The FOFC Bowling Thread - Page 5

PackerFanatic · 01-22-2011, 01:28 AM

707, nice!

I wish scores like that were total crap for me

I bowled a 530 tonight, with a 204 in there for my first game. Absolutely awesome series for me

cartman · 01-22-2011, 08:19 PM

They showed the final match of the PBA Tournament of Champions today. The runner up, Tom Daugherty had the worst score of a televised match ever, rolling a 100. Yep, a pro bowler rolled a 100 game on TV. The winner of the match was on the opposite end of the spectrum. Mika Koivuniemi rolled 11 straight strikes, and on his twelfth roll hit the pocket, but the 10 pin stayed solid, even though it was hit by at least two other pins.

TCY Junkie · 01-26-2011, 03:11 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Pumpy Tudors

I don't have a vacant spot on my team. Never mind. The husband half of our teammate couple is still bowling with us.

In other bowling news, I bowled my first 700 in competition tonight, a 707. Love it.

Sit in between them and then she'll think he doesn't want to be around her and want to quit, at least that's what happened when my dad sat between this couple that just got divorced cause he's inept. The guy always sat next to her but there was a chair missing so when my dad brought a chair the biggest space was between them, everyone else was practicing already. He's totally inept and girls are crazy.

Congrats on the 700, maybe I did have a divorce story to tell after all.

Danny · 01-31-2011, 07:06 PM

I had a better night this past week. First two games were a 260 and 242. Third game killed my series though with a 153. First two games I missed pocket once each, both times high and left bad splits both times. Third game was not my game. I left a 7-10, 6-7 and 6 on pocket shots and a 2-4-7-10 on a headpin shot.

Pumpy Tudors · 03-06-2011, 01:51 AM

Just shot my second 700 of the season, but we had a bit of an ugly situation in my league at the same time.

We've got an ambidextrous bowler in the league. He's a natural righty, but he's throwing lefty this season. He's the treasurer this year and has been president in the past. We do a weekly "powerball" drawing where you buy raffle tickets, and if your number gets called, you throw one shot - which doesn't count as part of your normal game - for the money in the pot. If you get a strike, you win. If you don't, the money carries over to the next week. The ambidextrous bowler had his number drawn, and he proceeds to grab his righthanded ball and throw for the money righthanded. He got a strike and I heard people protesting about him throwing righty. Now, I'm a rookie president, and I actually thought people were joking (and I'm still sure most of them were), so I ruled that he could have the money.

Immediately after I ruled, the league secretary told me quietly that he was protesting. I figured that because the powerball shot did not count for league scores, it shouldn't matter which hand the guy threw with. Several minutes later, I was approached by the guys who work at the bowling center. One of them has been bowling for 40 years and has taught me almost everything I know about bowling. He said that I was fine to rule either way, but the proper ruling would really be to make the guy throw lefty.

After speaking with other league members and hearing opinions, I realized that I had made a mistake. He should not have been allowed to throw righthanded. I went to the league secretary (who had the only serious protest) and admitted my mistake. He said that I should make the other guy forfeit the prize. I said that I couldn't make him give the money back after I'd awarded it to him, but I would speak with him. I approached the guy who won the money, and I told him that after discussion with others, he really should have thrown the shot lefthanded. He protested a little bit, but then he said, "If you want me to give the money back, just say so. I don't really give a shit." I told him that I couldn't really tell him to do that, but I had made an uninformed decision when I awarded him the prize. He was willing to give up the money, a prize of $27.

I'm really torn on this. On one hand, I acknowledge that I'd made a mistake, and I owned up to it. On the other hand, the guy who won the money has been bowling long enough to know better than to switch hands - especially to his natural hand - in a league event, whether it's for score or not. Apparently, someone even told him before he threw the shot that he shouldn't do it righthanded. I did not hear any protests before he threw it, even though he was clearly lining up to shoot righty. I feel badly about essentially taking away a prize that I had already awarded to him, and that's really the only thing I question. I did not tell him to give back the money, but he knew that I was suggesting it.

Looking back on it, I wish I had told him that he could keep the money, but he is not allowed to do that again. I have already made one ruling and rescinded it, however, so I will look absolutely terrible if I adjust the ruling yet again. It would make me look spineless or wishy-washy, and that's not what people want in their league president. I'm trying to just let it go in my mind, but I've been constantly second-guessing myself on the whole series of events for over 24 hours now, and I'm actually having a hard time sleeping because of it. I feel like I did a lot of things wrong in this situation.

I get that people in authority make mistakes sometimes, and I need to treat this as a learning experience. I just wish I had had more time to think about everything before making a decision, and I'm not happy with the way things turned out. Not to toot my own horn here, but most people love having me as the league president. I have had people tell me that the only reason they're in this league is because of me. There are other people who want to join the league as new bowlers next year because of me. People are always reminding me how much of a positive impact I bring to the league. This one mistake probably won't undermine all of that. Still, this is eating away at me, and it's taking away a lot of the enjoyment that I get from bowling.

I just want to let this go and live with the ruling that's been made instead of thinking about it over and over. I guess I just need to grow a thicker skin and stop worrying about things. To everyone else in the league, the situation is done. To me, it's probably going to affect my concentration every time I bowl in this league until at least the end of the season, maybe beyond.

This sucks.

tl;dr version: i made a bad decision as president, tried to fix it, possibly made it worse, and now i'm mad at myself. and i shot a 700.

OldGiants · 03-06-2011, 10:44 AM

Pumpy,

It was $27.

You cannot be perfect in life.

Making quick decisions on the small stuff is better than agonizing over them, even if you get it wrong.

By April, the vast majority of league members won't even remember this incident.

Enjoy your 700 and keep encouraging others, but above all, keep having fun.

Poli · 03-06-2011, 10:51 AM

What the Old man said.

mtolson · 03-06-2011, 08:31 PM

Pumpy I don't know if you were wrong about that. Since his ball was not part of a game he didn't break the rule of changing delivery. And if the there was no rule to stipulate which hand a bowler had to use I think it's fair game. I am also a Secretrary and run our youth league and even that one has me stumped. If the shot counted toward his score then he broke the rule but there us no rule for what he did in this case (at least that I have heard off). I would have ruled the same way as you fwiw. And congrats on your second 700 :-)

Pumpy Tudors · 03-06-2011, 09:00 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mtolson

Pumpy I don't know if you were wrong about that. Since his ball was not part of a game he didn't break the rule of changing delivery. And if the there was no rule to stipulate which hand a bowler had to use I think it's fair game. I am also a Secretrary and run our youth league and even that one has me stumped. If the shot counted toward his score then he broke the rule but there us no rule for what he did in this case (at least that I have heard off). I would have ruled the same way as you fwiw. And congrats on your second 700 :-)

The rationale was that this game does contribute to the league, so it is a league event. We take $10 out of the pot each week to go toward league prizes. From what I'm told, for league events, you're not to change delivery. Additionally, only league members are allowed to participate. Technically, the lefthanded "version" of him is a league member this year, not the righty.

From a personal standpoint, it doesn't bother me at all that the guy threw righty. The whole thing is just supposed to be fun. From a league standpoint, however, it's probably best to keep things simple and treat the game with the same rules that we would use on a league shot.

What a strange situation. Trial by fire as a league president, I suppose.

Thanks for the input, folks. I appreciate it, and I'll try not to feel bad about any of it.

cartman · 03-06-2011, 09:18 PM

Try kicking the guy in the nuts. I bet you then roll a 900 series.

TCY Junkie · 03-06-2011, 10:16 PM

So you can't bowl left handed one week and then right handed the next? I know about not throwing left and then right in the same series. A guy I bowl with said he hurt his right hand and bowled with his left after that. I took it as he finished the season with his left. Is that usbc rules or what?

Pumpy Tudors · 03-06-2011, 10:27 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TCY Junkie

So you can't bowl left handed one week and then right handed the next? I know about not throwing left and then right in the same series. A guy I bowl with said he hurt his right hand and bowled with his left after that. I took it as he finished the season with his left. Is that usbc rules or what?

You are allowed to switch in case of injury, but you must get permission from the league, and you establish a new average with the other hand. To switch back, you need permission from the league again. That's the USBC rule. Technically, you can switch as often as you need to, but the league has to approve each switch individually.

mtolson · 03-16-2011, 02:25 AM

Got my second 773 of the season tonight and my 5th 700 in the last 10 weeks. To any of you that have bowled an 800 I tip my hats to you. I now fully understand how hard it is to reach that mark. Literally had about 6 spares all night just in bad places. It amazing what carpal tunnel surgery and new equipment can do for your game. In my case, the carpal tunnel surgery now allows me to bowl pain free. It also affected my PAP and caused my track to move higher. New equipment drilled to match that change and my game (cranker) and I finally feel like I am back on track.

Pumpy, do you use LeagueSecretary.com. If so I would love to see your stats for the season.

Glengoyne · 03-16-2011, 02:55 AM

Wow 700 series is pretty cool. I've come close 687 back in September. Last week I put up a 636.

With the 636, I bowled a 238 and a 227. Both games I felt like I bowled close to perfectly. Not my highest game ever, but with the 238 I opened with seven strikes. Then hit the pocket light in the eighth, leaving 2-4-7-10. I then tried so hard to pick it up, I missed the 2-4-7 to the outside. Struck the ninth, then adjusted my line for the tenth, insufficiently..this time leaving the 2-4-10. I did pick it up, and then made another adjustment for the strike on the last ball.

I was bowling really well, and only missed seven freaking pins. Three of them I picked up in the end. For that I get a 238. So yeah an 800 series is pretty crazy tough.

Congrats to you guys for putting them up.

Oh and Pumpy. I had no idea about the lefty righty switch requiring a permission change from the league. In a previous league one of the best bowlers in the league, multiple 300s, best average, switched all the damn time. Usually whole games, but I saw him switch to lefty mid-game at least once. In that league, no one knew any better or probably cared. In the league I'm in now, I'm sure some folks know and would care. Of course there are a handful of folks that have put up multiple 300s and two 800 series in league, and we're not even the "serious" Tuesday night league.

Pumpy Tudors · 03-22-2011, 04:55 PM

I'm starting to wear down a little bit this year. A lot of bowling. I've got my own league on Fridays, I'm now a "permanent sub" in a Monday league (one guy is injured and out for the season, so I'm replacing him), and I occasionally sub on Wednesdays. Throw in my regular Wednesday and Thursday practices, and I am bowling about 25 games per week every week. Physically, I'm fine, but it's hard to keep the mental focus. I'm thinking about entering a local tournament next month to give me a little motivation, but I want to feel a little more confident before I make that decision. I'm working on it.

mtolson, my league does not use leaguesecretary.com (though I wish it did), but my own stats are linked in my signature. If you have sigs turned off, here are the links:

BowlingTracker.com - View Profile (this season)
BowlingTracker.com - View Profile (last season)

I've improved a lot from last season to this season. Each season, I've set two goals for myself. Last year's goals were a 600 series and a 180 average. I got there. This year's goals were a 700 series and a 190 average. I've got two 700s and I'm shattering the 190. I'm entering this week at 196. Even if I average only 150 for the rest of the season, I'll be over 190 at the end. So now I'm thinking about next year's goals. I'm thinking a 750 series and a 200 average. Maybe that means I'll get an 800 and a 205.

PackerFanatic · 05-01-2011, 03:11 PM

We had our bowling banquet to finish off our season this past Friday and I got a pleasant surprise: I was given the award for Most Improved Average! I am pretty proud of that, since I have been working hard to improve and I was pretty disappointed with how I finished last year (128 average). I got my average up to 140 this year, helped a lot over the last 6 weeks or so with a heavier ball that I can control a lot better. That award and Highest League Average are the only ones (outside of League Champs, of course) that get a trophy, so I am pretty happy about that

Pumpy Tudors · 05-01-2011, 03:39 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by PackerFanatic

We had our bowling banquet to finish off our season this past Friday and I got a pleasant surprise: I was given the award for Most Improved Average! I am pretty proud of that, since I have been working hard to improve and I was pretty disappointed with how I finished last year (128 average). I got my average up to 140 this year, helped a lot over the last 6 weeks or so with a heavier ball that I can control a lot better. That award and Highest League Average are the only ones (outside of League Champs, of course) that get a trophy, so I am pretty happy about that

Congratulations! Do you plan to bowl again next season?

I guess now is a good time to give my own update. My team finished second yet again. We got destroyed in the championship match. It's not that my team bowled badly. The other team just bowled over their heads. That'll happen. I'm not disappointed. The other team earned it, so we just accept second place and move on.

I'm happy to have a couple of weeks away from competition. In the middle of May, I start bowling two summer leagues. One is a PBA Experience league (some of you may recall that I did this last year and got spanked). The other is just a regular casual summer league. Those start on May 17 and May 18, respectively. I sort of want a new bowling ball, but it's not in the budget right now. I'll work with what I have, and maybe I'll pick one up sometime this summer.

Anyone else bowling this summer?

PackerFanatic · 05-02-2011, 08:15 AM

I do plan to bowl again next year (will be my 5th season...wow). At some point this summer, I am going to get my new ball re-drilled and work a little bit on getting a little bit more torque on the ball. My approach changed quite a bit over this past season and I feel if I can control my spin a little bit more, I could get my average up even more.

Pumpy Tudors · 05-25-2011, 12:00 PM

Two weeks into the PBA Experience head-to-head league, my record is 3-5. Considering that I started 0-4, I'm pleased. I got a really lucky draw last night to win 3 out of 4, though. My first match was against a vacancy (my opponent didn't show up). The rules state that you need to beat 160 to win, and I got to 165. My second match was against a young woman who bowls for the local community college. She seems to be pretty new at bowling. I watched her bowl during the winter, and she has a long way to go to be very competitive. Unfortunately, I tend to bowl to the level of my competition, and I barely squeaked out a 135-133 win. The third match was against a kid who really has no idea what he's doing. I hate to put it that way, but that's the most accurate way I can say it. I won 126-109, although I'll admit that it really wasn't that close after the 5th frame and I didn't try very hard on spares. Still, I should be trying on every shot, no matter who my opponent is. Finally, I faced a pretty decent bowler in my 4th match. He actually put up a 215 earlier in the evening. He couldn't carry corner pins against me, though, and I was hanging in there for most of the match. Unfortunately, needing a strike and a spare in the 10th frame, I couldn't pull it out. I started the 10th with a split and that did me in. Final score 161-145.

Overall, I'm happy with 3 wins in one night. I didn't do that at all last year. I do need to learn to stay focused when I'm up against a lesser opponent, but a win is a win. Of course, now that I'm learning the USBC Masters pattern we're bowling on, I'll master it just in time for them to switch the pattern over to something completely different like the Shark. Urgh.

Glengoyne · 05-25-2011, 01:30 PM

Week three of our Summer league, and we're 6 and 6.

We've had two ties already this season. Last night was the most exciting. I'm bowling anchor for our team, and me and the other team's anchor came up in the tenth, both running on a strike in ninth. The teams dead even. He is a 200+ bowler in the midst of a 235 game...I'm a 165 bowler and I've been struggling to strike tonight. I matched him strike for strike for the first two balls, and then he hit the pocket a bit high, leaving a split. All I had to do was pull down a nine for the win. The pressure got me, or perhaps the lack of it, and I missed my mark by a good three boards. The ball missed the head pin completely, and I ended up leaving the 1-2 for the tie.

It really was a fun series, with only our final game being decided by more than 10 pins. We won that one by 12, again coming down to the two anchor's tenth frames. I finished with a 530 series, but our team was carried by our captain, who put up a 558 all time high series. He carries a 140 average, so it was a really nice night for him.

Suburban Rhythm · 05-25-2011, 01:40 PM

This is my son from a couple weeks ago.
It should be noted that I live about 30 miles from Greensburg. This move got me wondering.
If he ever asks for a Colin White jersey, I'll be doing some serious investigating.

PackerFanatic · 05-25-2011, 01:54 PM

Nice, SR - I am going to have to try that one

TCY Junkie · 06-21-2011, 12:31 AM

I opened my first frame and then went 26 frames closed. I've only had 2 games prior without an open so I bowled really well. My belt broke as I was walking in, I was trying to make sure I wouldn't show everyone crack tonight and it came into at the buckle. It made me focus more and slow down. Usually I just go up there and throw. Had my high series with a 565. So yes Pumpy, I'm bowling this summer.

PackerFanatic · 06-21-2011, 07:57 AM

Well done, TCY! Still hoping to get out a few times this summer...

PackerFanatic · 09-09-2011, 08:28 AM

Super excited to kick off our season tonight! Likely going to be a major change to the format and I am pretty excited (I say likely because it needs a final league vote tonight, but it sounded like most people were happy with it at our Captain's meeting a couple weeks back). Basically, our current format is 2 15-week halves with a champion for each half. Those two champions roll-off in the final week for the Championship. Pretty standard. The suggestion at the meeting this year was to try and keep people interested for more of the season and instead split the season in quarters. So we have 4 7-week quarters. On each 7th week (so 7th, 14th, 21st, and 28th) we have a position round to determine a quarter champion - then in the 29th week, we have two matches between those 4 teams. Winners of those two matches face off in week 30 for the Championship.

Given how my team hasn't been involved in the championship in 3 years, I think it is a good way to get more teams involved and keep people active. We haven't had too many issues of teams tanking it toward the end of halves (especially since overall wins is still what determines the payout at the end of the year), but this at least will side-step that issue from happening. I think it will be a fun change. Very excited either way!

Pumpy Tudors · 09-09-2011, 02:11 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by PackerFanatic

Super excited to kick off our season tonight! Likely going to be a major change to the format and I am pretty excited (I say likely because it needs a final league vote tonight, but it sounded like most people were happy with it at our Captain's meeting a couple weeks back). Basically, our current format is 2 15-week halves with a champion for each half. Those two champions roll-off in the final week for the Championship. Pretty standard. The suggestion at the meeting this year was to try and keep people interested for more of the season and instead split the season in quarters. So we have 4 7-week quarters. On each 7th week (so 7th, 14th, 21st, and 28th) we have a position round to determine a quarter champion - then in the 29th week, we have two matches between those 4 teams. Winners of those two matches face off in week 30 for the Championship.

Given how my team hasn't been involved in the championship in 3 years, I think it is a good way to get more teams involved and keep people active. We haven't had too many issues of teams tanking it toward the end of halves (especially since overall wins is still what determines the payout at the end of the year), but this at least will side-step that issue from happening. I think it will be a fun change. Very excited either way!

I like this idea. I subbed in a league last year that did quarters, and it does keep people interested throughout the season. How many teams are in your league? My league finished with only 6 teams last year, so halves were fine. This year, we have 10 teams, but we're still doing halves. I like the idea of quarters, but I think it works best if you have a lot of teams.

Pumpy Tudors · 09-09-2011, 03:49 PM

To pat myself on the back a little bit, I must say that I am quite pleased to look at my stats over the past couple of seasons and see the progression. I have gotten so much better as each season passes. It's through coaching and a lot of hard work, but I'm very happy with it.

I was cleaning out an old bowling bag a few weeks ago, and I found the practice scores that I used to write down. I was seeing a lot of scores between 110 and 140. Those scores were from maybe 4 years ago. It's amazing how different things are now. I've had a few games where I could barely break 140, but those are easily overshadowed by the multiple games where I've topped 240.

What's almost chilling to me is that I still have a lot more to learn. It's scary to realize that I still have so much more work to do on my game. The difference between a 150 average and a 180 average is three spares or a couple of strikes a game. With moderate practice, that's manageable over time. The difference between a 190 and a 220, though... well, it's still 30 pins, but you can't miss a bunch of spares and average 190. So now you're trying to take those spares you've been making and replace them with strikes. Now instead of bowling 5 or 6 strikes a game, you're trying to throw 7 or 8 strikes every single game. That's hard to imagine.

I am starting to imagine that this is what baseball players feel like as they progress through the minors. The difference between levels can be daunting, and you have to constantly learn more and more as you go along because each step is tougher than the last. I guess that's why I look back fondly at my 185 average in 2009/10 and my 195 average last year. Getting those extra 10 pins a game is not easy, so it really helps me understand how much better I've gotten. Now to get over 200...

PackerFanatic · 09-09-2011, 05:22 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Pumpy Tudors

I like this idea. I subbed in a league last year that did quarters, and it does keep people interested throughout the season. How many teams are in your league? My league finished with only 6 teams last year, so halves were fine. This year, we have 10 teams, but we're still doing halves. I like the idea of quarters, but I think it works best if you have a lot of teams.

I was really intrigued when I heard it too. This is my 5th year in the league and they've been doing halves for a very long time, so its quite a change, but everyone else seemed to like it too. We had 12 teams last year, supposedly up to 14 this year, although it sounds like one of the teams isn't sure, so we may have 13 and a bye (which sucks). But yeah - have a 4-team playoff will be fun for this league methinks.

Pumpy Tudors · 09-09-2011, 05:45 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by PackerFanatic

I was really intrigued when I heard it too. This is my 5th year in the league and they've been doing halves for a very long time, so its quite a change, but everyone else seemed to like it too. We had 12 teams last year, supposedly up to 14 this year, although it sounds like one of the teams isn't sure, so we may have 13 and a bye (which sucks). But yeah - have a 4-team playoff will be fun for this league methinks.

I think quarters will work as long as you have at least 12 teams. Since only 4 teams get into the playoffs, it doesn't have that NBA/NHL vibe of "almost everyone makes the playoffs." Not bad at all. The league that I subbed in did the playoffs a little differently. There were 19 teams in that league, and 5 made the playoffs. That would be the winners of each of the 4 quarters and one wild card. I think the wild card was the team with the most points out of the non-winners. Then the 4 quarter winners were seeded by total points and the wild card was automatically #5. The league did a stepladder format from there.

Game 1: #5 bowls #4
Game 2: Game 1 winner bowls #3
Game 3: Game 2 winner bowls #2
Game 4: Game 3 winner bowls #1 for the championship

My team was #3, and we lost game 2 to the #5 seed. It kinda sucks bowling only one game, so I like your format more. It's better to do a whole match, but then you do need to spread it out over two weeks. I think your league's system will be a good one.

Pumpy Tudors · 09-09-2011, 11:32 PM

I shot 668 tonight (247+197+224), so that was a good night of bowling. Unfortunately, I had an additional shot where I would've won $140 if I'd made a strike. I missed and left the 10 pin standing.

Pumpy Tudors · 09-10-2011, 01:56 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Suburban Rhythm

This is my son from a couple weeks ago.
It should be noted that I live about 30 miles from Greensburg. This move got me wondering.
If he ever asks for a Colin White jersey, I'll be doing some serious investigating.

I just watched this for the first time. Somehow, I missed it before. I totally taught him that, and he also wanted me to mention that Zach Parise is better than Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin put together.

OldGiants · 09-10-2011, 12:18 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by PackerFanatic

Super excited to kick off our season tonight! Likely going to be a major change to the format and I am pretty excited (I say likely because it needs a final league vote tonight, but it sounded like most people were happy with it at our Captain's meeting a couple weeks back). Basically, our current format is 2 15-week halves with a champion for each half. Those two champions roll-off in the final week for the Championship. Pretty standard. The suggestion at the meeting this year was to try and keep people interested for more of the season and instead split the season in quarters. So we have 4 7-week quarters. On each 7th week (so 7th, 14th, 21st, and 28th) we have a position round to determine a quarter champion - then in the 29th week, we have two matches between those 4 teams. Winners of those two matches face off in week 30 for the Championship.

Given how my team hasn't been involved in the championship in 3 years, I think it is a good way to get more teams involved and keep people active. We haven't had too many issues of teams tanking it toward the end of halves (especially since overall wins is still what determines the payout at the end of the year), but this at least will side-step that issue from happening. I think it will be a fun change. Very excited either way!

We've always had the four quarter champs and it has made for greater interest for the simple reason a team can be rubbish for the first three quarters and then make and win the playoffs. It can also make for some really strange situations when a team wins more than one quarter, however. Make sure teams are never in a position where losing benefits them more because they are already in a slot.

We had an extremely bizarre situation where the last playoff slot came down to the last ball of the season, rolled by a team that was already in the playoffs. If the bowler made 7 or less on the shot, team A was in, 8 and we were in and 9 or more and the team they were bowling was in.

She wilted under the pressure and got a 6, lost total wood and team A was in.

Alan T · 09-10-2011, 01:53 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Pumpy Tudors

To pat myself on the back a little bit, I must say that I am quite pleased to look at my stats over the past couple of seasons and see the progression. I have gotten so much better as each season passes. It's through coaching and a lot of hard work, but I'm very happy with it.

I was cleaning out an old bowling bag a few weeks ago, and I found the practice scores that I used to write down. I was seeing a lot of scores between 110 and 140. Those scores were from maybe 4 years ago. It's amazing how different things are now. I've had a few games where I could barely break 140, but those are easily overshadowed by the multiple games where I've topped 240.

What's almost chilling to me is that I still have a lot more to learn. It's scary to realize that I still have so much more work to do on my game. The difference between a 150 average and a 180 average is three spares or a couple of strikes a game. With moderate practice, that's manageable over time. The difference between a 190 and a 220, though... well, it's still 30 pins, but you can't miss a bunch of spares and average 190. So now you're trying to take those spares you've been making and replace them with strikes. Now instead of bowling 5 or 6 strikes a game, you're trying to throw 7 or 8 strikes every single game. That's hard to imagine.

I am starting to imagine that this is what baseball players feel like as they progress through the minors. The difference between levels can be daunting, and you have to constantly learn more and more as you go along because each step is tougher than the last. I guess that's why I look back fondly at my 185 average in 2009/10 and my 195 average last year. Getting those extra 10 pins a game is not easy, so it really helps me understand how much better I've gotten. Now to get over 200...

In retrospect, when I renewed my bowling membership, I looked through my past stats on bowl.com, and evidently since 2002 I've not gotten better at all and in some cases gotten worse

PackerFanatic · 09-10-2011, 02:50 PM

I like the stepladder format - that was one of the suggestions when we were talking about it, but we figured a 3 match playoff was easier

Started off my season with a 476 last night (190, 162, 124). My arm was pretty much toast by the 7th frame of the 2nd game and I nearly blew my 3rd game, but a double toward the end made it at least somewhat respectable, heh. I had one open in the 9th frame of the first game, otherwise I would have had an easy 200, but I can't complain about that start. Hopefully I didn't set myself up for a hard fall this year

spleen1015 · 09-16-2011, 06:22 AM

My wife and I started bowling in a league last night with another couple.

I hadn't bowled in about 4 years. 256-158-213

I started the first game with the first 7.

We had a good time.

PackerFanatic · 09-16-2011, 08:25 AM

Very nice, Spleen!

spleen1015 · 09-16-2011, 08:46 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by PackerFanatic

Very nice, Spleen!

Thanks! I wasn't sure what to expect. I surely didn't think I would start my first game with 7 strikes.

Alan T · 09-16-2011, 08:58 AM

I bowled 4 strikes in a row during warmups last night.. then proceeded to bowl a 105 in my first game.. Eventually I kind of turned it around and bowled a 142 and 170 in my other two games. Even with my abysmal first game, we managed to take all four points thanks to someone on the other team having an even lower handicap than me and bowling a 95

TRO · 09-16-2011, 10:50 AM

Sandbagger.

Glengoyne · 09-16-2011, 11:08 AM

My first week this season I put up a 600 series. My second week I barely scraped by with a 400.

So all in all, I'm right at my 500 series average...

That's OK right?

Right?

PackerFanatic · 09-16-2011, 11:41 AM

Hell yeah

Pumpy Tudors · 09-16-2011, 02:08 PM

Nice job, everyone! spleen killing it with his front 7, Alan T with his 4 warmup strikes (now bring those into the actual game!), PackerFanatic opening his season with a 190. Great stuff, guys!

Tonight, my quest continues to keep the average above 200. Funny, tonight is the first night that I've ever entered a session with an average above 200. It was really cool seeing my name on this week's recap sheet with a 205 after it. My overall season goal is to finish above 200, but I've set a sub-goal. My goal is to not fall below 200 at any point for the rest of the season. I'm such a goof. I finally get over 200, and now I don't ever want to leave. I need to shoot at least a 548 tonight to stay in the 200s. Good luck to meeeeee!

PackerFanatic · 09-16-2011, 02:10 PM

Go Pumpy Go!

We ended up going 3 - 4 last week, about what I expected. Our first game was great but we really tailed off the second too. We will definitely a monster week this week though - we bowl against my uncles team (two of my uncles are on that team actually) and normally they are very good scratch bowlers, so we always have a boatload of handicap going in. Well they, for the most part, bowled like crap last week (both of my uncles, for instance, who normally average 190 and 210-ish, had a 153 and a 147 average respectively) Needless to say, if they bowl anywhere near their normal, they will blow us out of the water

PackerFanatic · 09-16-2011, 10:05 PM

So I nearly gave Curt Shilling a run for his money with my own "bloody sock" game tonight. 6th frame, first game, I hadn't marked yet, just couldn't find my mark. My second ball that frame, I nailed the side of my ankle with my ball (thankfully the ball stayed in my own lane, lol). Hurt like a bitch, looked down later and noticed a hole in my sock right where I hit it. Pulled the sock down and it was bleeding (pulled back a good chunk of skin). Not that bad, but bad enough where it was getting on my sock. After that incident, I marked out and finished with a decent (for me score). Then I ended up with a 170 (which knowing me, is actually pretty good) in my second game and finished with a solid 450 series. Apparently I need to bash my ankle a bit before I can find my mark

Pumpy Tudors · 09-16-2011, 11:21 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by PackerFanatic

So I nearly gave Curt Shilling a run for his money with my own "bloody sock" game tonight. 6th frame, first game, I hadn't marked yet, just couldn't find my mark. My second ball that frame, I nailed the side of my ankle with my ball (thankfully the ball stayed in my own lane, lol). Hurt like a bitch, looked down later and noticed a hole in my sock right where I hit it. Pulled the sock down and it was bleeding (pulled back a good chunk of skin). Not that bad, but bad enough where it was getting on my sock. After that incident, I marked out and finished with a decent (for me score). Then I ended up with a 170 (which knowing me, is actually pretty good) in my second game and finished with a solid 450 series. Apparently I need to bash my ankle a bit before I can find my mark

To open on your first 5 frames and still finish with a 450 is quite good. I hope your ankle gets better soon, though. That sounds rough!

As for myself, I shot a 651 tonight to push my average from 205 to 208. Ugh. The pressure is starting to get astounding now.

PackerFanatic · 09-17-2011, 12:12 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Pumpy Tudors

To open on your first 5 frames and still finish with a 450 is quite good. I hope your ankle gets better soon, though. That sounds rough!

As for myself, I shot a 651 tonight to push my average from 205 to 208. Ugh. The pressure is starting to get astounding now.

Just gotta keep chugging away

My uncle had a 279 tonight, closest he has come to a 300 yet. Ran the first 9 and buried the 10th ball but left the 10-pin. Even though they slaughtered us that game (and all night, as I expected, heh) it would have been cool to see his first 300 up close and personal.

PackerFanatic · 09-24-2011, 09:59 AM

I am pretty pumped...had another 470-ish series tonight. I was a little erratic with some of my shots, which cost me a 500, but I was able to calm and slow myself down and be pretty consistent. That means that I now have over a 150 average that is "established" (since we are 9 games in, its my new book average basically). Either way, I am really pleased with how I am doing. My team on the other hand - still needs a little work

Although we had some great games last night, we got smoked out of the building again. With the averages so much in flux these first few weeks, I am not totally surprised. We still have 3 more chances with our new format to make the playoffs - if he keep playing as consistently as we did in our 3rd game last night, we could have a shot down the road. My dad threw his first 500 in a long time...he got a new ball early last year and it's been taking him a while to get used to it, so I was really happy to see that.

Pumpy Tudors · 10-10-2011, 04:09 PM

Hey, back-to-back 700s and a 217 average. I hope my league doesn't figure out that I'm on heavy steroids.

TCY Junkie · 10-19-2011, 10:55 PM

Two closed games in a series is something new, too bad I had my head up my butt for the second half of the second game or I might have been able to break my high series.

Pumpy Tudors · 12-09-2011, 04:35 PM

Almost two months since a post in this thread. I'll get this going again. Tonight, my team is bowling for the first half championship for the third year in a row. We need to win all 3 games tonight to take the first half.

My team has the following averages:
150 - my wife
137 - a girl who's fairly new to the team
155 - a guy who's been with us all season
207 - me

The opponents:
161 - this guy was averaging 120 only four months ago
159 - the first guy's brother who is just coming back from an injury, but he put up a 553 last week
206 - the star of the team, capable of bowling a 650 any given week
208 - a substitute who has filled in for another injured bowler, nearly bowled a 700 last week

Overall, we're only getting 24 pins of handicap per game, so if any of those guys on the other team bowls well over average, we're probably sunk. Any one of them could make up 24 pins fairly easily, so we've got our work cut out for us. In order for us to even be competitive, I will probably need to put up a 640 tonight, and I'll need one of my teammates to do well also. I'll report back with the results later.

01-22-2011, 08:19 PM	#202
cartman Death Herald Join Date: Nov 2000 Location: Le stelle la notte sono grandi e luminose nel cuore profondo del Texas	They showed the final match of the PBA Tournament of Champions today. The runner up, Tom Daugherty had the worst score of a televised match ever, rolling a 100. Yep, a pro bowler rolled a 100 game on TV. The winner of the match was on the opposite end of the spectrum. Mika Koivuniemi rolled 11 straight strikes, and on his twelfth roll hit the pocket, but the 10 pin stayed solid, even though it was hit by at least two other pins. __________________ Thinkin' of a master plan 'Cuz ain't nuthin' but sweat inside my hand So I dig into my pocket, all my money is spent So I dig deeper but still comin' up with lint

03-06-2011, 01:51 AM	#205
Pumpy Tudors Bounty Hunter Join Date: Oct 2000 Location: Pittsburgh, PA	Just shot my second 700 of the season, but we had a bit of an ugly situation in my league at the same time. We've got an ambidextrous bowler in the league. He's a natural righty, but he's throwing lefty this season. He's the treasurer this year and has been president in the past. We do a weekly "powerball" drawing where you buy raffle tickets, and if your number gets called, you throw one shot - which doesn't count as part of your normal game - for the money in the pot. If you get a strike, you win. If you don't, the money carries over to the next week. The ambidextrous bowler had his number drawn, and he proceeds to grab his righthanded ball and throw for the money righthanded. He got a strike and I heard people protesting about him throwing righty. Now, I'm a rookie president, and I actually thought people were joking (and I'm still sure most of them were), so I ruled that he could have the money. Immediately after I ruled, the league secretary told me quietly that he was protesting. I figured that because the powerball shot did not count for league scores, it shouldn't matter which hand the guy threw with. Several minutes later, I was approached by the guys who work at the bowling center. One of them has been bowling for 40 years and has taught me almost everything I know about bowling. He said that I was fine to rule either way, but the proper ruling would really be to make the guy throw lefty. After speaking with other league members and hearing opinions, I realized that I had made a mistake. He should not have been allowed to throw righthanded. I went to the league secretary (who had the only serious protest) and admitted my mistake. He said that I should make the other guy forfeit the prize. I said that I couldn't make him give the money back after I'd awarded it to him, but I would speak with him. I approached the guy who won the money, and I told him that after discussion with others, he really should have thrown the shot lefthanded. He protested a little bit, but then he said, "If you want me to give the money back, just say so. I don't really give a shit." I told him that I couldn't really tell him to do that, but I had made an uninformed decision when I awarded him the prize. He was willing to give up the money, a prize of $27. I'm really torn on this. On one hand, I acknowledge that I'd made a mistake, and I owned up to it. On the other hand, the guy who won the money has been bowling long enough to know better than to switch hands - especially to his natural hand - in a league event, whether it's for score or not. Apparently, someone even told him before he threw the shot that he shouldn't do it righthanded. I did not hear any protests before he threw it, even though he was clearly lining up to shoot righty. I feel badly about essentially taking away a prize that I had already awarded to him, and that's really the only thing I question. I did not tell him to give back the money, but he knew that I was suggesting it. Looking back on it, I wish I had told him that he could keep the money, but he is not allowed to do that again. I have already made one ruling and rescinded it, however, so I will look absolutely terrible if I adjust the ruling yet again. It would make me look spineless or wishy-washy, and that's not what people want in their league president. I'm trying to just let it go in my mind, but I've been constantly second-guessing myself on the whole series of events for over 24 hours now, and I'm actually having a hard time sleeping because of it. I feel like I did a lot of things wrong in this situation. I get that people in authority make mistakes sometimes, and I need to treat this as a learning experience. I just wish I had had more time to think about everything before making a decision, and I'm not happy with the way things turned out. Not to toot my own horn here, but most people love having me as the league president. I have had people tell me that the only reason they're in this league is because of me. There are other people who want to join the league as new bowlers next year because of me. People are always reminding me how much of a positive impact I bring to the league. This one mistake probably won't undermine all of that. Still, this is eating away at me, and it's taking away a lot of the enjoyment that I get from bowling. I just want to let this go and live with the ruling that's been made instead of thinking about it over and over. I guess I just need to grow a thicker skin and stop worrying about things. To everyone else in the league, the situation is done. To me, it's probably going to affect my concentration every time I bowl in this league until at least the end of the season, maybe beyond. This sucks. tl;dr version: i made a bad decision as president, tried to fix it, possibly made it worse, and now i'm mad at myself. and i shot a 700. __________________ No, I am not Batman, and I will not repair your food processor. Last edited by Pumpy Tudors : 03-06-2011 at 01:52 AM.

03-06-2011, 10:44 AM	#206
OldGiants College Benchwarmer Join Date: Oct 2000 Location: Location, Location, Location	Pumpy, It was $27. You cannot be perfect in life. Making quick decisions on the small stuff is better than agonizing over them, even if you get it wrong. By April, the vast majority of league members won't even remember this incident. Enjoy your 700 and keep encouraging others, but above all, keep having fun. __________________ "The case of Great Britain is the most astonishing in this matter of inequality of rights in world soccer championships. The way they explained it to me as a child, God is one but He's three: Father, Son and Holy Ghost. I could never understand it. And I still don't understand why Great Britain is one but she's four....while [others] continue to be no more than one despite the diverse nationalities that make them up." Eduardo Galeano, SOCCER IN SUN AND SHADOW

03-06-2011, 10:51 AM	#207
Poli FOFC Survivor Join Date: Apr 2002 Location: Wentzville, MO	What the Old man said. __________________ Cheer for a walk on quarterback! Ardent leads the Vols in the dynasty forum.

03-06-2011, 08:31 PM	#208
mtolson H.S. Freshman Team Join Date: Oct 2000 Location: Bowie, MD	Pumpy I don't know if you were wrong about that. Since his ball was not part of a game he didn't break the rule of changing delivery. And if the there was no rule to stipulate which hand a bowler had to use I think it's fair game. I am also a Secretrary and run our youth league and even that one has me stumped. If the shot counted toward his score then he broke the rule but there us no rule for what he did in this case (at least that I have heard off). I would have ruled the same way as you fwiw. And congrats on your second 700 :-) Last edited by mtolson : 03-06-2011 at 08:31 PM.

01-22-2011, 01:28 AM	#201
PackerFanatic Pro Starter Join Date: Jul 2005 Location: Appleton, WI	707, nice! I wish scores like that were total crap for me I bowled a 530 tonight, with a 204 in there for my first game. Absolutely awesome series for me

01-31-2011, 07:06 PM	#204
Danny Head Coach Join Date: Jul 2001	I had a better night this past week. First two games were a 260 and 242. Third game killed my series though with a 153. First two games I missed pocket once each, both times high and left bad splits both times. Third game was not my game. I left a 7-10, 6-7 and 6 on pocket shots and a 2-4-7-10 on a headpin shot.

03-06-2011, 09:18 PM	#210
cartman Death Herald Join Date: Nov 2000 Location: Le stelle la notte sono grandi e luminose nel cuore profondo del Texas	Try kicking the guy in the nuts. I bet you then roll a 900 series. __________________ Thinkin' of a master plan 'Cuz ain't nuthin' but sweat inside my hand So I dig into my pocket, all my money is spent So I dig deeper but still comin' up with lint

03-06-2011, 10:16 PM	#211
TCY Junkie College Prospect Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: TX	So you can't bowl left handed one week and then right handed the next? I know about not throwing left and then right in the same series. A guy I bowl with said he hurt his right hand and bowled with his left after that. I took it as he finished the season with his left. Is that usbc rules or what? __________________ I try to open things I probably have no chance of opening.

03-16-2011, 02:25 AM	#213
mtolson H.S. Freshman Team Join Date: Oct 2000 Location: Bowie, MD	Got my second 773 of the season tonight and my 5th 700 in the last 10 weeks. To any of you that have bowled an 800 I tip my hats to you. I now fully understand how hard it is to reach that mark. Literally had about 6 spares all night just in bad places. It amazing what carpal tunnel surgery and new equipment can do for your game. In my case, the carpal tunnel surgery now allows me to bowl pain free. It also affected my PAP and caused my track to move higher. New equipment drilled to match that change and my game (cranker) and I finally feel like I am back on track. Pumpy, do you use LeagueSecretary.com. If so I would love to see your stats for the season.

03-16-2011, 02:55 AM	#214
Glengoyne Grizzled Veteran Join Date: Sep 2003 Location: Fresno, CA	Wow 700 series is pretty cool. I've come close 687 back in September. Last week I put up a 636. With the 636, I bowled a 238 and a 227. Both games I felt like I bowled close to perfectly. Not my highest game ever, but with the 238 I opened with seven strikes. Then hit the pocket light in the eighth, leaving 2-4-7-10. I then tried so hard to pick it up, I missed the 2-4-7 to the outside. Struck the ninth, then adjusted my line for the tenth, insufficiently..this time leaving the 2-4-10. I did pick it up, and then made another adjustment for the strike on the last ball. I was bowling really well, and only missed seven freaking pins. Three of them I picked up in the end. For that I get a 238. So yeah an 800 series is pretty crazy tough. Congrats to you guys for putting them up. Oh and Pumpy. I had no idea about the lefty righty switch requiring a permission change from the league. In a previous league one of the best bowlers in the league, multiple 300s, best average, switched all the damn time. Usually whole games, but I saw him switch to lefty mid-game at least once. In that league, no one knew any better or probably cared. In the league I'm in now, I'm sure some folks know and would care. Of course there are a handful of folks that have put up multiple 300s and two 800 series in league, and we're not even the "serious" Tuesday night league. Last edited by Glengoyne : 03-16-2011 at 02:56 AM.

03-22-2011, 04:55 PM	#215
Pumpy Tudors Bounty Hunter Join Date: Oct 2000 Location: Pittsburgh, PA	I'm starting to wear down a little bit this year. A lot of bowling. I've got my own league on Fridays, I'm now a "permanent sub" in a Monday league (one guy is injured and out for the season, so I'm replacing him), and I occasionally sub on Wednesdays. Throw in my regular Wednesday and Thursday practices, and I am bowling about 25 games per week every week. Physically, I'm fine, but it's hard to keep the mental focus. I'm thinking about entering a local tournament next month to give me a little motivation, but I want to feel a little more confident before I make that decision. I'm working on it. mtolson, my league does not use leaguesecretary.com (though I wish it did), but my own stats are linked in my signature. If you have sigs turned off, here are the links: BowlingTracker.com - View Profile (this season) BowlingTracker.com - View Profile (last season) I've improved a lot from last season to this season. Each season, I've set two goals for myself. Last year's goals were a 600 series and a 180 average. I got there. This year's goals were a 700 series and a 190 average. I've got two 700s and I'm shattering the 190. I'm entering this week at 196. Even if I average only 150 for the rest of the season, I'll be over 190 at the end. So now I'm thinking about next year's goals. I'm thinking a 750 series and a 200 average. Maybe that means I'll get an 800 and a 205. __________________ No, I am not Batman, and I will not repair your food processor.

05-01-2011, 03:11 PM	#216
PackerFanatic Pro Starter Join Date: Jul 2005 Location: Appleton, WI	We had our bowling banquet to finish off our season this past Friday and I got a pleasant surprise: I was given the award for Most Improved Average! I am pretty proud of that, since I have been working hard to improve and I was pretty disappointed with how I finished last year (128 average). I got my average up to 140 this year, helped a lot over the last 6 weeks or so with a heavier ball that I can control a lot better. That award and Highest League Average are the only ones (outside of League Champs, of course) that get a trophy, so I am pretty happy about that

05-02-2011, 08:15 AM	#218
PackerFanatic Pro Starter Join Date: Jul 2005 Location: Appleton, WI	I do plan to bowl again next year (will be my 5th season...wow). At some point this summer, I am going to get my new ball re-drilled and work a little bit on getting a little bit more torque on the ball. My approach changed quite a bit over this past season and I feel if I can control my spin a little bit more, I could get my average up even more.

05-25-2011, 12:00 PM	#219
Pumpy Tudors Bounty Hunter Join Date: Oct 2000 Location: Pittsburgh, PA	Two weeks into the PBA Experience head-to-head league, my record is 3-5. Considering that I started 0-4, I'm pleased. I got a really lucky draw last night to win 3 out of 4, though. My first match was against a vacancy (my opponent didn't show up). The rules state that you need to beat 160 to win, and I got to 165. My second match was against a young woman who bowls for the local community college. She seems to be pretty new at bowling. I watched her bowl during the winter, and she has a long way to go to be very competitive. Unfortunately, I tend to bowl to the level of my competition, and I barely squeaked out a 135-133 win. The third match was against a kid who really has no idea what he's doing. I hate to put it that way, but that's the most accurate way I can say it. I won 126-109, although I'll admit that it really wasn't that close after the 5th frame and I didn't try very hard on spares. Still, I should be trying on every shot, no matter who my opponent is. Finally, I faced a pretty decent bowler in my 4th match. He actually put up a 215 earlier in the evening. He couldn't carry corner pins against me, though, and I was hanging in there for most of the match. Unfortunately, needing a strike and a spare in the 10th frame, I couldn't pull it out. I started the 10th with a split and that did me in. Final score 161-145. Overall, I'm happy with 3 wins in one night. I didn't do that at all last year. I do need to learn to stay focused when I'm up against a lesser opponent, but a win is a win. Of course, now that I'm learning the USBC Masters pattern we're bowling on, I'll master it just in time for them to switch the pattern over to something completely different like the Shark. Urgh. __________________ No, I am not Batman, and I will not repair your food processor.

05-25-2011, 01:30 PM	#220
Glengoyne Grizzled Veteran Join Date: Sep 2003 Location: Fresno, CA	Week three of our Summer league, and we're 6 and 6. We've had two ties already this season. Last night was the most exciting. I'm bowling anchor for our team, and me and the other team's anchor came up in the tenth, both running on a strike in ninth. The teams dead even. He is a 200+ bowler in the midst of a 235 game...I'm a 165 bowler and I've been struggling to strike tonight. I matched him strike for strike for the first two balls, and then he hit the pocket a bit high, leaving a split. All I had to do was pull down a nine for the win. The pressure got me, or perhaps the lack of it, and I missed my mark by a good three boards. The ball missed the head pin completely, and I ended up leaving the 1-2 for the tie. It really was a fun series, with only our final game being decided by more than 10 pins. We won that one by 12, again coming down to the two anchor's tenth frames. I finished with a 530 series, but our team was carried by our captain, who put up a 558 all time high series. He carries a 140 average, so it was a really nice night for him.

05-25-2011, 01:40 PM	#221
Suburban Rhythm Pro Starter Join Date: Jan 2002 Location: Pittsburgh	This is my son from a couple weeks ago. It should be noted that I live about 30 miles from Greensburg. This move got me wondering. If he ever asks for a Colin White jersey, I'll be doing some serious investigating. __________________ "Do you guys play fast tempos with odd time signatures?" "Yeah" "Cool!!"

05-25-2011, 01:54 PM	#222
PackerFanatic Pro Starter Join Date: Jul 2005 Location: Appleton, WI	Nice, SR - I am going to have to try that one Last edited by PackerFanatic : 05-25-2011 at 01:54 PM.

06-21-2011, 12:31 AM	#223
TCY Junkie College Prospect Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: TX	I opened my first frame and then went 26 frames closed. I've only had 2 games prior without an open so I bowled really well. My belt broke as I was walking in, I was trying to make sure I wouldn't show everyone crack tonight and it came into at the buckle. It made me focus more and slow down. Usually I just go up there and throw. Had my high series with a 565. So yes Pumpy, I'm bowling this summer. __________________ I try to open things I probably have no chance of opening.

06-21-2011, 07:57 AM	#224
PackerFanatic Pro Starter Join Date: Jul 2005 Location: Appleton, WI	Well done, TCY! Still hoping to get out a few times this summer...

09-09-2011, 08:28 AM	#225
PackerFanatic Pro Starter Join Date: Jul 2005 Location: Appleton, WI	Super excited to kick off our season tonight! Likely going to be a major change to the format and I am pretty excited (I say likely because it needs a final league vote tonight, but it sounded like most people were happy with it at our Captain's meeting a couple weeks back). Basically, our current format is 2 15-week halves with a champion for each half. Those two champions roll-off in the final week for the Championship. Pretty standard. The suggestion at the meeting this year was to try and keep people interested for more of the season and instead split the season in quarters. So we have 4 7-week quarters. On each 7th week (so 7th, 14th, 21st, and 28th) we have a position round to determine a quarter champion - then in the 29th week, we have two matches between those 4 teams. Winners of those two matches face off in week 30 for the Championship. Given how my team hasn't been involved in the championship in 3 years, I think it is a good way to get more teams involved and keep people active. We haven't had too many issues of teams tanking it toward the end of halves (especially since overall wins is still what determines the payout at the end of the year), but this at least will side-step that issue from happening. I think it will be a fun change. Very excited either way!

09-09-2011, 03:49 PM	#227
Pumpy Tudors Bounty Hunter Join Date: Oct 2000 Location: Pittsburgh, PA	To pat myself on the back a little bit, I must say that I am quite pleased to look at my stats over the past couple of seasons and see the progression. I have gotten so much better as each season passes. It's through coaching and a lot of hard work, but I'm very happy with it. I was cleaning out an old bowling bag a few weeks ago, and I found the practice scores that I used to write down. I was seeing a lot of scores between 110 and 140. Those scores were from maybe 4 years ago. It's amazing how different things are now. I've had a few games where I could barely break 140, but those are easily overshadowed by the multiple games where I've topped 240. What's almost chilling to me is that I still have a lot more to learn. It's scary to realize that I still have so much more work to do on my game. The difference between a 150 average and a 180 average is three spares or a couple of strikes a game. With moderate practice, that's manageable over time. The difference between a 190 and a 220, though... well, it's still 30 pins, but you can't miss a bunch of spares and average 190. So now you're trying to take those spares you've been making and replace them with strikes. Now instead of bowling 5 or 6 strikes a game, you're trying to throw 7 or 8 strikes every single game. That's hard to imagine. I am starting to imagine that this is what baseball players feel like as they progress through the minors. The difference between levels can be daunting, and you have to constantly learn more and more as you go along because each step is tougher than the last. I guess that's why I look back fondly at my 185 average in 2009/10 and my 195 average last year. Getting those extra 10 pins a game is not easy, so it really helps me understand how much better I've gotten. Now to get over 200... __________________ No, I am not Batman, and I will not repair your food processor.

09-09-2011, 11:32 PM	#230
Pumpy Tudors Bounty Hunter Join Date: Oct 2000 Location: Pittsburgh, PA	I shot 668 tonight (247+197+224), so that was a good night of bowling. Unfortunately, I had an additional shot where I would've won $140 if I'd made a strike. I missed and left the 10 pin standing. __________________ No, I am not Batman, and I will not repair your food processor.

09-10-2011, 02:50 PM	#234
PackerFanatic Pro Starter Join Date: Jul 2005 Location: Appleton, WI	I like the stepladder format - that was one of the suggestions when we were talking about it, but we figured a 3 match playoff was easier Started off my season with a 476 last night (190, 162, 124). My arm was pretty much toast by the 7th frame of the 2nd game and I nearly blew my 3rd game, but a double toward the end made it at least somewhat respectable, heh. I had one open in the 9th frame of the first game, otherwise I would have had an easy 200, but I can't complain about that start. Hopefully I didn't set myself up for a hard fall this year

09-16-2011, 06:22 AM	#235
spleen1015 Coordinator Join Date: Sep 2003	My wife and I started bowling in a league last night with another couple. I hadn't bowled in about 4 years. 256-158-213 I started the first game with the first 7. We had a good time.

09-16-2011, 08:25 AM	#236
PackerFanatic Pro Starter Join Date: Jul 2005 Location: Appleton, WI	Very nice, Spleen!

09-16-2011, 08:58 AM	#238
Alan T Hall Of Famer Join Date: Dec 2002 Location: Mass.	I bowled 4 strikes in a row during warmups last night.. then proceeded to bowl a 105 in my first game.. Eventually I kind of turned it around and bowled a 142 and 170 in my other two games. Even with my abysmal first game, we managed to take all four points thanks to someone on the other team having an even lower handicap than me and bowling a 95 __________________ Couch to ??k - From the couch to a Marathon in roughly 18 months.

09-16-2011, 10:50 AM	#239
TRO College Prospect Join Date: Oct 2000 Location: Louisburg, KS	Sandbagger. __________________ TRA, the Royal Ape

09-16-2011, 11:08 AM	#240
Glengoyne Grizzled Veteran Join Date: Sep 2003 Location: Fresno, CA	My first week this season I put up a 600 series. My second week I barely scraped by with a 400. So all in all, I'm right at my 500 series average... That's OK right? Right? Last edited by Glengoyne : 09-16-2011 at 12:29 PM.

09-16-2011, 11:41 AM	#241
PackerFanatic Pro Starter Join Date: Jul 2005 Location: Appleton, WI	Hell yeah

09-16-2011, 02:08 PM	#242
Pumpy Tudors Bounty Hunter Join Date: Oct 2000 Location: Pittsburgh, PA	Nice job, everyone! spleen killing it with his front 7, Alan T with his 4 warmup strikes (now bring those into the actual game!), PackerFanatic opening his season with a 190. Great stuff, guys! Tonight, my quest continues to keep the average above 200. Funny, tonight is the first night that I've ever entered a session with an average above 200. It was really cool seeing my name on this week's recap sheet with a 205 after it. My overall season goal is to finish above 200, but I've set a sub-goal. My goal is to not fall below 200 at any point for the rest of the season. I'm such a goof. I finally get over 200, and now I don't ever want to leave. I need to shoot at least a 548 tonight to stay in the 200s. Good luck to meeeeee! __________________ No, I am not Batman, and I will not repair your food processor. Last edited by Pumpy Tudors : 09-16-2011 at 02:08 PM.

09-16-2011, 02:10 PM	#243
PackerFanatic Pro Starter Join Date: Jul 2005 Location: Appleton, WI	Go Pumpy Go! We ended up going 3 - 4 last week, about what I expected. Our first game was great but we really tailed off the second too. We will definitely a monster week this week though - we bowl against my uncles team (two of my uncles are on that team actually) and normally they are very good scratch bowlers, so we always have a boatload of handicap going in. Well they, for the most part, bowled like crap last week (both of my uncles, for instance, who normally average 190 and 210-ish, had a 153 and a 147 average respectively) Needless to say, if they bowl anywhere near their normal, they will blow us out of the water

09-16-2011, 10:05 PM	#244
PackerFanatic Pro Starter Join Date: Jul 2005 Location: Appleton, WI	So I nearly gave Curt Shilling a run for his money with my own "bloody sock" game tonight. 6th frame, first game, I hadn't marked yet, just couldn't find my mark. My second ball that frame, I nailed the side of my ankle with my ball (thankfully the ball stayed in my own lane, lol). Hurt like a bitch, looked down later and noticed a hole in my sock right where I hit it. Pulled the sock down and it was bleeding (pulled back a good chunk of skin). Not that bad, but bad enough where it was getting on my sock. After that incident, I marked out and finished with a decent (for me score). Then I ended up with a 170 (which knowing me, is actually pretty good) in my second game and finished with a solid 450 series. Apparently I need to bash my ankle a bit before I can find my mark

09-24-2011, 09:59 AM	#247
PackerFanatic Pro Starter Join Date: Jul 2005 Location: Appleton, WI	I am pretty pumped...had another 470-ish series tonight. I was a little erratic with some of my shots, which cost me a 500, but I was able to calm and slow myself down and be pretty consistent. That means that I now have over a 150 average that is "established" (since we are 9 games in, its my new book average basically). Either way, I am really pleased with how I am doing. My team on the other hand - still needs a little work Although we had some great games last night, we got smoked out of the building again. With the averages so much in flux these first few weeks, I am not totally surprised. We still have 3 more chances with our new format to make the playoffs - if he keep playing as consistently as we did in our 3rd game last night, we could have a shot down the road. My dad threw his first 500 in a long time...he got a new ball early last year and it's been taking him a while to get used to it, so I was really happy to see that.

10-10-2011, 04:09 PM	#248
Pumpy Tudors Bounty Hunter Join Date: Oct 2000 Location: Pittsburgh, PA	Hey, back-to-back 700s and a 217 average. I hope my league doesn't figure out that I'm on heavy steroids. __________________ No, I am not Batman, and I will not repair your food processor.