Team mate makes bowling more of a chore...am I a jerk to quit?

[JohnN]

Find a team that bowls for the fun of bowling and being with friends and being competitive second. I've been with the same guys on my Friday night league for over 30 years. We are getting older and really can't compete with the younger guys but we have a good time among ourselves and with the younger guys. This has been my worst year ever and I know I've been bitching a lot but my buddies have been supportive not blaming me for our low standing. Been on my Tuesday night team for about 5 years and it's the same story. Having fun is first and how we do in the standings is secondary. Our best bowler gives advice and help WHEN I ask and never gets down on me or our lower average bowler when we're bowling bad. I like to win as much as the next guy but I would rather have fun.

[NewToBowling]

Honestly I would never play on a team where their ONLY goal was to win the league and prize fund. Sure you can be competitive but not at the expense of everything else. I like the social aspect of it. I cheer for the other team if they are on a good run or shooting for 300. I like friendly banter. I don't want to stress out when I'm bowling. That's what work is for

[billf]

As I'm typing this out, I realized this is an Aslan-like post.....my apologies.

I laughed so hard it hurt. Thank you!!

[billf]

If the bowler in question IS the captain then abandon ship. If not then talk to the captain first.

I'm captain and corporate sponsor of my Monday team. Last season we had one guy that sat in the back by himself, sulked when he bowled bad, general crap attitude and only cared about himself and never the team. The other members approached me about booting him off. At first I thought it was a joke as three of us were related by marriage and got along well for years before bowling with him. So at the awards banquet I told him he wasn't coming back and why. I also mentioned how we had this talk about his attitude when bowling previously. He didn't talk to any of us for over three months but damn bowling was a lot more fun this year!

[Sche3067]

I actually have a similar issue on a Tuesday leauge with my grandfather's team. I say just lay it down and let them know. If it won't work just go.