustrated with my spare shooting and my struggles to adapt. Not to mention that the team we bowled always crush us. They bowl way over their heads every time they bowl us. Really takes the wind out of our sails.

https://i.postimg.cc/nhQDYF95/2019-12-17.png (https://postimages.org/)

[boatman37]

BTW-we are off the next 2 weeks and I'm glad. Need to get out of my funk and after my fall Friday night my ankle and wrist are a little sore. And the new inserts in the BWG helped. At least now I was getting some rotation on it where before it had been rolling off my fingertips.

Started thinking about it and thinking my next step may be a plastic ball (you love hearing that Rob....lol). But after hitting my Rhino with the 3000 it is working nice on drier conditions. I was thinking about replacing my BWG with something newer but it is very close to the Squatch so maybe just bench the BWG and have the Conspiracy, Squatch pearl, and Rhino as my 3 strike balls then a plastic ball for spares. Sound like a plan? I rarely use the Conspiracy anymore cause it's too strong on the dryer conditions we have been seeing but would have it in the bag if needed. I still have the Kingpin but it has been staying at home the last few months. I will give the Rhino another try as an option for late night and see how it goes first but I was happy with how it looked in the 10th of game 3.

[boatman37]

Sucked! First game just struggled with my release. Outside was dry and inside wasn't much better. End of game 1 I figured out my release issues but then the transition started. Moved into about the 12 board and was able to get something going but game 3 just struggled. Thumb started hanging and lanes were horrible for both teams. Tried 2 balls both inside and outside but nothing was working. No spares and no strikes. 180, 195, 139. Splits were like crazy tonight. Other teams anchor left 7 in game 1 and rolled a 116. As a team I think they had about 12-14 splits in game 1. Game 2 was our turn. I think we had about 6 or 7. Game 3 I think both teams had about 6 or 7 each.

Not much else to say other than a guy in our league rolled a 300 and another took one into the 10th and one next to us took one into the 8th or so.

Game 1 was tough mostly due to being away for a few weeks. My release wasn't there until late in the game. I had no revs at all. Ball was just rolling to the pins. Fixed that late in game 1. Game 2 was typical other than me playing further inside than I like to but it's all I had. Game 3 was thumb issues and bad shot placement. On to next week

https://i.postimg.cc/tTDLwNwv/2020-01-07.png (https://postimages.org/)

[boatman37]

Another frustrating night. All of my balls are hooking way too much now. I need to figure out how to play them this way. I have changed a couple of things and seem to be getting more revs now but I had been thinking the lanes were just dry. Talked to a few people tonight and they said they don't seem any drier than normal and the PSO said nothing has changed and he doesn't see anything different. Definitely different for me. I started the night targeting the 10 board at the arrows because in warmups anything outside that wasn't working. Used the Conspiracy in game 1 but couldn't keep it on the left side of the lane. Switched to the Squatch in game 2 and same thing. Tried moving into the 12 board and still too much hook. Started game 3 with the Black Widow Gold and same thing. Moved back out to the outside (7 board) and still too much. 6th frame switched to the Rhino that hardly hooks. Still out at the 7 board. Right to the pocket. 4 bagger. Ended with 5 strikes in 6 frames with it. That ball barely hooks and it looked like my BWG early in the night it had that much angle.

Here is what has changed for me. Opening my shoulders on my back swing. This helps me stay a little more under the ball. Also slowing my speed way down. Normally I had been about 16.5-17.5 MPH at the pins but lately I'm at about 15.0-16.0. I realized both of theses changes contribute to more reaction but it's quite a bit of difference.

When I was playing the 10-12 board area I had to move over a board or 2 more right than I usually did there. Had a couple nice pocket hits that left 7's then started tugging the ball. Need to figure this out. I tried speeding back up, untucking my pinky, not opening my shoulders, and still came across the head pin.

I think I either need a ball between the Black Widow Gold and the Rhino or I need to get used the the 12-15 boards

https://i.postimg.cc/g0qgPKff/2020-01-14.png (https://postimages.org/)

[boatman37]

So crappy scores but learned alot tonight. And we beat the 1st place team 2 out of 3. Teammate had a 706 too. A few weeks back I changed my release by opening my shoulders a little more and seem to be getting around the ball a little better (or playing the inside of the ball). Been having trouble keeping the ball on the left side of the lane lately. Tonight I dusted off the Kingpin and hit it with a fresh 1500 in case I needed to play the middle. Tried the 3rd arrow with it in warmups and looked good but didn't have to try that line in the games. Used the Conspiracy all night except about the first 7 frames or so in game 2 when I tried the Squatch but kept pulling my shots. Went back to the Conspiracy and found that I wasn't opening my shoulders as much when I was using the Squatch (not because of the ball but just because I was screwing up). Used the Conspiracy the rest of the night. Also, I normally try to play up the 5-7 board where I am comfortable. I am not comfortable targeting the 10 board or in. Tonight we had 5 lefties on our pair and I played the 10 board all night even though I really wanted to move outside but forced myself to stick with it. Shot a 208, 171, and 180 but chopped 4 spares and flat out missed another easy one. That's an easy 50 pins I gave up there. More on that later. So even though my scores weren't great and my spares sucked I feel I made progress in overcoming my 'fear' of the inside and feel I am starting to get better control over this 'new' release with my shoulders open. A few more weeks of practice with it and I think my strike % will go up.

Now back to my spares...I have been using my strike ball for everything but the 7 pin. For that I used my Rhino. In the past I did ok with this and probably as good as I would have with plastic but the Rhino only had a very slight hook to it. With this new release even the Rhino is hooking a little more now and I'm thinking with the added revs my misses are magnified whereas before I could miss by a board and still be ok. Now 1 board at the arrows is a much bigger miss at the pins. I'm thinking it might be time for plastic? That being said, I have a 4 ball bag and currently have 5 balls. Thinking of buying a 2 ball bag and keeping the Rhino and Kingpin in there and leaving that bag at the center so I don't have to lug 2 bags. And since those 2 balls will be my least used they could probably stay in the storage room most nights but will be there if needed.

Example of missed spares...tonight I was 1/4 on 7 pins. 1 of those misses I missed to the inside by 1 board at the arrows but at the pin it missed by about 1", meaning I was about 4-5" off where I had planned to hit the pin. Normally missing by 1 board at the arrows would have made that shot the way I used to throw it. 2 of the misses went into the gutter about 1/2 way down the lane.

Summary...I feel this higher rev release is helping me with strike % and I'm getting more consistent with it. If I had made the very easy spares I had missed (and even still missing 3 of my 7 pins) I would have had a 600. 640 or so if I had made those 7's.

https://i.postimg.cc/W108zdMM/2020-01-21.png (https://postimages.org/)

[boatman37]

Ugh. Well hit my Conspiracy with a brand new 1500 today and left the Kingpin home. Tried the Conspiracy at the 15 board in the oil in warmups and it looked good. We had 5 lefties on our pair (2 are very high rev and I'm medium rev). Used the Squatch almost all night. Oh, and fell on my face in warmups again. Drug my toe on my slide foot on my last step and it caught. Just went down to my knees but it was on the lane...lol. So back to bowling. First 2 games weren't bad except my spare shooting was still off. Game 3 was horrible. Couldn't strike or spare. Had 5 or 6 opens. Tried the BWG both about the 7 board and the 10 board. Tried the Conspiracy at the 15 board but tugged my shot. We were in a really tight game so went back to the Squatch for the 10th frame just looking for pin count. We won game 2 by 1 pin and game 3 by 62 pins.

Told the PSO to get me a plastic ball for next week. That might help slightly but the bigger issue is me. I have no confidence even on a 2 or 5 pin. On a positive note we got 4 of 7 points against the highest average team in our league.

https://i.postimg.cc/DyHfDpT7/2020-01-28.png (https://postimages.org/)

[boatman37]

Worst night in about 35 years. Head wasn't in it. Today was my birthday and my day wasn't very good. Dog had to go outside at 3:00AM then had a seizure. I was out in the cold in shorts and flip flops in freezing cold for 15 minutes. Couldn't get back to sleep. Had a 3 hour meeting at work then told I have to spend about 15 hours a week compiling reports for management then the rest of the day was just hectic. Told PSO last week to get me a plastic spare ball but it didn't come in and I had left my Rhino at home so had to use my Squatch for 7 pins. Then last week 'stubbed' my toe in warm-ups and fell to my knees. Well tonight tripped on the carpet twice with my plant foot so noticed the velcro on the front of my rubber sole wasn't sticking to my shoe. So had to put an S6 on my plant foot so had those distractions. And even before I got there just wasn't up to it mentally.

In the end don't think I hit the same spot twice all night. Just felt awkward up there all night. Played from the 3 board in to the 15 board with all 3 balls. We were on the end pair (39-40) and others complained about it but I usually do good there so not blaming the lanes at all.

Oh well.

https://i.postimg.cc/HsQQH3Cg/2020-02-04.png (https://postimages.org/)

[boatman37]

So the results are up and me and another guy had 431 and one other guy had 430 so I was very close to the bottom last night. I did swap my shoes out today and put my Dexters back in. They are regular fixed sole so will try those next week. I have to order new soles for my Storms as the tips aren't sticking very well and they are curled down a little and I know that was on my mind last night. I put an S6 on my traction shoe for last night as it was the grippiest I had in my bag and the velcro was sticking good on that one so it wasn't curled down but my slide shoe was curled slightly and after last weeks fall I was worried about it. Still not blaming last night on that but it was on my mind. I do know on my approach I was focusing on my steps to make sure I got my feet up high enough that I wouldn't trip. Hopefully next week gets better. I mean, can't get much worse....

[boatman37]

Better tonight. Got the new plastic ball tonight. 4/4 on 7 pins. Spare shooting was very good tonight with the exception of a few shots. Most of these were with my strike ball so can't give all the credit to the plastic but more to my accuracy. Felt much better tonight too. Last week just felt awkward. Had trouble with the ball return twice before the end of the 1st frame so they moved us. New lanes were much slicker but it was the same for both teams. I started struggling with pocket 7's, a pocket 4-6 and a pocket 7-9. Tried ball changes and moving in to the oil but no help. Finally moved out to the 7 board with a little more speed and took care of that. Teammates really struggled with 10 pins. No exaggeration I'm guessing they left about 30 or so between the 4 of them. They were really frustrated. Game 2 we had 9 splits on our team. We lost all 3 games. We bowled our average as a team the last 2 games and not far off the first game but the other team was 80 over their average every game.

So glad my spare shooting improved. It has been really bad lately. Kind of odd that I had 17 strikes and 70% spares but only had a 589.

Hopefully I can improve on this next week. If I could have figured out those pocket 7's I would have been much better

EDIT: This week I was high man on my team at 589 (562, 526, 482, 568). Last week I was the lowest by a bunch.

https://i.postimg.cc/DwcHJnzc/2020-02-11.png (https://postimages.org/)

[boatman37]

Ugh...spares got me tonight. We lost the first game by 207. 2 of their guys were about 60 over their average and we struggled. My strike ball was decent until about the middle of game 3. Left a pocket 5-7-10. They got a pic of that one. 2/3 on 7 pins. The one I missed hit the ditch about 2/3 down lane. Missed 2 4 pins and a 3 pin. No excuse for that. Used the T-Zone for the 3 7's and an 8 pin. Used my strike ball for the 2 4 pins I missed.

We won game 2 by 84 and game 3 by 109. Lost total by 14...ugh. Our team started out with a load of 9 counts. Lanes were very wet. Me and the other 2 lefties couldn't get the ball to make the turn. Me and one of them had to go out to the 5-7 board. He never plays that far out but couldn't get anything else to work. He struggled in game 1 but then got it going. He rolled 160, 247, 192. He has a 203 average. The owner is also a lefty and I was told he rolled a 130 in game 2. He has about a 205 average so we will see what he does to the lanes next week...lol. PSO rolled a 280 and279. Not sure what he rolled in game 3. Only reason I know that is his name popped up on the screen as winner of games 1 and 2 jackpots.

https://i.postimg.cc/gc8y2vdP/2020-02-18.png (https://postimages.org/)

[boatman37]

So the next 2 weeks will be a challenge. We bowl the top 2 teams average wise. They aren't much farther ahead of us in standings but these guys seem to rise up against us. But then again we are usually near the top of the standings and we are currently tied for last. This weeks team has a combined 207.4 average. Next week we bowl the team with the PSO and the owner on. Their team combined average is 211.0. They have a couple of fill-ins that are between 210-220 too...lol. There is one other team that is up there. Their average is 207.2. Ours is 188.6. Good thing for handicaps...lol

[boatman37]

New low game tonight. Just couldn't figure it out tonight. Hand was a little sore, knee was sore. But these should not have affected my game. I really struggled with accuracy near the end of game 1. Started getting a little more accurate early in game 3 but couldn't find the pocket.

So we lost game 1 by 40, won game 2 by 20 then lost game 3 by a bunch. We were 50 over our average in game1 but they were 80 over theirs. Game 2 we were 20 under our average but they were 60 under theirs. Game 3 we were 40 under ours and they were 36 over theirs. So we went 2-5 tonight. Next week we bowl the highest average team. The PSO and the owner of the center are on this team (233 and 200 average). At this point playoffs are pretty much a pipe dream so just going to focus on my game and getting myself better by the end of the season.

https://i.postimg.cc/c4kR0wyy/2020-02-25.png (https://postimages.org/)

[boatman37]

So looked at the stats/standings after last night. We are in last place of 16 teams (2 8 team divisions but we have the worst record of all 16). But we are 6th highest scratch total pins but with handicap we are 10th of 16. Seems like every team we bowl has their best night of the year against us. It is what it is and it's up to us to do better but our whole team is struggling. Well 2 are doing good but the other 3 (me included) are doing really bad.

[boatman37]

Stopped and ordered a new 2 ball bag so I can have all of them there each week. I will leave this bag there in the storage room. I probably could have used that Rhino the other night but it was at home.

[boatman37]

Dumbed down my game and it worked. For most of this season I had been tucking my pinky almost every shot. Started out the first 2 frames tonight and warmups tucking it. Tried untucked in the 3rd frame of game 1 and pocket strike so left it untucked all night. Also quit trying to open my shoulders so much on my backswing. Other than that didn't really change anything. I was much more consistent hitting the pocket tonight. Still struggled with the transition. Either went too high or adjusted and left 7 pins. But definitely feel better after tonight mentally.

Bowled the top team in the league average wise (5 man team with a 1055 team average). PSO and the center owner are on this team. We bowled over our average all 3 games and still lost 2 out of 3. Game 2 they had 269, 248, 224, 249 and 199 (1189 scratch...lol). And they still only beat us by 109 scratch that game. We had 235, 150, 234, 214 (me), and 247.

Definitely glad I got that plastic ball. Missed a 7 pin tonight by a mile cause of a bad release but since I got it I'm 9/12 on 7 pins.

Used the Squatch targeting the 7 board the first 2 games with no problem. Early in game 3 started leaving 7 pins so moved in to the 10 board but couldn't hit my mark. Switched to the Black Widow Gold and was still too high so moved in a little again was able to hit the pocket again except for a couple of errant shots.

I think a big part of my recent issues was once I started to struggle I tried to guide the ball too much, which just magnified the problems. Went back to basics tonight and tried to do the same thing physically all 3 games and only changed my line and my ball instead of changing me.

EDIT: Forgot to add...game 2 starting in the 3rd frame my team threw 8 strikes in a row and the other team threw 17 in a row. I heard the PSO say 'man we have thrown 15 strikes in a row and are still down by 26' (they were spotting us about 90). I noted game 2 scores above (PSO had the 269)

https://i.postimg.cc/52rFbC2r/2020-03-03.png (https://postimages.org/)

[boatman37]

Well overall a good night but still left frustrated. Games 1 and 2 started with 5 baggers. Used the Squatch pearl first 2 games and all was well. Targeted the 7 board and had some miss room and still carried. Missed 3 easy spares in game 1 so only ended up at 208. Game 2 had 2 spares and the rest were strikes. Early in game 3 started to struggle. Started with the Squatch the first 5 frames. 3rd frame was a little high. 4th frame was a pocket 9 pin, then the 5th frame the ball just wouldn't turn. Switched to the Black Widow Gold in the 6th and poscket strike then the 7th the ball wouldn't turn. If I missed to the outside slightly the ball would go straight. Moved in to the 10 board and back to the Squatch and took out the 10 pin. I struggle with tugging the ball when I move in. Covered the spare then missed to the inside so went back to the 7 board for the 10th. Came in just a little high and left a 6-8-10.

Talked to the PSO at the end of the night and he said without seeing what was happening but based on my description he thinks my ball was going too long and too much angle into the pocket. I mentioned a Radical Closer and he said that ball was stronger than the Squatch. He thought maybe a Sizzle might work. I mentioned the All Road and he didn't think that would be good either. I brought up the Rhino and he said to put some surface on it and give it a try. I have it at 2000 right now. Going to try that next week if I have the same issue. It's either that or suck it up and work on my accuracy and consistency in the oil.

So the frustrating thing was starting out with 208 and 254 and barely breaking 600 (610). I had in the back of my mind that a 700 was within reach. This game 3 thing has been hurting me for the last 7 or 8 weeks. Didn't used to have this issue this bad. I m glad I seem to finally be out of my 2+ month long funk. I went back to basics and simplified my release the last 2 weeks (593 and 610).

On another note a guy in the pair next to us rolled a 300 in the 2nd game. Not his first but still cool. We won all 3 tonight so are finally out of last.

https://i.postimg.cc/Xq640BHw/2020-03-10.png (https://postimages.org/)

[RobLV1]

Yet another example of the MBS (Magic Ball Syndrome). You were playing seven and moved in to ten. Really? With multiple lefties on the pair? When you miss outside and the ball fails to get back, it's dead! You can't play there anymore, whatever ball you decide to use.

[boatman37]

Yet another example of the MBS (Magic Ball Syndrome). You were playing seven and moved in to ten. Really? With multiple lefties on the pair? When you miss outside and the ball fails to get back, it's dead! You can't play there anymore, whatever ball you decide to use.

Yeah kind of kicking myself for not moving further in. My thought process was as bad as my inside shots were I'd be further ahead staying outside and making spares but this morning I think to myself why didn't I pull the Kingpin out and move in further. We won the first 2 games by over 100 but the 3rd game was pretty close and we really wanted it. If it had been like the 1st 2 games I think I would have tried it. We ended up winning game 3 by 26 but we had a strong 10th (well I didn't but the rest of the team did).

That stone 9 pin was dead in the pocket. Surprisigly I only left 1 7 pin all night. I did try the plastic ball for a few other spares but no luck. Just take some time adjusting. The first 2-4-7 I left I used my Squatch and it hooked right by them. The 2nd time I used the T-Zone but guessed on where to stand and hit the inside of the 2 pin, taking the 4 but missing the 7. The 2nd half of game 1 wasn't due to lane conditions. I started tugging my shots which seems to be a pattern with me lately. I start a game out strong then start tugging. Luckily I recognized this pretty quick and fixed it. I didn't use to have these issues in game 3 until a couple of months ago. Typically I would switch to the Black Widow Gold for game 3 and continue on but lately that ball hasn't helped either. I did put tape in the BWG last night. Only tried tape once before and didn't like it but the BWG had been rolling off funny so tried tape last night and was able to get the rotation do with my other ones.

I am going to try to get out Saturday for some practice but if not I am encouraged that I got my game back.

[RobLV1]

Seeing that you dropped over 100 pins from game two to game three, let me tell you a story. One of the bowlers on my trios team recently returned to bowling after several years off. He uses a ball with a conventional drill (not finger tip). He can only point the corner and play in the dirt, because his ball never gets into a roll. He finally got a ball drilled finger-tip, but has not yet used it in league because he "doesn't want to embarrass himself by averaging 170." So last week he was there with his conventional drill and what did he do?: He averaged 170!

My point, you have nothing to lose by getting out of your comfort zone if you are going to shoot 148 by staying there!

[boatman37]

Seeing that you dropped over 100 pins from game two to game three, let me tell you a story. One of the bowlers on my trios team recently returned to bowling after several years off. He uses a ball with a conventional drill (not finger tip). He can only point the corner and play in the dirt, because his ball never gets into a roll. He finally got a ball drilled finger-tip, but has not yet used it in league because he "doesn't want to embarrass himself by averaging 170." So last week he was there with his conventional drill and what did he do?: He averaged 170!

My point, you have nothing to lose by getting out of your comfort zone if you are going to shoot 148 by staying there!

Exactly...lol. Just need to go with it and figure it out. The first time I tried way inside awhile back I used the Kingpin and was happy with it. The last 2 times I used the Conspiracy and it wasn't good. I had the Kingpin with me last night but like you said, just gotta do it. Funny thing is my teammate leaves tons of 10 pins. He uses his strike ball for them and probably makes about 70% of them but last night he missed the first 2 or 3. He's a righty but I told him to try my T-Zone for the heck of it. Told him he had nothing to lose...lol. He did try it twice and missed both times before going back to his strike ball

[boatman37]

So looked at a video from about 2 years ago when I first came back and all this time it 'appeared' my ball would ride a straight line to the breakpoint. Watching the video it looked like I set down at about the 10 board and broke at about the 7 board so there is a slight arc. Saturday at cosmic bowling I targeted the 15 board and slowed my speed way down to about 15 MPH and it looked to be arcing out about 5 boards but it was hard to tell since the lights were out. Unfortunately it might be awhile before I can get out for more practice