What to expect in a "PBA Experience" League

[Bendial]

Hi Guys,

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

[vdubtx]

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

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

[I suck at bowling]

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

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

[Bendial]

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

[TCJ]

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

[Greenday]

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

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

[J Anderson]

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

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

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

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

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

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

[I suck at bowling]

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

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

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

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

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

http://bowl.com/Sport_Bowling/Sport_...ustment_Chart/

BAM!

Chart isn't accurate though.

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

if only. -__-

[J Anderson]

http://bowl.com/Sport_Bowling/Sport_...ustment_Chart/

BAM!

Chart isn't accurate though.

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

if only. -__-

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

[DrOcktagon]

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

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

Nice avatar