I went through an adjustment period with the BW Bite but now I have a handle on it. My accuracy has really improved.

League #1 I got off to a rocky start for summer. We decided to switch in our home center from Wed. to Sunday. Its a bigger more competative league even though still handicapped. We had a filled 4 man team, but on the first night one of our bowlers didn't show. I have still not been able to get a hold of him to find out his intentions. We did not burn up the lanes that first night. Nothing special.

Summer league #2. This is where the drama is. Trios scratch in a nortorious tough house. I and a girlfriend bowled last summer and wanted to do the same this year, but needed a third. I fit no less then 4 bowlers in our team who all said they could bowl but it fell through the closer we came to 1st night of bowling. So without a 3rd and not being close to the average cap, we dropped the scratch league before it started and joined a handicap league in the same center that was already 2 weeks started. The two of us fill a team and we are ready to get going. Lanes are tough, a virtual reverse block from 10 - 9 board out. I've seen this in this house before and its an awful condition. But we bowled and I had two opens/splits all night; 551 series. It was a struggle. But we met our teammates and thought we were now off and running. Next week, my girlfriend and I show up and the two existing teammates are both absent (they are not related). We have to take 10 pins off each of their averages. Condition is like night and day from previous week. I start off 269, 250......519 going in. My teammate is struggling and frustrated. I end up with a even 200 for the third game, due to a washout in the 10th frame in the third game. That's a nice way to turn a 220 game into a 200 game. But I was feeling pretty good. My teammate found something and shot 197 (20+ pins over her average) last game. Overall we take only one game that week, even though I shot 719.

I subbed in the scratch league which is on its third week. My girlfriend is somehow on the rooster as a player. And we bowl against "her" team. Their anchor is a sound 220 bowler and he's a bit miffed because the secretary/manager of the bowl, said he had to take her average minus 10. Even though she's not even bowled. And I guess this has been a contention from week 1. Apparently the manager just filled in this team with my girlfriend. But she never agreed to bowl. So I kind of filled the player in on the situation and we bowled. He with his folks who were both subbing and I subbing for the opposing team. Even though I shot well there the previous night, this night the approaches were hit or miss. Slick on some boards and tacky on others. We, both teams, discussed the condition of the approaches but pretty much beleived that screwing with them would only make matters worse. Everyone agreed the approaches were "dangerous" but not to let the house mess with them. I could not get my footing all night. Its my Achilles Heal. If I don't feel secure on the approach, its tough for me to execute. For 4 games shot 794 and only took one point off the big guy. It was still fun to be in the scratch league environment. Too bad we could not fill a team and join this summer.

Erin

Did pretty well last night with a 170-222-189

Had a first...name announced along with the 222 Trivial to some, but my league congratulated me and it certainly was a feel-good moment in my only year-long bowling "career".

Fun to keep reading here about everyone else's experiences so far.

Well thats a first for you Eastwest and thats a good thing. Congratulations.

In my fall/winter weekend league, someone would have a certain bowler's score announced if it was better than 200 and he had a mid 180 average, which sometimes meant on a weekly basis. He's been bowling at least as long I have, if not longer and I started in 2000. Thats when it gets ridiculous.

Thanks Cal, looking to put more 200+ games in the record books.

Yeah I can imagine how it'd be too much for someone hitting slightly above average at least one game a series.

Good bowling eastwest. Keep it up. We had 145 average person get there names annouced last week she shot a 245. 100 pin over her average.

This is why I bowl...

Last night travel league shot under a 500, did not have one split/washout leave. Everything I had last night was makeable and I missed 95% of it all.

Talk to my coach because it was at his house and set up a session with him the today. Told him that shots were left, left, left, left, left, left, left, and so far left I might as well be on the other side of the ocean. Of course I could have said bad night, but I dont want to fix it myself cause I'll develop potential bad habits.

Needless to say he fixed my timing and other things, it helped.

PBA tonight...CHEETAHMELEON! Length of Cheetah but breakpoint of chameleon. Suppose to be cheetah. Shot a 548 (183,186,179) and made match play. I was actually going through a moral funk seeing people play outside 5 when I noticed 6-10 was the playable area for the cheetah. I figured they had stronger equipment and bigger hands. I got to a point wondering if someone was looking at me thinking why is he playing this pattern like that, he dont know what he is doing. But in warmups I threw shots up 3-4 and never came back. 8-9-10 was the play area. Can't worry about what others think of you, just bowl and move on.

Match play-
First roud I appreciate the most because we both had the same handicap so it was even. Pressure was on in the tenth when I needed a strike to give myself a chance to win. High flush...Doubled in the tenth to shut my opponent out.

Second round went up against one of my teammates who has 76 pins cap (31 more then me) so I knew I had to bring it. Played within myself and did pretty well, shot in the 180's to move on.

Semifinals my opponent had 15 more pins then me, but this was the game where I took care of business. Stayed clean with a 209 game to move on the to finals.

Finals I wont lie, I didnt shoot well...all strikes were brookie, some left, some good but hooked. One open missed a 5pin. 200 even to win tonight and take home some money.

But this is why I bowl, to see that hardwork and some coaching does payoff in the long run. The first round game I was nervous again but I will always appreciate that game for what I needed to do mentally.

Way to go, Guns. And on a Cheetahmeleon pattern, yet. That is a tough one.

Great Job Guns, sounds like a fun night of bowling. I like the format you are talking about also, I may have to make a suggestion to incorporate something like this around here.

Bowled on the scorpion tonight. Averaged about 160, give or take some pins. I needed to play straighter up 13 or so, maybe a slight swing to 11 or 12 if that. I couldn't do it for some reason, most of the time. It appears that I was square, when obviously I wasn't and you could see it by the fact that my ball just missed right time and time again. Maybe it was something else(i.e. my hips, trail leg, etc), who knows. But even when I paid attention to those things to make sure I didn't do anything wrong with them it didn't seem to help. I was able to do it a little bit in the first, then more in the second game, but after that it's like I'd been trying to cover boards all night(which was the exact opposite of my goal).