It may be time to hang it up...

[Aslan]

It's hard to answer the question or comment without knowing more information.

You're not a youth bowler...so I'm assuming this isn't a frustration that real bowling isn't as easy as Wii bowling, it's too hard, etc...

You're male, low 30s...which means you have plenty of time. Not sure how long you've been bowling...but it seems like not very long.

The first question I would ask as a coach is: "What are your goals?" It's a question you hear from personal trainers and thereapists...but unfortunately not many bowling coaches.

The reason that question is important is it determines what needs to be done next. If your answer is "I want to someday be in the top 10-15% of league players at my house....that's highly likely to be something that can be accomplished. It's going to take some time, and some practice. But it's easily acheiveable primarily because while most high level league bowlers rely on their decades of experience, you are shortcutting around them by taking lessons...something their experience is tricking them into not doing.

Now, if your goal is to win the WSOB in the next few years....I'm not going to say that it's impossible...but the path you'd have to take would be excruciatingly difficult.

So step 1 (if you want my advice) is to honestly come up with what your goal is. And don't LIE!! People always lie to themselves. If your goal is to be the best bowler on the planet....but you "say" your goal is to be above average....you are going to be constantly disappointed despite exceeding your stated goals.

[Aslan]

1st off your profile says you are a 150 avg. bowler who throws a 15lb. backup ball.

That's the other problem. Regardless of your goals....you're throwing a weak/entry-level ball "backwards" (which I assume means back-up).

Unlike Private Detective Fordman....I was able to easily investigate your profile to determine age and gender. Years of stalking experience paying off I guess.

The reason why That's a problem is that it's more difficult to really see good ball motion with a lower level ball. They aren't designed to hook that much. And the worse part of the equation is you're throwing a back-up ball. Usually, it is only appropriate for children or females to throw a back-up ball. And "no", I'm not being sexist nor violating Bowl1820's restriction on me mentioning "the ladies".

It's actually biomechanics. Women and men actually have joints that behave differently (in general). For women, it is actually more 'natural' to throw a back-up ball because of the way their arm/elbow/forearm are developed. Men, from an earlier age, start to lose that ability to rotate their arm that way. We can still do it (I throw back-up at certain splits and washouts...some guys throw back-up at certain spares)...but it's not 'natural'. I've only seen ONE bowler that was able to average in the 190s throwing a back-up ball. Can you average in the 150s? Absolutely. But the odds of you getting to a high level throwing a back-up ball are almost totally against you.

And that may explain why the coaching isn't working as well as you'd like. I tried to coach a co-worker that threw a back-up ball and everything I was trained to teach was opposite. I had to teach a RHer as if he was a LHer. And you can't teach proper sub-elements of the release....because the release is backwards. To come THROUGH the ball with a back-up release would require you to be double-jointed.

But all that aside...if you just started in April and are still struggling in November...that's not abnormal. I started in August 2013 and never averaged over 164 until last season. It took me a good two years to go from 121-179....and I bowl more often than just about anyone on here AND was taking regular lessons since back in 2014. Part of the reason for that is that fundamentals take time to learn. There's no magic to it. It's like the 2-handers that get pissed and quit because they throw 2-handed but aren't nearly as good as Belmo. It took Belmo 25 years to learn how to do that and perfect it to that level. Footwork, timing, release, accuracy, spare shooting. These are all basic things that many people in your league (and on this site) have mastered over decades of experience. For those of us that start later in life...we have to catch up to them because by the time we wait 20 years...bowling probably won't exist or we'll have no back/knee left to continue.

It's frustrating...but no more so than anything else. Decide what you want to accomplish...fix the basics....then slowly you'll see improvement. But it won't happen overnight. You can't be an elite bowler until you learn to pick up spares at an 80% or > clip. You can't be an elite bowler until you can strike at least 1 out of every 3 frames; probably 2 out of every 3 frames. And learning to do those two things will take years and years. Not ONE year.

[NYMIKE]

Are you being coached on throwing a backup ball? I'm no expert on bowling, I'm the lowest scoring average regular poster here, but I know enough to say that it's not a conventional way of bowling. Most people are taught 4 step approach, pendulum (grandpa clock) arm swing. There is a bowler in my league that throws a backup ball, he averages about what I do (150s) he is very athletic, he has very high swing like Mika, but spares are difficult for him.

[PAV1983]

It's hard to answer the question or comment without knowing more information.

You're not a youth bowler...so I'm assuming this isn't a frustration that real bowling isn't as easy as Wii bowling, it's too hard, etc...

You're male, low 30s...which means you have plenty of time. Not sure how long you've been bowling...but it seems like not very long.

The first question I would ask as a coach is: "What are your goals?" It's a question you hear from personal trainers and thereapists...but unfortunately not many bowling coaches.

The reason that question is important is it determines what needs to be done next. If your answer is "I want to someday be in the top 10-15% of league players at my house....that's highly likely to be something that can be accomplished. It's going to take some time, and some practice. But it's easily acheiveable primarily because while most high level league bowlers rely on their decades of experience, you are shortcutting around them by taking lessons...something their experience is tricking them into not doing.

Now, if your goal is to win the WSOB in the next few years....I'm not going to say that it's impossible...but the path you'd have to take would be excruciatingly difficult.

So step 1 (if you want my advice) is to honestly come up with what your goal is. And don't LIE!! People always lie to themselves. If your goal is to be the best bowler on the planet....but you "say" your goal is to be above average....you are going to be constantly disappointed despite exceeding your stated goals.

My goal as of right now is to get back to where I was before I switched away from the backup ball (around a 150 avg.). My next goal is to get up into the in 160's and 170's. My ultimate goal is to eventually average in the low 200's. That's all I really want to accomplish. I just want to get to the 200 avg. threshold.

As I said before, the most frustrating thing is that I feel I am making ZERO progress. Instead of getting better, I feel like I have stayed in the same place for at least six months, not improving one bit. I know what my goals are, but I can't seem to improve enough to get to them.

I enjoy bowling, but at some point when I should be getting better and I'm not, it's very frustrating.

[NewToBowling]

I have to ask why you are bowling backup. Is it just personal preference. Like others have stated it is easier to be consistent if you throw a normal release.

[Aslan]

I enjoy bowling, but at some point when I should be getting better and I'm not, it's very frustrating.

You don't have to tell me! Staying at the same spot is difficult, especially when you're putting resources into the process.

My suggestion about your goals is to start tracking some useful statistics and make improving those statistics your short-term goal(s) with the low 200 average being more of a mid-term goal.

For example, here are some things you can track;
- first ball average (for a 200 bowler...this is likely between 8.5-9.5). If it's low (6-8)...then finding the pocket is important.
- pocket % (same as above....how often are you actually hitting the pocket?) This is important because 200 average bowlers rarely miss the pocket...and when they do it was either a bad shot and/or they went through the head because of transition.
- strike % (how often do you strike?) If this is high but your average is low...you need to work on spare shooting. 200-average bowlers generally strike at a rate > 30%.
- pocket carry. Once you figure out getting to the pocket...are you carrying the 10-pin and 7-pin and 8-pin and 9-pin? If you're hitting pocket and not striking...it may be a ball/equipment issue or lane play issue.
- single-pin spare % (how many times can you pick up a single-pin spare?)
- corner-pin spare % (how often can you pick up the hard single-pins?)
- average improvement, high score improvement, clean games, etc... (not as meaningful, but smaller goals to keep you motivated)
- accuracy % (if you are having trouble hitting your mark....maybe start with this and try to improve the % of time you hit your target +/- X boards)

The reason I track my stats every game, every practice, every open-bowling (not counting lessons or low-ball games)...is I want the STATS. The Stats tell a story. Sometimes that story is VERY different from what you FEEL. I've had many, many (to the infinity) bad games and sometimes i'll think it's because I did A or B or didn't do C or D...then I look at the stats and I see, "oh....okay...I actually picked up almost every spare...but I couldn't strike....so that's a carry issue. The stats are easier to work with because you can focus on a certain thing rather than trying to fix every little thing at once.

I have 3 levels of goals:
1) Season Goals: Very specific, achievable, but challenging. Stat oriented.
2) Mid-Term Goals: Short-Term accomplishments (average increase, high games, top X % of the league I'm in, going to a clinic/pro, scratch/sport leagues, etc...)
3) Long Term Career Goals: "Dream" goals. If the #1 and #2 goals are accomplished and I'm not broken down or dead...could I ever compete in higher stake tournaments/leagues/competitions? And if I did...what would me ultimate dream goal be?

Remember: Your "season goals" ultimately get you to your mid-term goals. A 200 average is ONLY possible if you achieve many of those season goals. You have to learn how to hit a ball before you can have a 0.400 average.

Long term goals are more tricky because long term goals keep you from "cheating" and doing something that long term is counter-productive...but short term will meet your mid-term goal. For example....coming through the ball versus up the side. Many bowlers bowl thumbless, or 2-handed, or crank it up the outside....and many of them can achieve mid-term goals like a 200 average. The question is...do they have the fundamentals to get to those bigger goals? Many times that answer is "no". They can strike like mad....but they can't make spares. They can bowl well on one condition, but not another. They have the physical talent but not the experience or mental ability or consistency. Etc..., Etc...

[AlexNC]

I am inclined to think that you may be using your scores as the only indicator of progress. I can't speak for others but I try not to pay attention to the scores during my practice sessions. Isolate the keys you are working on and only worry about that which you are working on (don't worry about "A" when you are working on "B".

[fortheloveofbowling]

Go back to the most basic things and focus on that. Is your footwork/approach fairly consistent? Are you able to retain balance at the foul line? Work on your approach and balance and focus only on that in practice. When you achieve a consistent approach and balance that is the key. The next time you practice make sure your approach feels good again. Then focus solely on your release. Try the 1 step drill for a few games to isolate that part of your game. Just some thoughts. Good luck and hang in there things will fall into place.

[Aslan]

I'm changing my vote.

Give it 2 years and if you're still rolling an occasional series < 500....quit at the end of that season. Thats my new plan.

[vdubtx]

I have to ask why you are bowling backup. Is it just personal preference. Like others have stated it is easier to be consistent if you throw a normal release.

That is my question too.

PAV1983, Is the coach actually teaching you to bowl back up ball?