One of the guys I bowled with on college would do that. He threw a fairly straight ball. He left a lot of 4 pins and 10 pins with the occasional 5. We were at a tourney in Milwaukee one year. It was brutal for rightys. The top 10 for average were 8 leftys and 2 righty but one of the rightys started throwing a backup ball mid first game. It was a pattern that was basically a ton of oil on the right and gradually next to nothing on the left. We were all struggling and having the ball slide by the pocket or through the nose. He moved his feet way left and started aiming for brooklns. He ended up leading our team in average for the tourney. He pissed off a few people cause they didn't think that it was right. I said to them: He is aiming for a spot and hitting it more often than any of us, what's the problem? He would do the same thing in league and other tourneys where he couldn't carry.

Getting an occasional brooklyn if you are aiming for your own side happens. But when you are spraying all over the place, that it when you need take a step back and look at what you are doing.

Dennis and General Pounder,

Those Brooklyns sure saved my night. I guess we all have our share of breaks with high hits and Brooklyns that like Dennis said tend to even out the good pocket hits we do not get. This was just a night where for most of the night I either hit or crossed over and they went. I did have some high hits in there that I managed to break up so I did not leave splits. Actually my 2 huge splits in the last game were light 1-3 pocket hits.

Scott. Don't worry about it. Its apart of the game and if you had mentioned about your struggled a bit more then I guess I wouldn't be so hard on you.. in a friendly way even so I think you should used all the information that you gathered in your 4 post and do use them. I am sure.. whatever you learn on the lanes or on here, you will improve and just keep your head high thru the struggles.

Nobody is perfect but to be good or great, you have to step and look at the situation.

I think that is why I reacted the way I did and why I got defensive. If I had been coming off a good streak like I had in the spring when I was averaging over 170 for 7 out of 8 weeks I probably would not have got so defensive. It is hard when you have a streak of good bowling and just when I thought I was reaching a new level I fell into that 4 week period where I couldn't get straightened out no matter what I did. The good thing is that I worked through it and in the end I came out stronger and more determined to do better.

Luckily through my struggles the rest of the team has stepped up and it felt good to bail the team out so we at least split the other night. I was really proud that I held my head up and did not fly off the handle during my bad spell. I just kept telling myself if I worked on a few things and kept at it I would be able to get it back and I have.

i like how dennis puts it into prospective. x is x tuff. i like that. i say good job loose or win. i watch my game and there game. and when they've figured out how to hit it brooklyn or just hitting it right , i think " why didn't i do that." also gp i've seen brooklyns help people out so yeah that was a good idea.

x is x tuff. i think that when i miss and i get a brooklyn - i learn something. but i'm not going to keep trying to do it unless needed like gp said. i'll keep trying to adjust to get where i want but if i can't so be it. i think most games are skill and some luck. thats how i think of it. but its nice to see people trying to get there no matter how they get it. it makes them happy and thats what its about. i think i'm not going pro anytime soon. 30 years old- i dont think so. so i just try to take what i get and try to learn from it. and congradulate them no matter what!

Scott, when I was in my 20's and early 30's, I was like a machine. I was consistent with my swing, my speed, my release, everything. Then, I didn't bowl for 24 years.

Now, I am like a mechanic, constantly fixing that machine. My swing is not always right, my speed is sometimes too fast, I pull the ball behind my back, I release wrong. Just, too many things happen.

But, I am normal. I will go high, and more often miss outside. Occasionally, I cross over. And, when that happens, I take it, then try to fix it.

The BOWLING GODS smiled on me for that shot and said, I could do better, but we'll give it to you anyhow. Why, cause I am trying.

Dennis,

I remember being a machine. I would bowl 10 to 12 games every Saturday with my Dad and bowl on 2 leagues. Every once in awhile when I would fall off on something my Dad was watching and let me know what I was doing wrong. That was really convenient.

Now like you I am constantly trying fix the machine. I have seen you mention the chicken wing which has been a problem for me time to time. Ball speed and concentration/focus are also big issues for me.

180 Fury,

I agree that sometimes you try to adjust but if you are on roll where you are getting away with shots you normally wouldn’t and it is working you ride it until it dries up then work on adjusting. It really is rare when that happens so I like to take advantage of it.

I congratulate everyone too. I think it means a lot especially to lower average bowlers. Recently a guy who was averaging 127 had strung four of the ugliest strikes I have seen. Because of that they were beating us bad but I congratulated him on every strike and when he hit his new high game of 170 I made a point to go tell him he did a great job. You could tell it meant a lot to him. Like you said it makes them happy and that is what it is all about.

man yeah. i high 5 all thats around me and they do the same. the league i bowl with most are parents. strange most mite think but parents know how to encourage. so it comes natural to me to say good shot no matter what. when i shot my first 200 one of guys that we call Red was there and i dont know the man all that good. i talk to him when i see him but thats been rare as of late. but he told me good job even though he can shoot a lot higher when he wants but it was awesome to hear him say it and mean it. brooklyn when you can is the way i see it

There is only one thing I dislike about Brooklyn strikes aside from the adjustment I have to make, and that is when Brooklyn carries way better than pocket shots. That bugs the hell out of me, it's just one of those things you try to figure out but can't.