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.
March 13, 2012
March 9, 2012
Week 28 Recap
Game 1: 203
Game 2: 196
Game 3: 160
Series: 559
Week Avg: 186
Season Avg: 191(.98)
Summary
The backends proved to be drier than they had been in recent weeks, which allowed for a bit more hook into the pocket. This was unique to our league, though, as the pair next to us complained all night about the oil on their lanes. I found a comfortable line during practice and felt confident heading into the night.
The first game started out with a double. High and light pocket hits were carrying, but I sliced through the rack leaving the 1-2-10. I left the 10-pin to open and then followed up with a turkey. I stayed clean the rest of the way and finished the game with a 203.
The transition game started out alright, but I missed a 2-pin early in the game. I started to have difficulty getting a solid pocket hit, resulting in a lot of 2- and 9-pins depending on whether I hit high or light. I stayed clean the rest of this game as well and finished up with a 196.
The third game featured no strikes, but it wasn't for a lack of trying. Several good pocket hits left the 10-pin, but for the most part I couldn't finesse the ball into the pocket like I had in the first game. I would hit high and make an adjustment, but then the ball would skid out toward the gutter and I would hit light or the ball would just seems to skid through the rack. I missed the 1-2-4-10 in the third frame and chopped the 6-10 in the eighth frame. I needed 19 pins in the tenth frame to win in the brackets for the third straight week and 11 pins to win the game. I left the 2-5 on my first ball and the spare shot went a little further left than I would have liked, but it stuck. So now I needed to keep it on the lane to win the game and 9 pins to win brackets. I came in high again and left the 4-8, finishing with a hard fought but disappointing 160 and a 559 series. We won the game and I split the bracket money.
Lesson Learned
During the last game I was faced with a choice: keep my team in the game by playing the safe line that wouldn't result in any crazy leaves and try to work the ball into the pocket for some strikes, or try a completely different line that could be either high reward or a disaster. I chose to play the safe line because my team had lost the first two games and we needed to come out of the evening with some points. The decision turned out to be a good one for the team because we won the game, but my individual score suffered because of it. There is most definitely a difference between team and individual bowling, and I hope these points help us out at the end of the quarter.
The drastic change I was thinking about making was to move my body and mark left a few boards and rely on the dry backends to snap my ball into the pocket. I would have been able to do this because I started experimenting with playing the inside of the ball. Essentially, this is when your hand is on the side of the ball facing your body with your palm facing outward throughout your backswing rather than being behind it with your palm facing the pins. This provides more revs and gets the ball to snap a bit more. Early on I was finding that this caused the ball to skid a bit further down the lane before ripping left at the last moment. I think that by the third game I could have found a line more through the middle that would have worked, but it might have taken a few valuable frames to locate the line. The high reward would have been a few strikes, but the risk was leaving washout after washout, slicing through the rack leaving 1-2-10 combinations like I did in the first and third games.
I've got a quick turnaround this week as I am going to throw a few games Friday afternoon on my day off. I am banking these as pre-bowl games because I might miss league on April 5th, so I won't be able to experiment like I would would have liked to. Let's hope the lanes are kind.
Game 2: 196
Game 3: 160
Series: 559
Week Avg: 186
Season Avg: 191(.98)
Summary
The backends proved to be drier than they had been in recent weeks, which allowed for a bit more hook into the pocket. This was unique to our league, though, as the pair next to us complained all night about the oil on their lanes. I found a comfortable line during practice and felt confident heading into the night.
The first game started out with a double. High and light pocket hits were carrying, but I sliced through the rack leaving the 1-2-10. I left the 10-pin to open and then followed up with a turkey. I stayed clean the rest of the way and finished the game with a 203.
The transition game started out alright, but I missed a 2-pin early in the game. I started to have difficulty getting a solid pocket hit, resulting in a lot of 2- and 9-pins depending on whether I hit high or light. I stayed clean the rest of this game as well and finished up with a 196.
The third game featured no strikes, but it wasn't for a lack of trying. Several good pocket hits left the 10-pin, but for the most part I couldn't finesse the ball into the pocket like I had in the first game. I would hit high and make an adjustment, but then the ball would skid out toward the gutter and I would hit light or the ball would just seems to skid through the rack. I missed the 1-2-4-10 in the third frame and chopped the 6-10 in the eighth frame. I needed 19 pins in the tenth frame to win in the brackets for the third straight week and 11 pins to win the game. I left the 2-5 on my first ball and the spare shot went a little further left than I would have liked, but it stuck. So now I needed to keep it on the lane to win the game and 9 pins to win brackets. I came in high again and left the 4-8, finishing with a hard fought but disappointing 160 and a 559 series. We won the game and I split the bracket money.
Lesson Learned
During the last game I was faced with a choice: keep my team in the game by playing the safe line that wouldn't result in any crazy leaves and try to work the ball into the pocket for some strikes, or try a completely different line that could be either high reward or a disaster. I chose to play the safe line because my team had lost the first two games and we needed to come out of the evening with some points. The decision turned out to be a good one for the team because we won the game, but my individual score suffered because of it. There is most definitely a difference between team and individual bowling, and I hope these points help us out at the end of the quarter.
The drastic change I was thinking about making was to move my body and mark left a few boards and rely on the dry backends to snap my ball into the pocket. I would have been able to do this because I started experimenting with playing the inside of the ball. Essentially, this is when your hand is on the side of the ball facing your body with your palm facing outward throughout your backswing rather than being behind it with your palm facing the pins. This provides more revs and gets the ball to snap a bit more. Early on I was finding that this caused the ball to skid a bit further down the lane before ripping left at the last moment. I think that by the third game I could have found a line more through the middle that would have worked, but it might have taken a few valuable frames to locate the line. The high reward would have been a few strikes, but the risk was leaving washout after washout, slicing through the rack leaving 1-2-10 combinations like I did in the first and third games.
I've got a quick turnaround this week as I am going to throw a few games Friday afternoon on my day off. I am banking these as pre-bowl games because I might miss league on April 5th, so I won't be able to experiment like I would would have liked to. Let's hope the lanes are kind.
March 8, 2012
Early 20th Century Bowling Alleys
It is no secret that I love history. So much so, in fact, that I kind of made it my job. One thing I wanted to include on this blog was articles about the history of bowling, primarily in Pittsburgh and western Pennsylvania. Recently, while doing some research on a non-bowling related interest, I came across the following information on early 20th century bowling alleys from articles originally posted online in 2009. While these alleys are not located in Pittsburgh, there are some local ties:
Henry Clay Frick was a steel tycoon from western Pennsylvania. He is probably most notorious for his strike breaking tactics at the Carnegie Steel mill in Homestead and most famous for his extensive art collection. His first mansion, Clayton, still stands in Pittsburgh a few blocks away from my office, but as it turns out, his mansion in New York City is of a bit more interest to us. As you will see, in addition to being an industrialist and art collector, Frick was also a bowler.
In 1912, Frick was scheduled to take the Titanic back to the United States from his European vacation; however, his wife twisted her ankle in France, forcing them to cancel their reservations. After cheating death and arriving safely back in the U.S., Frick purchased land in New York City to build an extensive mansion between 70th and 71st Streets across from Central Park. In the basement of this mansion, which now houses the Frick art collection, sits one of the most exquisite bowling alleys I have ever seen.
Built in 1914 by the Brunswick-Balke-Collender Company (an early version of the still very much active Brunswick Corporation), this two lane alley cost Frick $850, a large sum at the time. There are pine-and-maple lane beds featuring wooden gutters and a gravity-driven ball return. A Brunswick representative at the time stated that this was the finest alley possible. For an additional $100, Frick also purchased a set of bowling balls which had two finger holes instead of the standard three and were heavier than those used today. After Frick’s death in 1919, his daughter Helen housed an entire library in the bowling alley before she could build one next door. Shelves were placed over the gutters and the lanes themselves served as the aisles. The bowling alley was restored in 1997 and is currently closed to the public due to fire code regulations (there is only one exit).
If you have the time, I encourage you to check out an interactive panorama of the bowling alley posted by the New York Times and spin around a few times. The entire room is breathtaking. Notice that on the scoreboard, frames are called "innings". Looking at the lanes themselves, the change from pine to maple appears to occur about where the arrows are on today's lanes and then change back to pine where the pins are located. I don't have much knowledge about different types of wood, but my guess is that the pine is more durable than the maple and so it is used in the areas that would take the biggest beatings.
Between the lanes near the pins, it looks like there are small platforms for a pinsetter to stand on while the ball is thrown. The pinsetter would then roll the ball down the ball return and reset the pins for the next bowler. The ball return has two levels: the bottom level held the balls while not in use and the top level caught the balls being returned to the bowlers. A semi-circle at the back of the return would slow the returning ball and place it in the bottom rack. It also appears as though the ramp leading from the return to the top rack comes off so that balls could be rolled directly into the bottom level.
To put things into perspective, let's also take a look at how the other half bowled during this same time period. In sticking with the New York theme, the blog scountingny.com had a post about a bowling alley found in the remnants an old factory, the basement of which served as a Prohibition-era night club. Even without the benefits of restoration like the Frick alley, the similarities are apparent. The differences, though, are what make this noteworthy. There is no separate ball return, so most likely the pinsetter rolled the balls back to the bowlers using the gutter. The gutters themselves are squared, whereas the Frick gutters are rounded like modern lanes. The overall openness of the Frick bowling/billiard room is a stark contrast to the necessary closeness of the bowling alley in an illegal speakeasy. But from now on, if someone ever hassles you about drinking at bowling, you have historical evidence to back up your actions. People have been doing this for at least 90 years.
It brings to mind the Simpsons episode "Homer vs. the Eighteenth Amendment" in which Homer supplies alcohol to Springfield while under Prohibition by filling bowling balls with beer and sending them to Moe's Tavern using tubes connected to the bowling alley. If you have never seen this, do so immediately.
I hope this has been interesting for you, it was fun to research. Please leave comments as to whether you would like more posts on the history of bowling.
Henry Clay Frick was a steel tycoon from western Pennsylvania. He is probably most notorious for his strike breaking tactics at the Carnegie Steel mill in Homestead and most famous for his extensive art collection. His first mansion, Clayton, still stands in Pittsburgh a few blocks away from my office, but as it turns out, his mansion in New York City is of a bit more interest to us. As you will see, in addition to being an industrialist and art collector, Frick was also a bowler.
In 1912, Frick was scheduled to take the Titanic back to the United States from his European vacation; however, his wife twisted her ankle in France, forcing them to cancel their reservations. After cheating death and arriving safely back in the U.S., Frick purchased land in New York City to build an extensive mansion between 70th and 71st Streets across from Central Park. In the basement of this mansion, which now houses the Frick art collection, sits one of the most exquisite bowling alleys I have ever seen.
 |
| Frick bowling alley, New York City. gothamist.com |
Built in 1914 by the Brunswick-Balke-Collender Company (an early version of the still very much active Brunswick Corporation), this two lane alley cost Frick $850, a large sum at the time. There are pine-and-maple lane beds featuring wooden gutters and a gravity-driven ball return. A Brunswick representative at the time stated that this was the finest alley possible. For an additional $100, Frick also purchased a set of bowling balls which had two finger holes instead of the standard three and were heavier than those used today. After Frick’s death in 1919, his daughter Helen housed an entire library in the bowling alley before she could build one next door. Shelves were placed over the gutters and the lanes themselves served as the aisles. The bowling alley was restored in 1997 and is currently closed to the public due to fire code regulations (there is only one exit).
 |
| Gravity-driven ball return and padded backstop. gothamist.com |
If you have the time, I encourage you to check out an interactive panorama of the bowling alley posted by the New York Times and spin around a few times. The entire room is breathtaking. Notice that on the scoreboard, frames are called "innings". Looking at the lanes themselves, the change from pine to maple appears to occur about where the arrows are on today's lanes and then change back to pine where the pins are located. I don't have much knowledge about different types of wood, but my guess is that the pine is more durable than the maple and so it is used in the areas that would take the biggest beatings.
 |
| Ball return. gothamist.com |
Between the lanes near the pins, it looks like there are small platforms for a pinsetter to stand on while the ball is thrown. The pinsetter would then roll the ball down the ball return and reset the pins for the next bowler. The ball return has two levels: the bottom level held the balls while not in use and the top level caught the balls being returned to the bowlers. A semi-circle at the back of the return would slow the returning ball and place it in the bottom rack. It also appears as though the ramp leading from the return to the top rack comes off so that balls could be rolled directly into the bottom level.
 |
| Prohibition-era alley. scoutingny.com |
To put things into perspective, let's also take a look at how the other half bowled during this same time period. In sticking with the New York theme, the blog scountingny.com had a post about a bowling alley found in the remnants an old factory, the basement of which served as a Prohibition-era night club. Even without the benefits of restoration like the Frick alley, the similarities are apparent. The differences, though, are what make this noteworthy. There is no separate ball return, so most likely the pinsetter rolled the balls back to the bowlers using the gutter. The gutters themselves are squared, whereas the Frick gutters are rounded like modern lanes. The overall openness of the Frick bowling/billiard room is a stark contrast to the necessary closeness of the bowling alley in an illegal speakeasy. But from now on, if someone ever hassles you about drinking at bowling, you have historical evidence to back up your actions. People have been doing this for at least 90 years.
It brings to mind the Simpsons episode "Homer vs. the Eighteenth Amendment" in which Homer supplies alcohol to Springfield while under Prohibition by filling bowling balls with beer and sending them to Moe's Tavern using tubes connected to the bowling alley. If you have never seen this, do so immediately.
I hope this has been interesting for you, it was fun to research. Please leave comments as to whether you would like more posts on the history of bowling.
March 2, 2012
Week 27 Recap
Game 1: 193
Game 2: 186
Game 3: 190
Series: 569
Week Avg: 189
Season Avg: 192
Summary
Practice had sort of an ominous feel to it last night. The right lane took over 5 minutes to set the first rack of pins, the approach was pretty tacky near the foul lines, and the heavy oil made its triumphant return.
The first game started with two light pocket hits. I left and missed the 7-pin and the 2-pin in the first and second frames. A better hit in the third frame left the 5-pin, which I fortunately converted. There wasn't much room for error last night. High pocket and Brooklyn hits were carrying, but lighter hits were not. If I missed my mark as much as a board to the right the ball would barely tap the head pin, but if I missed more than a board left the ball would cross left of center. I threw a turkey and then followed it with another 7-pin. I overcompensated from the first frame leave and the ball dropped into the gutter just ahead of the pin. I threw a couple more strikes, but opened on my third ball in the tenth frame. I finished just over average with a 193.
The transition game started with a spare, but then I missed the 3-10 split. By the end of the first game I could see that the backend was pretty much nonexistent because the oil pushed so far down the lane. I fished around for a good line the entire game, but had a difficult time finding the pocket. I would adjust to a high hit by moving up, but that didn't help. Then I would move left, but the ball would hang out toward the gutter too far down the lane and I would hit light. I doubled twice, but no thing very substantial happened until the tenth frame when I resolved to just sit tight with the light pocket hits for a few balls and create a line by pushing the oil out of the way. I finished the game with a 186.
The third game started with a turkey. I could tell that my plan from the second game was working because the ball started to hook a little earlier in the backend. I left the 8-10 split in the fourth frame after hitting an oil patch just before the pocket, sending the ball skidding rather than driving through the pins. I picked up a couple more strikes before I started to run a little high. I moved up to compensate in the eighth frame and found the pocket again, but by then the lanes changed a little bit with every ball. I picked up 19 in the tenth frame to finish out with a 190 game and a 569 series. I also won brackets for the second week in a row.
Lesson Learned
It was a tight line all night and I was neither accurate nor consistent enough to make any real headway. I moved in a 2"x6" adjustment rectangle for most of the evening trying to locate the right combination of body position, target and entry angle to no avail. I had very few shots where all three variables came together for a good hit. This was mostly an extension of the missing my mark problem, which is not to say that I missed my target by much, there just wasn't a safety zone to fall back on like their was last week.
One thing I need to start working on is learning from my bad shots in addition to the good ones. If I miss my mark or have a poor release, what information about the lanes can I glean from that shot so that I don't have to wait to throw a perfect ball before I make an adjustment. I spent three or four frames of the second game waiting to throw a decent ball so that I could decide how to adjust. That is three frames where I could be settling into a preferred line or reading changing oil patterns wasted because I am only worried about how to fix what I did wrong. It is another facet of the game to consider between frames and something that is going to take some time to work into my usual post-shot analysis.
Game 2: 186
Game 3: 190
Series: 569
Week Avg: 189
Season Avg: 192
Summary
Practice had sort of an ominous feel to it last night. The right lane took over 5 minutes to set the first rack of pins, the approach was pretty tacky near the foul lines, and the heavy oil made its triumphant return.
The first game started with two light pocket hits. I left and missed the 7-pin and the 2-pin in the first and second frames. A better hit in the third frame left the 5-pin, which I fortunately converted. There wasn't much room for error last night. High pocket and Brooklyn hits were carrying, but lighter hits were not. If I missed my mark as much as a board to the right the ball would barely tap the head pin, but if I missed more than a board left the ball would cross left of center. I threw a turkey and then followed it with another 7-pin. I overcompensated from the first frame leave and the ball dropped into the gutter just ahead of the pin. I threw a couple more strikes, but opened on my third ball in the tenth frame. I finished just over average with a 193.
The transition game started with a spare, but then I missed the 3-10 split. By the end of the first game I could see that the backend was pretty much nonexistent because the oil pushed so far down the lane. I fished around for a good line the entire game, but had a difficult time finding the pocket. I would adjust to a high hit by moving up, but that didn't help. Then I would move left, but the ball would hang out toward the gutter too far down the lane and I would hit light. I doubled twice, but no thing very substantial happened until the tenth frame when I resolved to just sit tight with the light pocket hits for a few balls and create a line by pushing the oil out of the way. I finished the game with a 186.
The third game started with a turkey. I could tell that my plan from the second game was working because the ball started to hook a little earlier in the backend. I left the 8-10 split in the fourth frame after hitting an oil patch just before the pocket, sending the ball skidding rather than driving through the pins. I picked up a couple more strikes before I started to run a little high. I moved up to compensate in the eighth frame and found the pocket again, but by then the lanes changed a little bit with every ball. I picked up 19 in the tenth frame to finish out with a 190 game and a 569 series. I also won brackets for the second week in a row.
Lesson Learned
It was a tight line all night and I was neither accurate nor consistent enough to make any real headway. I moved in a 2"x6" adjustment rectangle for most of the evening trying to locate the right combination of body position, target and entry angle to no avail. I had very few shots where all three variables came together for a good hit. This was mostly an extension of the missing my mark problem, which is not to say that I missed my target by much, there just wasn't a safety zone to fall back on like their was last week.
One thing I need to start working on is learning from my bad shots in addition to the good ones. If I miss my mark or have a poor release, what information about the lanes can I glean from that shot so that I don't have to wait to throw a perfect ball before I make an adjustment. I spent three or four frames of the second game waiting to throw a decent ball so that I could decide how to adjust. That is three frames where I could be settling into a preferred line or reading changing oil patterns wasted because I am only worried about how to fix what I did wrong. It is another facet of the game to consider between frames and something that is going to take some time to work into my usual post-shot analysis.
February 27, 2012
Week 26 Recap
Game 1: 237
Game 2: 189
Game 3: 219
Series: 645
Week Avg: 215
Season Avg: 192
Summary
Practice showed that the lanes were a little drier than they have been over the last two months. The ball was coming in a little earlier and easier. I was pretty confident in my line entering the first game, so much so that I chose to not over-practice my strike shot and wear out the current oil level. Instead I took the opportunity to shoot at the 10- and 7-pins.
I started the first game with the first four in a row. For the fifth frame I pulled my shot slightly left and hit left of the headpin, but picked up the 1-3-5 spare. I struck in the sixth frame and had a nine count spare in the seventh. I followed that same pattern in the eighth and ninth frames before striking out in the tenth. I finished the game with a 237 and only missed my mark twice all game. It was also my teammate's first 200 of the season, a 204, and we beat our best team game by over 100 pins.
The second game saw the lanes get a little drier and the ball started to come in a little high. I pulled two more shots this game, one leaving the 1-3-6-8-10 which was my first open of the night. My first adjustment was to move left a board, but I found that the ball was catching some oil and not coming back to the pocket. I moved up a few inches from my original spot and found the pocket again. I stayed clean after my early miss and finished up with a 189.
The third game felt a lot like the first. I was in the pocket with ease, but where light hits were carrying in the first game high hits were carrying this game. I threw the ball out a little too far right in the ninth frame and the ball didn't recover. I left the 1-2-10 and rung the 2-pin around the 10-pin to miss the spare. I struck the first two balls in the tenth, with the ball coming about a board higher in the pocket each ball. I needed seven pins to tie and eight pins to win the game. I knew my next shot was going to run high as soon as I let it go. The ball hooked high into the headpin and I left the 3-6. I held my breath for a moment as I though I saw the 9-pin hiding, but it fell. That's the second week in a row I managed to squeak out a one pin victory on a less than stellar shot. I finished with a 219 game, a 645 series, won the brackets for the night, and gained a whole lot of confidence.
Lesson Learned
Coming into this week I decided I needed a plan to correct my most recent issue of missing my mark. I actually used a quote from the movie The Patriot as my guide: Aim small, miss small. In the movie, this advice is in reference to the accuracy of shooting a gun, but the same principles apply to bowling. The smaller I make my target on the lane, the less likely I am to totally blow my shot. During the past few weeks, I have used the second arrow as my target. This week, I decided to use the tip of the arrow as my mark, a much smaller target to hit. While I may have missed the tip of the arrow on a few shots, I only missed the arrow completely a handful of times, tops.
The second game, what I am going to start referring to as the transition game, continues to be an issue. I say transition because this seems to be the game where the lanes change the most and when I make the most drastic adjustments. While it usually sets me up for a good final game, the second game's score still hurts my final total and typically reflects poorly on the team's game.
The last ball in the last game stumped me in the heat of the moment. With the game riding on my final shot, I knew the ball was going to come in high. I didn't want to swing the ball in from further right or move my body left because, as I learned in the ninth frame, the ball wouldn't make it back to the pocket. I couldn't move my body further up on the approach because I had already made that adjustment and would have fouled. I chose to just throw the same shot and hope the ball wouldn't travel that extra board left, but it did and I got lucky. In retrospect, this was the perfect situation to increase my ball speed. With only an early quarter team victory in the balance, I still felt a tremendous amount of pressure to not let my teammates down. I can't even imagine what the pros on TV are feeling during a close match with all that money on the line.
Game 2: 189
Game 3: 219
Series: 645
Week Avg: 215
Season Avg: 192
Summary
Practice showed that the lanes were a little drier than they have been over the last two months. The ball was coming in a little earlier and easier. I was pretty confident in my line entering the first game, so much so that I chose to not over-practice my strike shot and wear out the current oil level. Instead I took the opportunity to shoot at the 10- and 7-pins.
I started the first game with the first four in a row. For the fifth frame I pulled my shot slightly left and hit left of the headpin, but picked up the 1-3-5 spare. I struck in the sixth frame and had a nine count spare in the seventh. I followed that same pattern in the eighth and ninth frames before striking out in the tenth. I finished the game with a 237 and only missed my mark twice all game. It was also my teammate's first 200 of the season, a 204, and we beat our best team game by over 100 pins.
The second game saw the lanes get a little drier and the ball started to come in a little high. I pulled two more shots this game, one leaving the 1-3-6-8-10 which was my first open of the night. My first adjustment was to move left a board, but I found that the ball was catching some oil and not coming back to the pocket. I moved up a few inches from my original spot and found the pocket again. I stayed clean after my early miss and finished up with a 189.
The third game felt a lot like the first. I was in the pocket with ease, but where light hits were carrying in the first game high hits were carrying this game. I threw the ball out a little too far right in the ninth frame and the ball didn't recover. I left the 1-2-10 and rung the 2-pin around the 10-pin to miss the spare. I struck the first two balls in the tenth, with the ball coming about a board higher in the pocket each ball. I needed seven pins to tie and eight pins to win the game. I knew my next shot was going to run high as soon as I let it go. The ball hooked high into the headpin and I left the 3-6. I held my breath for a moment as I though I saw the 9-pin hiding, but it fell. That's the second week in a row I managed to squeak out a one pin victory on a less than stellar shot. I finished with a 219 game, a 645 series, won the brackets for the night, and gained a whole lot of confidence.
Lesson Learned
Coming into this week I decided I needed a plan to correct my most recent issue of missing my mark. I actually used a quote from the movie The Patriot as my guide: Aim small, miss small. In the movie, this advice is in reference to the accuracy of shooting a gun, but the same principles apply to bowling. The smaller I make my target on the lane, the less likely I am to totally blow my shot. During the past few weeks, I have used the second arrow as my target. This week, I decided to use the tip of the arrow as my mark, a much smaller target to hit. While I may have missed the tip of the arrow on a few shots, I only missed the arrow completely a handful of times, tops.
The second game, what I am going to start referring to as the transition game, continues to be an issue. I say transition because this seems to be the game where the lanes change the most and when I make the most drastic adjustments. While it usually sets me up for a good final game, the second game's score still hurts my final total and typically reflects poorly on the team's game.
The last ball in the last game stumped me in the heat of the moment. With the game riding on my final shot, I knew the ball was going to come in high. I didn't want to swing the ball in from further right or move my body left because, as I learned in the ninth frame, the ball wouldn't make it back to the pocket. I couldn't move my body further up on the approach because I had already made that adjustment and would have fouled. I chose to just throw the same shot and hope the ball wouldn't travel that extra board left, but it did and I got lucky. In retrospect, this was the perfect situation to increase my ball speed. With only an early quarter team victory in the balance, I still felt a tremendous amount of pressure to not let my teammates down. I can't even imagine what the pros on TV are feeling during a close match with all that money on the line.
February 20, 2012
Week 25 Recap
Game 1: 182
Game 2: 186
Game 3: 177
Series: 545
Week Avg: 181
Season Avg: 191
Summary
I came into the night a little worried about how I was going to perform. I had developed a head cold the night before and was feeling a bit groggy heading into the evening. The lanes have been consistent the last few weeks so I knew where I needed to throw. Getting the ball there was going to be the real challenge.
I struggled on the left lane most of the night and threw two strikes in the entire first game. I picked up all but one of my spares, a missed 10-pin. The lack of strikes shot down my chance at a 200 game, but the spares kept me afloat with a 182.
The second game started a bit better with alternating strikes and spares in the first five frames. In the sixth frame I missed my second 10-pin of the night. I stayed clean the rest of the way, but couldn't string anything together. I finished the game with a 186 and won the game for our team by 6 pins.
The last game was a struggle. I started coming high on the right lane so I upped my approach back to my preferred speed. The left lane became a struggle once again and I just couldn't throw a consistent shot. I opened twice early on in the game. I can't recall the leaves, but they were the result of light hits. Going into the tenth frame I knew I had to mark to keep my team in it. A good pocket hit left the 9-pin, which I converted. I needed six pins to win the game and hit high on my last ball. I left the 3-6-9-10, but it was just enough to squeak out a one pin victory. I finished with a 177 game and another 545 series.
Lesson Learned
Well I battled the same problems as last week and earned the exact same result: a 545 series. My delivery was erratic and I missed my mark left more often than I actually hit it. I struck less than ten times, but fortunately picked up most of my spares. I can attribute a few of the misses to sticking at the foul line and pulling my shot. The others seem to be an issue with my release. I broke out my usual trick of holding the ball further right on my approach, but it didn't help. I had a difficult time concentrating and fatigue hit me worse that it has in a long time. I don't want to use my cold as an excuse, but I think it did play a factor, albeit a small one. This issue is something that I would usually work on in a weekend practice session; however, my life outside of bowling interfered with those plans and I wasn't able to get in any games. I guess I will just need to focus on my release that much more this coming week.
One idea or philosophy I did implement into my game Thursday night was a new approach to spare shooting. That afternoon I had read an International Art of Bowling blog post on spare adjustment systems. In the post, the author suggests breaking down spares into four zones: 7/4-pin zone, 2-pin zone, 3-pin zone, and 6/10-pin zone (see a crude representation in my handy colorful graphic on the left). So instead of trying to line up each shot specific to the leave, a whopping 1,023 possible combinations, you have one shot for picking up spares in each zone. This oversimplifies things a bit, but by utilizing the basic concepts of this approach, and fine tuning it to multi-pin leaves and my own style, I was able to pick up the majority of my leaves. Of my four misses on the night, two were missed 10-pins thanks to a lapse in concentration, and the others were washout near-splits with the headpin and a corner pin standing. I liked this simple approach and think that mastering this method will go a long way in improving my overall game.
Now if I can only get that strike ball down . . .
Game 2: 186
Game 3: 177
Series: 545
Week Avg: 181
Season Avg: 191
Summary
I came into the night a little worried about how I was going to perform. I had developed a head cold the night before and was feeling a bit groggy heading into the evening. The lanes have been consistent the last few weeks so I knew where I needed to throw. Getting the ball there was going to be the real challenge.
I struggled on the left lane most of the night and threw two strikes in the entire first game. I picked up all but one of my spares, a missed 10-pin. The lack of strikes shot down my chance at a 200 game, but the spares kept me afloat with a 182.
The second game started a bit better with alternating strikes and spares in the first five frames. In the sixth frame I missed my second 10-pin of the night. I stayed clean the rest of the way, but couldn't string anything together. I finished the game with a 186 and won the game for our team by 6 pins.
The last game was a struggle. I started coming high on the right lane so I upped my approach back to my preferred speed. The left lane became a struggle once again and I just couldn't throw a consistent shot. I opened twice early on in the game. I can't recall the leaves, but they were the result of light hits. Going into the tenth frame I knew I had to mark to keep my team in it. A good pocket hit left the 9-pin, which I converted. I needed six pins to win the game and hit high on my last ball. I left the 3-6-9-10, but it was just enough to squeak out a one pin victory. I finished with a 177 game and another 545 series.
Lesson Learned
Well I battled the same problems as last week and earned the exact same result: a 545 series. My delivery was erratic and I missed my mark left more often than I actually hit it. I struck less than ten times, but fortunately picked up most of my spares. I can attribute a few of the misses to sticking at the foul line and pulling my shot. The others seem to be an issue with my release. I broke out my usual trick of holding the ball further right on my approach, but it didn't help. I had a difficult time concentrating and fatigue hit me worse that it has in a long time. I don't want to use my cold as an excuse, but I think it did play a factor, albeit a small one. This issue is something that I would usually work on in a weekend practice session; however, my life outside of bowling interfered with those plans and I wasn't able to get in any games. I guess I will just need to focus on my release that much more this coming week.
One idea or philosophy I did implement into my game Thursday night was a new approach to spare shooting. That afternoon I had read an International Art of Bowling blog post on spare adjustment systems. In the post, the author suggests breaking down spares into four zones: 7/4-pin zone, 2-pin zone, 3-pin zone, and 6/10-pin zone (see a crude representation in my handy colorful graphic on the left). So instead of trying to line up each shot specific to the leave, a whopping 1,023 possible combinations, you have one shot for picking up spares in each zone. This oversimplifies things a bit, but by utilizing the basic concepts of this approach, and fine tuning it to multi-pin leaves and my own style, I was able to pick up the majority of my leaves. Of my four misses on the night, two were missed 10-pins thanks to a lapse in concentration, and the others were washout near-splits with the headpin and a corner pin standing. I liked this simple approach and think that mastering this method will go a long way in improving my overall game.Now if I can only get that strike ball down . . .
February 14, 2012
Some News Items
So every month my aim is to do a non-league recap post. I failed to do that in January, but I have a few things I wanted to comment on this month.
First, I wanted to point out the Pittsburgh Penguins "Pens & Pins" Charity Bowling Tournament. Every year, each member of the hockey team is made the captain of a bowling team comprised of fans to raise money for the Make A Wish Foundation. This is a pretty cool event that combines two of my favorite things: the Pens and bowling. It is also great to see bowling in the spotlight here in western Pennsylvania, even if it is only for a day or two. I think that these world-class athletes would have a thing or two to say about the difficulty, competitiveness and fun bowling offers.
I also wanted to point out that my cousin Kyle threw his first 300 game. It was his first. Congratulations.
First, I wanted to point out the Pittsburgh Penguins "Pens & Pins" Charity Bowling Tournament. Every year, each member of the hockey team is made the captain of a bowling team comprised of fans to raise money for the Make A Wish Foundation. This is a pretty cool event that combines two of my favorite things: the Pens and bowling. It is also great to see bowling in the spotlight here in western Pennsylvania, even if it is only for a day or two. I think that these world-class athletes would have a thing or two to say about the difficulty, competitiveness and fun bowling offers.
I also wanted to point out that my cousin Kyle threw his first 300 game. It was his first. Congratulations.
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