Keep It Simple, Stupid

On Friday I went to the bowling alley with the intention of banking a few league games in anticipation of not being able to make it on April 5th. I'm going to the Pittsburgh Pirates home opener and wanted to be safe in case the game doesn't end early enough for me to get to the alley.

When I arrived they put me on lanes 5 and 6, the same set I had bowled on about 15 hours earlier during my league. It seemed that no one had touched the lanes since then because the conditions were exactly as I had left them. The ball had some movement in the backend, but there was a very fine line for a good shot into the pocket. My first game saw four strikes, two washouts, a split, and three opens. I finished with a 163.

The second game featured one strike in the ninth frame after two washouts, a missed 2-pin, and two other opens including a split. I had a very difficult time hitting my mark. I was all over the place, but mainly missing left by at least two boards. There was no transition to be seen as far as the lane conditions went, but I was moving all over to try to find a better line and correct my accuracy issues. I finished that game with a 159.

The third game started with another washout, missing the 7-pin on the spare attempt. I decided to calm down, slow the pace of the game, and just concentrate on staying behind the ball and hitting my target. The result was seven perfect pocket shots resulting in a double, a turkey, and two 10-pin spares. Unfortunately I left a split in the ninth, but managed to fill the 10th frame with a spare and nine count for a 203 game. For those counting at home, its a 525 series and 175 average.

So what did I get out of this session? Keep things simple! Don't over think shots. Don't worry about moving around. Don't get frustrated. Just concentrate on hitting my mark and see what happens. Once I can consistently hit my target, then I can worry about adjusting. I know how to adjust, its not being able to execute the same shot over and over again that hinders my game. I am my own worst enemy, not the oil. Hopefully coming into Thursday with this philosophy will help my scores.

This session also served as a great motivator. As in I am motivated to get the heck out of PNC Park after the baseball game and get to league so I don't have to use these scores.