jim, i play a pretty direct line, as my ball has very little movement hook-wise [if any really], and it seems like wherever i bowl, no one else uses 'my line'.

like i said, if i ignore the pins, and focus on the target, it all ends up good.

maybe i should tape my chin to my chest?? lol

Jim, I appreciate your feedback. I'm working on throwing the straight ball using the pinky finger lead but it's taking time to get comfortable with the feel required to throw the end-over-end ball but I've started to be able to execute this shot. I'm just not confident enough to trust myself completely yet. I usually miss at least two or three easy spares over the course of league play by chopping a pin or muffing a single pin altogether. As you and Silent Mike talked about earlier in this thread, the mental aspect of the game is also an important area of focus for me.

I plan to use the practice at tougher houses to get exposed to playing outside my comfort zone. I want to enter some tournaments in the 2008-09 season and I know that this means I need to be familiar with places outside my 'home field'.

Btw, I may be in the Tampa area on business next month, so I might check the Kegel Training Center. I didn't even think about this until you mentioned it.

Thanks, Spence

Targeting
I just did not really realize how bad I am. Playing more from the right side and straighter requires accuracy. I started
to use the foul line dots as my focus and for me it helps.Also drift which is about 2 to 3 boards to left, but that too has to be consistent. Sure on some playing conditions you can miss 5 boards and get away with it. However if you are not setting the ball down on the correct board you can not expect to get the same results. The best Execution will not work if your ball is on the wrong line.1 board miss causes 3 board miss at the pins. I have had many times when bowling even striking and I could not say where my ball was at the lay down or the arrows. I think we see bowlers who do not impress us with ther form, but they score. They are accurate. I did some practice on this and found out as Brandon did, that making accuracy your prioity and letting your sub-conscious take care of your Execution, you might be surprised. Also it takes focus and concentration. Read Ron C's article don't let your aim get in your way. Accurate Execution, can't have one with out the other. Now I need to practice what I preach.
Dianne

I hear you Dianne. Accuracy is a real key. I've been working on targeting and using the quiet eye technique that Joe Slowinski covers in his articles. That coupled with freeing my armswing has helped a lot; I've finally got my grip fit adjusted so I don't squeeze and muscle the ball. That plus the coaching lessons I've been taking since the start of the year have really been paying off. Wishing you the best and bowl great.

What am I going to work on this summer is absence makes the heart grow fonder.
As much as I love bowling I need a brake, I seem to bowl as good or as bad whether I bowl once a week or four times a week. Of course thats what always makes us come back, if we bowl good we want to come back and if we bowl bad we can't wait to get back to prove we are better bowlers.
Anyway I will bowl once a week this summer to stay A little tuned up but not four times. You are right when you say it takes focus and concentration but right now I need to have fun and less thinking.

It sounds like you have a good game plan to get where you need to go, just take your time and work on each thing at a time and don't move on to learning something new before becoming comfortable and consistent with what you are working on.

To improve your rev rate work the ball from the inside of the ball at the release, low and long. Low and long will ease the landing of the ball instead of bouncing down into the lane, this is how Mika gets away with lofting the ball.

tbill, it sounds like you have grip issues and like to control the ball to the pocket instead of just letting it go. I may be wrong as I don't remember having seen you bowl, I am just going off how you describe your game and your attitude towards it.

Bowling is a lot like cracking a bull whip, if you try to control the whip you will never hear that loud crack.

Throwing a straight ball is not easy and takes time to learn like any other skill. Most of us try so hard to hook the ball that their mind will not let them throw a straight ball, in some instances, it take throwing a straight ball for strikes to unlock their brain. It took me almost a year, and I practice twice a week.

Red Devil, that is what I usually do over the summer, I bowl one league and then practice once a week. I don't keep score when I practice and this helps make practice more fun.

Well I went over to the previously mentioned Pro Shop, that was open on Sunday and they have good reason to be, they are usually very busy on Sundays as I heard one of the workers tell another that rarely works Sundays. I did like what I heard and a ball is currently there having changes done to it. The first thing done was the span test with just the thumb in the ball. As I bowl both Monday and Tuesday I won't be able to get it until Wednesday. From what I can remember the span is being shortened by around half an inch. They are just going to drill out the thumb slug, plug the hole and move the thumb forward. The way I read the drill sheet the thumb is going to be at 1/4 reverse, I could be wrong. The guy looked it up on the guide sheet for thumb pitch compared to span, thumb length and the maximum angle it can go out to the side. My thumb is in the neighborhood of 2 3/4 inches long. It also gets much wider had the base compared to the rest of the thumb so the thumb is being drilled out at the size around the knuckle and then widened at the top to allow the thumb to get all the way in. Most of my current thumb holes are big enough for the base and requires many pieces of tape, about 6-7 pieces of white with a maximum three up front and a piece of black on the back side. They will be partially plugging the finger holes to do new pitches, but I'm also going to try the Vacu-Grips as the size of my fingers do change, sometimes through the course of a night other times with changes in whether and humidity. From winter to summer I would have to change inserts just to be able to use the equipment without either gripping (bigger inserts for summer still in during winter) or trying to cram my fingers in the holes (smaller inserts for winter during summer). Everything is being done for $25. They charge $12 alone to do Vacu-grips and usually the same for thumb slugs, and $7 a ball to just plug at least that is what the price board said. They might have just gotten a new customer and I saw a few prices on balls that weren't too bad, Black Widow Bite for $145 with out drilling and say about another $40 or so to get it drilled. They also had a few Lane Master balls in there, The Sting, The Black Pearl and I can't remember the third one.

I'll pick the ball up Wednesday, the guy said he will go out with me on the lane to see what minor tweaks might be needed and then we can move on to the other equipment. I'm having at least 6 balls done, I have 9 that are drilled and one still sitting in the box that will eventually get punched up.