Sep 172010
Question from Phil:
Q – That was an interesting discussion of “sport leagues” and lower averages, but you neglected to explain just what a sport league is. Why would you expect the averages to be significantly lower?
A – Great question and we are sorry for assuming that our viewers knew what that was. We always try and think of it from every angle and sometimes we miss, thanks for the question.
bowl.com define sport bowling as a competitive on-lane adventure like no other. High-tech equipment and forgiving lane conditions tend to conceal weaknesses in the games of even the top bowlers. Competing on the same lane patterns used in the highest level of competition can help you fine and eliminate weaknesses in your game.
Basically using tougher lane conditions sport bowling helps bring averages back into range of what a bowler may actually be at. This is why we said it would most likely lower averages because due to equipment and lane conditions most averages are inflated quite a bit.
Question from Michael P:
Q – I was wondering what you guys think about pin placement and top weight when ordering a ball. What do you suggest that we get? Cause I ordered a new ball and got a 3-4 oz top weight and a 3-4” pin placement. I wasn’t sure what they give if you do not ask for the specs.
A – As for what pin and top weight you should ask for that depends a lot on what type of drilling you are planning on doing with your new ball. If you do not have something specific in mind and you may just use the manufacturers suggested layout then I would suggest asking for either a 2-3” or 3-4” pin and top weight would not really matter.
Remember that the biggest factor in the layout of a ball is the distance the pin is from your PAP and the placement or distance of the Mass Bias in relation to your grip or your PAP. Top weight does not play a large factor at all and the use of a balance or wight hole will bring the ball back to legal specs statically.
If a request is not made on an order our warehouse selects a ball at random. Please keep in mind that all the products we sell are first quality unless clearly stated otherwise and the specs of those balls fall within the manufacturers limits for pin distance and top weight.
Just a real quick reminder also that on bowlingball.com we guarantee your specs will be met within a 1/2” on pin placement and a 1/2 oz. on top weight. If we can not meet these specs we will contact you before we ship your order.
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Answer to last weeks question:
Q – What was the highest beginner’s first league score ever bowled?
A – It was a 253 by Bud Terrell of Bloomfield, Iowa, in 1974.
This weeks question:
Q – What is the oldest certified bowling alley in the United States?
Closing:
Please remember that bowlingball.com is free shipping on every item, every day. No hidden handling fees, no packaging fees, no added insurance fees. The price shown is the price you pay at checkout. No Surprises.
Q – That was an interesting discussion of “sport leagues” and lower averages, but you neglected to explain just what a sport league is. Why would you expect the averages to be significantly lower?
A – Great question and we are sorry for assuming that our viewers knew what that was. We always try and think of it from every angle and sometimes we miss, thanks for the question.
bowl.com define sport bowling as a competitive on-lane adventure like no other. High-tech equipment and forgiving lane conditions tend to conceal weaknesses in the games of even the top bowlers. Competing on the same lane patterns used in the highest level of competition can help you fine and eliminate weaknesses in your game.
Basically using tougher lane conditions sport bowling helps bring averages back into range of what a bowler may actually be at. This is why we said it would most likely lower averages because due to equipment and lane conditions most averages are inflated quite a bit.
Question from Michael P:
Q – I was wondering what you guys think about pin placement and top weight when ordering a ball. What do you suggest that we get? Cause I ordered a new ball and got a 3-4 oz top weight and a 3-4” pin placement. I wasn’t sure what they give if you do not ask for the specs.
A – As for what pin and top weight you should ask for that depends a lot on what type of drilling you are planning on doing with your new ball. If you do not have something specific in mind and you may just use the manufacturers suggested layout then I would suggest asking for either a 2-3” or 3-4” pin and top weight would not really matter.
Remember that the biggest factor in the layout of a ball is the distance the pin is from your PAP and the placement or distance of the Mass Bias in relation to your grip or your PAP. Top weight does not play a large factor at all and the use of a balance or wight hole will bring the ball back to legal specs statically.
If a request is not made on an order our warehouse selects a ball at random. Please keep in mind that all the products we sell are first quality unless clearly stated otherwise and the specs of those balls fall within the manufacturers limits for pin distance and top weight.
Just a real quick reminder also that on bowlingball.com we guarantee your specs will be met within a 1/2” on pin placement and a 1/2 oz. on top weight. If we can not meet these specs we will contact you before we ship your order.
Sponsors:
ShoeBuy.com.
ShoeBuy.com is the World’s Largest Site for Shoes. They have over 750,000 products from 950 top name brands in all sizes, widths, and colors for men, women, teens and children. ShoeBuy.com customers enjoy free shipping both ways on US orders. TalkBowling viewers can save 10% on their purchase at ShoeBuy.com by entering the promotion code TALK during checkout. Help support us by supporting our affiliates.
Answer to last weeks question:
Q – What was the highest beginner’s first league score ever bowled?
A – It was a 253 by Bud Terrell of Bloomfield, Iowa, in 1974.
This weeks question:
Q – What is the oldest certified bowling alley in the United States?
Closing:
Please remember that bowlingball.com is free shipping on every item, every day. No hidden handling fees, no packaging fees, no added insurance fees. The price shown is the price you pay at checkout. No Surprises.
9 Responses to “Talk Bowling #64 – Sport Leagues Defined”
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Thanks guys for answering my question. Can't wait till the next episode, keep up the good work.
Holler House… its just down the road from me, kind of an easy one for a Milwaukee area resident.
I really enjoy watching talk bowling. my questions are some league bowlers bring in several balls 6,8 or more, is this really the way to go? i just bring my 1 strike ball and move until it works (which is usually tenth frame third game). that leads to my second question i know there is suppose to be a correct degree of angle to the pocket to get a perfect strike, what is the best standing spot for your feet and board mark on the lane to reach this.
Hi Dave,
Thanks for the comment and for visiting bowlingball.com. Your questions are good ones but with no extremely easy answers.
First, regarding the number of bowling balls to bring when bowling league, bring one or two minimum for your strike ball deliveries and perhaps another for spare shoot. A spare ball should be something constructed to not hook very much which can be used for those corner pin spares (like the 10 pin for right handers) or for very dry lanes.
No real need for 6 or 8 bowling balls unless the lane conditions change dramatically every week as can be the case in a PBA Experience league. Normally, the lanes will vary somewhat from week to week due to things like temperature changes, humidity, and how much bowling was done on the lanes prior to league play so it is a good idea to have more than one ball ready for use, but not absolutely necessary if you are happy with your overall performances and current bowling average?
If the identical pattern of oil is applied to the lanes before league each week, then you will most likely encounter very similar lane conditions except if a tournament or another league with a high volume of linage was bowled on your lanes just prior to the start of your league play and the oil breaks down and creates a dry lane condition?
Regarding a correct angle of entry to the pocket, let us comment that if you presently have a slight hook delivery and do not throw the ball perfectly straight, then you already have a sufficient angle of entry. To maximize your opportunity to strike, however, you should try and adhere to the following conditions:
a. correct alignment – you must be lined up correctly on the lanes and play the oil pattern the lane man has applied to the lane surface.
b. choose a bowling ball with a coverstock matching the volume of applied oil on the lanes and one with sufficient hook potential from the break point on the lane to the pocket and which also matches the oil condition.
c. be consistent with your direction to your target and with your speed control.
To check your initial alignment on the approach if you roll a modest hook ball delivery, begin by standing on the 18 board of the approach with the instep of your sliding shoe covering the 18 board but leaving the 17 board uncovered and where center part of the toe on your shoe points to the middle dot or the 20 board. Sight at the 2nd arrow, (the 10 board 15 feet down the lane) or slightly to the outside of the arrow, maybe the 9 board, and roll a good delivery.
If you ball finishes a little too light in the pocket, adjust your feet two boards right (if you are a right handed bowler) toward the outside of the lane, maybe to the 16 board, and your target on the lane to the right half as much, maybe to the 8 board. Move again in increments of 2:1 with the feet adjusting two boards for every one board with your eye alignment near the arrows.
Move the opposite direction in increments of 2:1 if your initial deliveries hook too soon and miss the pocket either on the nose of the head pin or perhaps further left.
By making a series of 2:1 adjustments from your initial alignment, you will get yourself much closer to proper alignment to take advantage of the skid and hook patterns developed by the oil condition and your strike percentage and pocket percentage will both increase.
Finally, please take time to check out our new "BowlVersity" button on our home page at bowlingball.com and click to find literally hundreds of articles and videos dedicated to several "experience levels" of bowlers, some of which address the strategy of adjusting to lane conditions and matching bowling balls to your game. We hope this helps?
One more comment for Dave,
Make sure to double check your footwork and try to arrive at the foul line sliding on the same board where you aligned yourself initially. Walking straight to the line is preferred but if you walk to the right, then you may need to adjust your starting positioning on the approach to the left the same number of boards that you wander during the approach to the foul line. If you start on 18 board with your slide shoe and drift three boards right then try to adjust your starting position to the 21 board so you end up on the 18 board.
Opposite is true if you walk left – adjust your where you stand to the right the same number of boards you wander from a straight line so you will arrive on the precise board for playing your target on the lane.
We recommend a right handed bowler not drift right when walking to the foul line. Left if certainly better than walking to the right. Right handed bowlers who walk to the right step in front of the arm-swing path aligned to the target and usually the swing will bounce out to the right during the approach and cause poor deliveries, usually left of target or rotating the hand much too early in the release. Walk straight (or too the left) so your feet and hips do not move in front of your swing. If you have this problem, see a certified coach. Hope this and the previous tips help?
Hey Tony,
The first thing that will help "sport" leagues is to get rid of the term "sport". That will do the most good.
It needs to be PBA Experience, or Kegle Leagues, I live in Northern Utah and we have a league that is
called the Storm Challenge and we use the 12 different Kegel patterns changed every 3 weeks, the
best part is last year there was 20 teams in the league(4personteams) granted most were not that good
but they still bowled and did not care about the pattern. You are absolutely correct about people not wanting
to bowl sport because they do not want to see that they are not really that good. We started a PBA league 4 years ago
and had 10 teams this year 8 people showed up the other 32 said no way, then 4 of them joined the mixed hdcp
league that was at the same time, I got 3 of the other 4 to join our scratch league. We have 10 teams of 3 and we
bowl on the USBC White #2 pattern and our mormal house pattern is modified cheetah, a pattern right from the west
region lane man. I hope you will use this and get rid of the term "SPORT" it needs to be done.
Thanks, keep up the great work
Allen
The oldest certified bowling alley in the United States is the Holler House in the Lincoln Village neighborhood of Milwaukee. It first opened on September 13, 1908. The Holler House also still has 2 lanes that need pinboys. They even have five, 15# wooden bowling balls.
Hi
I am considering the puchase of a Lane#1 ball. I am considering the following Pink Panther, Time Bomb and Big Curve. Having studied your videos I notice that in the Pink Panther video 29 units of oil were used, the Time Bomb 23 units and the Big Curve 22 units! This makes comparision rather difficult. The Pink Panther appears to hook the least but if less oil was used??? I am a low rev bowler and am looking for a ball that will give me maximum hook. Any advice gratefully received.
Alan Davis
Hi Alan,
I am a low rev player as well, and if you want my advice, the Pink Panther has been great. The Time Bomb comes in a very close second, followed by the Big Curve.
As for the units of oil, that is my fault. I must have copied the wrong information on the Pink Panther, we have been at 23 units of oil for the latest bowling ball videos. I will double check that on our videos in the future.
The Time Bomb's has a shinier finish, and would rival the Pink Panther for a spot in bag. But as of right now, I carry the Pink Panther in my bag for league.