Putting Together the Perfect League Team

[RobLV1]

I find myself in a very pleasant situation in my Tuesday morning League. By pure happenstance, I find myself with a perfect bowling team. This got me thinking, if you could put together the perfect league bowling team, what types of bowlers would you pick. My team is a trio, but would be equally as good as a four man team with the right fourth.

[J Anderson]

Leadoff- some one who can get the team fired up. High carry percentage. Not the most consistent spare shooter, but one who focuses better on the harder leaves, i.e. splits and washouts. Super Positive attitude. Since he or she is the first to roll after the opposing team, it’s a big plus if they can communicate if and how the lane has changed.

Second- insert token lefty here. Just half kidding here, if you have a lefty, they are not going to effect the right side and this gives bowler one time to clue the rest of the team in on the transition. If you’re not lucky enough to have a lefty, this is the spot for your weakest link.

Third (& fourth on a 5 person team)- this is where you want the steady guy, always around the pocket, makes almost all his or her spares usually +/-10 pins of average.

Anchor- probably but not necessarily your highest average bowler. The bowler who enjoys having the match rest on what he or she does in the ninth and tenth. Only bowler who only has to listen and not communicate how the lane is breaking down.

[bowl1820]

I find myself in a very pleasant situation in my Tuesday morning League. By pure happenstance, I find myself with a perfect bowling team. This got me thinking, if you could put together the perfect league bowling team, what types of bowlers would you pick. My team is a trio, but would be equally as good as a four man team with the right fourth.

This sounds like the old "What's the best line up question? Who goes first,Second....." that's been asked many time before. Is that what your looking for or something else?

For me personally anymore I just want teammates that show up regularly and don't quit after a few weeks.


For line up this was as good as any.

The Leadoff would be a person who the rest of a team could get a really good read off of lane condition wise and was ultra consistent.

2 Place would be either a lefty with the same quality or a guy who was for lack of a better term the weak link.

3 Would be a guy who could make sure to put together a strong game and set things up for the set up and anchor bowlers. Also must be a good spare shooter.

4 would be the second strongest bowler and a bowler who could really put up some numbers. Great spare shooter an and clutch bowler for the 9th frame.

5 The most consistent and talented player who could make shots under pressure and also read what the other guys are doing and make quick adjustments.

[boatman37]

For me it's more about attitude. I'm #4 in our lineup. #1 is a righty (180 average, 52 years old) with lower speed and higher revs. He struggles with anything outside his comfort zone and is reluctant to go outside it. He always gets frustrated and mad when he struggles. #2 is a low speed and pretty low rev lefty (180 average about 55 years old). Good attitude and doesn't get too mad when he bowls bad. #3 is a righty the angles from the gutter to the pocket (185 average about 45 years old). Hardly any hook and higher speed. #4 is me, a lefty (187 average, 50 years young:)). Since I have been slowing it down I'm pretty matched up speed vs revs. I'm more of a staright up the outside with a nice right turn at the breakpoint. Anchor is lefty higher rev lower speed (195 average, 26 years old and son of #1). Suitcase style release. Gets mad and frustrated when he struggles.

But more about the attitude...when they struggle and start kicking the ball return and punching chairs it gets to us too. It is contagious so when they get down we tend to get down. When we are all laughing and having a good time we bowl better.

Thet can all tell you when the lanes are dry or oily but none can or will tell you how to fix it. They are all old school and the righties keep their same mark and move feet right when they hit light and feet left when they hit high. All but me and one other lefty use their strike ball for every spare, including corner pins. Old school team.

[Aslan]

For me personally anymore I just want teammates that show up regularly and don't quit after a few weeks.

My favorite answer.


...when they struggle and start kicking the ball return and punching chairs it gets to us too. It is contagious so when they get down we tend to get down. When we are all laughing and having a good time we bowl better.
Also THIS ^^^

My Thursday league is the premier league in the area...and its great bowling with such good bowlers...but every year its the same thing. Our anchor keeps saying he's quitting...and finally he quit. Our 4th bowler is a friggin high school coach...yet he decided to "take some time off" after going through a bit of a slump (which for him is 180s-220s). So now we gotta find a sub for him. Our current anchor, who is sponsored semi-pro...seems totally disinterested in being there and I think is just there to network with other high level bowlers. Even our lead bowler...who is a great guy and keeps everyone going...if he has a bad game (160s-170s)...he'll go wander off and stand alone for awhile...pouting.

To answer the question...and I'm gonna take a "Rob angle" here...

I'm selfish...so I want a team that helps make me better.

So if its a trio...I want the other two bowlers to be coaches...but different kinds of coaches. I want the lead bowler to be like a Mo Pinel...who really, really understands bowling balls and ball motion. I want him to "figure out" the lanes and what might work and what might not.

In the anchor position, I want a coach that is all about technique...like a Mark Baker.

I want Mo Pinel to tell me which ball to throw and Mark Baker to tell me what I did wrong (or occasionally right).

Best team I've "been on"? I was on a team once in a "party league"...two gals and a thumbless/lefty. One of the gals was pretty good...the other wasn't but was very eager to learn and get better. So, the whole season, the better female would lead off...very reliable, good example for the 2nd female...

...who would bowl next....

...then I'd bowl and if the 2nd bowler needed to see an "example"...I could sometimes say, "okay, watch my stance after I release the ball,etc..."

...then the thumbless lefty...who was a fun guy to drink with and since he was a lefty...he wasn't messing up my line.

It was a good team because everyone had fun...everyone got along...the bowler that wanted to learn...learned and got better...and I would usually either break even or win money in the brackets and sidepots so I was usually bowling for next to nothing ($$$). And...we were competitive. I don't think like "top 3" competitive...but we held our own.

[rdd1952]

For me personally anymore I just want teammates that show up regularly and don't quit after a few weeks.

I started back this year after 3 years off. The teams I was previously on had either left the leagues or had replaced me and I didn't want to force someone out so I told the league secretaries I wanted on a good team and by "good team" I meant that they showed up every week and paid their money. Average wasn't important. I'm a 210+ average and want to win but like most all of us, I don't make my living bowling so I want to have fun and not have to stress over whether there will be a full team there each night.

[rdd1952]

Aslan, that kicking the ball return drives me up the wall. There is a guy in both of my leagues that is terrible about that. He's maybe a 175-180 average bowler and thinks he is supposed to strike every frame. Miss a spare, kick the ball return. Leave a 10 pin, kick the ball return. He sits at the score table and almost never speaks to anyone. Never a "good shot" or anything. I told someone when we bowled them that if I didn't have any more fun than that, I wouldn't be bowling.

[boatman37]

One of our 'kickers' kicked the steel support pole last year after a 'bad shot' and broke their toe. They finished out the night but looked like Igor on the approach. Then when they leave a pocket 10 they complain about the lanes. I tried explaining that if they leave a pocket 10 then there is probably a reason for it but they just keep throwing the same ball. The one week my teammate left a bunch of 7's in a row (I think it was 5 or 6) but would not make any adjustments because they were hitting the pocket and thought it was just bad luck.

Even with the 'old school' bowler mentality on our team we are still one of the top teams (usually). This year we are in next to last in our division but we are usually near the top. To me it's more about consistency and fun. That's why we have handicaps. I don't care if you are a 150 bowler or a 200 bowler. Just beat your average and have fun.

We never thought of setting our lineup strategically. When I joined the team a couple years ago they put me in the 4th slot. Our high average bowler was anchor and the rest were where they were when I got there so if somebody drops we just plop their replacement into their slot. But now this has me thinking. Even as 'new' as I am to understanding modern lane conditions and balls I'm still 10x further ahead than any of my teammates. Not that they listen to me anyway but maybe I should be 3rd (the 2 righties be 1st and 2nd) that way I can explain to the other 2 lefties what I am seeing. But they don't listen anyway...lol

[classygranny]

Leadoff- some one who can get the team fired up. High carry percentage. Not the most consistent spare shooter, but one who focuses better on the harder leaves, i.e. splits and washouts. Super Positive attitude. Since he or she is the first to roll after the opposing team, it’s a big plus if they can communicate if and how the lane has changed.

Second- insert token lefty here. Just half kidding here, if you have a lefty, they are not going to effect the right side and this gives bowler one time to clue the rest of the team in on the transition. If you’re not lucky enough to have a lefty, this is the spot for your weakest link.

Third (& fourth on a 5 person team)- this is where you want the steady guy, always around the pocket, makes almost all his or her spares usually +/-10 pins of average.

Anchor- probably but not necessarily your highest average bowler. The bowler who enjoys having the match rest on what he or she does in the ninth and tenth. Only bowler who only has to listen and not communicate how the lane is breaking down.

I somewhat agree with this. I have been bowling lead-off for many years. Not sure I am the cheerleader type but I can/could usually start up the team when needed. Since my elbow surgery, I have been struggling with the average as well as spares mostly due to the loss of ball speed. This season, our captain put me in third (four man team) since I have the next higher average and she follows me, so she can adjust off the read of my ball.

I always liked lead-off for several reasons...one, I was out of the "pressure" situation, two, I was not the last one bowling, and three, lead-off bowlers usually follow the better bowler of the opposite team and can feed off that. I'm learning more about my role as third, although, I have missed some of the season due to my eye surgery. Can't wait til November so I can get back to a regular bowling routine.

[rdd1952]

I think the lead off should be the second best bowler on the team. Someone that can throw strikes and maybe the most consistent spare shooter. You want them to be able to start a 10th frame rally by striking out but certainly not squash one with a missed corner pin in the 10th. Anchor bowler is best bowler on team and someone that relishes the pressure of having it come down to them. As to the middle, I don't think any particular order matters other than maybe the 3rd bowler on a 5 man team being the weakest bowler.

[RobLV1]

Great responses!

My current Tuesday morning team inspired this thread. It's a trios league. I bowl lead-off. It's my job to watch my own ball reaction as well as the ball reactions of our opponents and give the rest of my team a heads-up when I see changes coming. I am also known as a very good spare shooter, so my bad games are never too far below my average. I've been bowling with our anchorman for about a year. He is a high rev, high speed player. When we first started bowling together he told me that he wanted to learn to bowl tournaments. I agreed to help him, but only if he agreed to follow my advice... I can't tell you how many bowlers ask me for help and then argue with me when I try to help them! When I first started bowling with him, he was primarily throwing urethane equipment so that he could stay in his comfort zone on the outside part of the lane. I immediately told him to leave the urethane balls in his bag until I specifically told him to take them out. He had to learn to move out of the track area if he wanted to become a bowler. He has done this, and just recently has begun to be comfortable playing left of the fourth arrow.

This season, our third team mate couldn't bowl because of a knee injury. We got a new bowler who had just moved to Vegas from Illinois. He is a forty-year-old lefty. The first week, he averaged 116! We started talking after bowling, and he told me that he was bowling so bad because he was used to bowling two-handed and thumbless, but his senior teammates in Illinois told him that he should watch videos of Earl Anthony and bowl like he did. I suggested that perhaps that had not been the best advice, and that he should go back to his own style. He is now averaging nearly 160 and is getting better and better at adjusting to changing oil and picking up spares.

Last week we were one point out of first place. I decided to employ a lane strategy to maximize our chances at winning all three games and totals. The team we were bowling against was comprised of a woman who throws the ball straight up the middle and is not known for her accuracy, a second bowler with whom I bowled last summer and is one of those who asked me for help and then argued with me about what I told him. He insists on using and overly aggressive bowling ball and throwing it out far right. He rips up the track area and never adjusts. He is also so competitive that he puts so much pressure on himself that he chokes any time that he needs a mark. Our opponents anchorman I have nick-named the legend (in his own mind). He is a typical "house hack" who never moves from his favorite shot around the third arrow using a very aggressive bowling ball.

Before we started, I told my teammates about my plan. I told our anchorman to start playing around 17 board, just to the left of the legend. I played around 13, just to the right of the legend. I told our lefty to subtly let Mr. Competitive know that he was competing with him, head-to-head. We won the first game, despite the Legend shooting 245. We were all in the low two hundreds which was plenty to beat them, as Mr. Competitive bowled about thirty pins under his average. The trend continued as the Legend dropped into the 170's as he shot went away. We're now in first place all by ourselves. I love it when a plan comes together!

By the way, I am appalled at how many of you are being asked to put up with bowlers who are emotionally twelve year olds who throw tantrums when they get a bad break. Bowl1820: are there any USBC rules that allow real bowlers a way of getting away from these idiots?

[boatman37]

I feel I do better under pressure and like it. Although it might not seem like it after those few weeks of struggling...lol. But back in the early 90's when MC Hammer had his song 'Hammer Time' when I was up and we needed a big frame I would tell my teammates 'Hammer Time!'. I enjoyed the pressure. And when we are in a tight game in the 10th I try to let my opponent bowl before me just to add a little more pressure to me.

But yeah, our 2 teammates with tempers are father/son but the father is my best friend and has been for years. I do wish they wouldn't do it but they have for as long as I remember. I tell them to calm down and keep their heads in the game but I'm usually ignored.