Does Your Team Talk?

[RobLV1]

This winter season has really been an eye-opening experience for me in terms of team bowling. For the past few years I have bowled in senior leagues, many of them high average. This year I bowled with a team in an open "almost scratch" league where there are a lot of well known bowlers, including Jake Peters, David Haynes, Johnny Pegraglia Jr., Steve Vallenueva, and Andrew Graff. I am bowling with a former Open Championship all-events winner, a barely senior bowler who averages over 230, and another bowler like myself, for whom this is a new experience. One of the biggest differences that I see between this and the high average senior leagues in which I have bowled, is the amount of communication between players. We talk about our ball reaction. We talk about the ball reaction of the players on the other team. We talk about the difference between the lanes, and how each is transitioning. Does your team talk to each other, or do you feel like you are on your own when it comes to ball choices and how you play the lanes?

[fortheloveofbowling]

My team always talk about the lanes and usually from practice on. Not every frame or even game but when someone has an idea or a teammate needs help sure. Also, i might even discuss and even try to help someone i'm bowling against at certain times. I never want to see anyone just struggle if they really care about their game and consider that just good sportsmanship. Now am i going to recommend a move i know a guy needs to make in the 10th if he needs a double to beat us? No way. I think to have an effective team you have a comfort level with your players and be able to have an open dialogue about lane play.

[Hampe]

The only person around here I do this with is my doubles partner. Sometimes we'll even come watch the other play in a singles event if one qualified and the other didn't, just to have a second opinion and second set of eyes.

But my normal teammates are pretty standard house-league bowlers and don't think about this kind of stuff (and aren't necessarily interested in hearing about it either).

[Tony]

On the league I'm in there generally is some talk about lane conditions, and transition through the night and also some discussion on adjustments, we are fortunate to have some higher level bowlers who are willing to do a little coaching for players that want and ask for it.

[bowl1820]

We talk about our ball reaction. We talk about the ball reaction of the players on the other team. We talk about the difference between the lanes, and how each is transitioning. Does your team talk to each other, or do you feel like you are on your own when it comes to ball choices and how you play the lanes?

No my team doesn't have that type of conversation.

I feel safe saying the average league team (and many tournament teams) don't have those type of conversations, Outside of the basic "The lanes sure are oily(or dry) tonight?" and "what am I doing wrong?".

While many may benefit from that type of conversation, most don't have it.

[Amyers]

No my team doesn't wish we had more of that. I don't think there really is much of that in the entire house that I do most of my bowling at trying a couple of new houses this summer so maybe a different answer later we will see.

[jab5325]

Our conversation centered around ball reaction and other bowlers......but there was a great deal of conversation about life in general.

That said, the bowling-related conversations we had weren't very in-depth, certainly not to RobLV1's level

[vdubtx]

On Tuesdays we talk about the lanes and how balls react but also typically complaining about the AMAZING carry everyone else has.

One team mate in particular likes to over analyze each and every shot and that gets him in to trouble reading into a bad shot when it's him that was the issue and not the ball or the lanes. He is like a spray can sometimes when he is up there. We tell him jokingly that he has a 2 board area out there and they both have arrows, LOL.

Thursdays my team are all lower average bowlers and we like to eat and have fun just shooting the ... having nice conversation.

[Mark O]

No my team doesn't have that type of conversation.

I feel safe saying the average league team (and many tournament teams) don't have those type of conversations, Outside of the basic "The lanes sure are oily(or dry) tonight?" and "what am I doing wrong?".

While many may benefit from that type of conversation, most don't have it.

THIS. I would like to have that kind of conversation but my teammates are mostly lower average bowlers that come to throw the ball and have a good time. Plus they all have deliveries that are unorthodox so the ball reaction that their seeing is very different from the ball reaction I'm going to see. The only two that really talk in depth about lane play are me(200 avg) and our anchor (210 avg). We have a similar ball motion and play around the same area so we can adjust off of each other but we only primarily have conversations if one of us seems really lost.

[Mike White]

Most of the conversations we have are closer to a psychiatric session.

Those guys worry about crap that simply doesn't need worrying about.

In my senior league most of the conversation revolves around what body part is hurting the most.