Miss head pin on first shot - use spare ball for 2nd?

[panbanger]

Title of the thread pretty much says it all. When you miss the head pin on the first shot, do you use your spare ball on the 2nd shot? I stick with my primary ball and just throw my regular shot. For example to pick up the 1-2-4, I throw a normal strike ball because that should do the trick. Just wondering if most other people do this as well.

[jimlc2001]

I usually go with my spare ball and use it as practice for picking up the 1-2-4-10.

[Greenday]

Only time I use my spare ball is to pick up 6, 9, or 10 pins. Everything else, I use my strike ball. If I miss the head pin on my first shot, re-shooting with my strike ball let's me make the adjustment and see if the adjustment was good enough.

[billf]

If it's a league game I use my spare ball. If I couldn't hit the pocket the first time, why would I think I could do it again? Practice I do whatever I feel like.

[J Anderson]

If it's a league game I use my spare ball. If I couldn't hit the pocket the first time, why would I think I could do it again? Practice I do whatever I feel like.

Depends on why you missed it. If you hit your target but missed the pocket the safest bet is take the lane out of play and go straight. If you missed your target on the first ball, why would you think your spare ball would do any better?

[Greenday]

If it's a league game I use my spare ball. If I couldn't hit the pocket the first time, why would I think I could do it again? Practice I do whatever I feel like.

I feel like this is a good way to throw yourself off for the rest of the night.

[RoccoRock]

I usually use my spare ball, go straight and fast. At time's I've used my strike ball almost as a test shot, to see if I can fix the reason why I missed. Just have to be careful I don't over compensate, and miss on the other side.

[billf]

Depends on why you missed it. If you hit your target but missed the pocket the safest bet is take the lane out of play and go straight. If you missed your target on the first ball, why would you think your spare ball would do any better?

Bigger margin of error. A spare ball at 25mph doesn't even have to hit the head pin to knock it down (or any other single pin for that matter) plus it's easier to throw plastic straight through oil than hook a reactive accurately (albeit not always much easier).

[billf]

I feel like this is a good way to throw yourself off for the rest of the night.

Not sure why it would throw me off for the rest of the night. It's just playing with the odds in my favor. I hate losing and especially hate missing a spare. I'm one of the few people I know who actually practices split conversions including the 7-10. I've yet to convert the 4-6 and have only made the big four once.

[Hampe]

The only time I use my strike ball on the second shot is if the 1-3 are still standing.....and even then it depends on whats behind it.