Practice for Sweeps in Las Vegas: synthetic lanes/heavy oil
Warm-Up Game: 137
505 Series: 174-178-153
Game 1 I had a couple opens and a couple splits but struck well. Game 2 I only had a couple opens with no splits (other than the 3-7 I converted in the 5th); but didn't strike worth a damn. Game 3 was only a couple opens and a split…but striking/carry woes continued. Glad to see the series was over 500 though.
519 Series: 189 (clean)-161-169
Game 1 was 3 strikes and the rest spares. Very few people can say they rolled a clean game < 190. But I'll take it. I guess I'd rather be good than lucky. Game 2 had 4 opens and should have been a worse score but I struck out in the 10th to salvage a 160+ game. Game 3 I had a few opens early but was clean in frames 5 through 10. Too little too late though.
492 Series: 209 (clean)-151-132
Game 1 was another spare-fest but I managed to run a few strikes together to get over 200. And then things started falling apart mentally. Game 2 I lost pocket; only hit the pocket twice the entire game. Only had a few open frames…but only struck once. Hard to strike as it is without adding missing the pocket to the equation. Ad that mentally killed me. Game 3 I just started missing right, my timing was off…and the worse I'd do the more pissed I'd get and the more tense I'd get and the worse I'd do. I shoulda just bowled 9 games and went back to the room.
PinPal Stats:
First Ball Average: 8.39 pins
Strikes: 27% (3 turkeys, 3 doubles, and 16 singles)
Spares: 61% picked up
Single Pin spares: 100% (22/22)
Most common single pin leave: 10-pin (7x)
Never left a single 1-pin, 5-pin, nor 8-pin.
Multiple Pin spares: 46% (26/56)
Most common multi-pin leaves: 1-2-8 (5x).
Splits: 30% (3/10)
Pocket Percentage: 41%
Pocket Carry: 69%
Double Percentage: 23%
Average over 10 games: 165.30.
Average had I picked up 100% of single pin spare leaves: n/a.
I compared these numbers to the last time I bowled before sweeps in Vegas about a year ago. Obviously, the numbers for everything but strike % improved significantly since last year at this time. So thats a good thing. Unfortunately my expectations have risen at an even faster pace. I need to find a way to be more patient.
The first step/goal in this practice was to fix my current lines. My lines are just too tight. I was starting out with my left foot on 10.5 and my target was the 9-board at the arrows. That meant I was trying to lay the ball down on about the 8-board…targeting the 9-board…which makes me throw it across my body. So I had to fix those lines a bit.
I then tried to avoid the tendency when I missed right…to move right. Otherwise…the lines tighten back up. Instead, I was trying to move my target point (eyes) closer to me than the arrows. I fiddled with the idea of reducing my speed to compensate for the "las vegas style" heavy-oil lanes…but only the pros can honestly change their speeds without screwing up their timing so I abandoned that idea rather quickly.
I balled down to the Encounters and then started having thumb fit issues. The Encounter (A) is a bit big while the Encounter (N) is a little tight. I don't usually throw those balls in league play so I haven't really done a good job on the tape for those balls. At one point the Encounter (N) stuck on my hand and almost carried me down the lane…and of course that messes with you mentally the rest of the night.
The biggest positive for me was the 2 clean games and the 22/22 on singlepin spare shooting. It's rare for me to go 100% on single-pin spares…but to do it on tough lane conditions, otu of my usual comfort zone and over 10 games with 22 opportunities is really quite a feat for me. If single-pin spare shooting becomes "automatic"…that'll really free up my time/efforts to fix the carry/strike rate issue.
The problem right now is I'm thinking of 4 things on the set-up through delivery. I've been trying to keep that at about 1-2 with 4 being the absolute maximum. But…the 4 things are KEY to me having success. If I thought about all 4 and focused…I made good shots and had clean games and even managed to strike. When I left out just ONE (or more)…I made bad shots.
Lesson with Rob tomorrow morning should be fun and helpful. Always look forward to getting that opportunity. Then, assuming the knee is fine and my thumb isn't too beat up…probably 7-10 more practice games tomorrow night to get me ready for sweeps on Saturday. It would be nice to do well in sweeps for a change and actually take home some $$$. Not to mention this league is full of sandbag-a-sauruses that I'd like to stomp on.
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