Right Handed
Ball weight: 14
Rev Rate: 378
Ball Speed: 18.2
Axis Tilt: 6.67
Axis Rotation: 45*
PAP: 4 1/2 horizontal, 1 5/8 up
Layout: 55 x 4 1/2 x 45

I wanted to try this one because it seems that many bowlers are having much success with older urethanes on shorter patterns. I haven’t had much success with the Natural series, but I’m pretty sure they just don’t match up with my game.

The layout on this ball has proven to be quite good for me with the Byte and Reign of Power, so I’ll say that I played this one safe so I didn’t end up with an anchor.

I’ve used this one on a few different patterns and have seen some very good reactions.

On a flat, 43 foot house pattern (their open play pattern), it rolls so early, you can’t play the gutter. The cover just won’t let you play the light volume of this pattern. I end up having to play a bit of bounce off of 8-10. It’s a great look for about a game and a half. After that, the lane opens up and I have to start chasing the shot inside.

On Sydney, during a night of pot bowling, it was again, too early outside. I was able to play about 7-8 up the boards, but it broke down quickly. I really liked the look on fresh, but as the oil moved down lane, I lost the look completely and had to pull out a low-flare Asylum.

On PBA Regional Chameleon (43’), old wood, I had a decent look during the practice session, playing tight 12-13, right at the hole. It was quite speed sensitive, as you would expect with urethane on that kind of oil. During the 8 games of qualifying, I pulled it out around game 5. I had no look or luck with anything else, so I figured this may be my opportunity to utilize urethane control. Because the look was 3,4,5 due to the track hooking quite early, I tried the outside 5 and rolled a couple of pretty good shots, but at that moment, I just didn’t have the accuracy needed to play that shot. I had about two boards of bump right when I set it down around 8, hitting 5 at the arrows, but my tendency to pull the ball just wouldn’t let me utilized that shot. Just FYI, Kameron Doyle won this tournament using the Pitch Black.

Overall, I really like the roll of the Pitch Black. With this layout, my Byte and RoP get about 5-7” of flare. On the Pitch Black, it’s about 1”, which is refreshing. This is reminiscent of the older urethanes that I used way back in the day. I can’t say it’s a ball that will travel to every tournament with me, but it will make all of the short and low volume patterns, just because it could be a good security blanket. I have not altered the surface yet and it is holding the box finish quite well. It’s very smooth and controllable, which is what urethane should be. This is the ball I will be using to work on my accuracy. I do not get away with a bad shot with this ball. For me, the worst case scenario with the Pitch Black is that I have a ball to practice with without beating up my tournament arsenal and I know it will help my accuracy and possibly speed control.

I would suggest this ball for anyone who doesn’t remember or never had the opportunity to roll the old urethanes. It could be a great tournament ball as long as the bowler is aware that you are not going to open up a lane with this piece. If you understand the limitations of urethane, it is a must have.