Correct, only plastic balls. Thats what bowling was like from around the 1960s maybe earlier into the 1980s when urethane came out. Before that it was rubber and previous to that was wood.

I think a plastic-only tourney is a GREAT idea. I'd like to see more and more of that kind of stuff. Plastic on a flat pattern with 4 lb. pins would be really killer!

I don't think the scoring pace problem is going to be resolved until the sanctioning bodies have the nerve to stand up to the ball companies. They can keep making the patterns tougher, but the ball mfrs. will just come up with more pumped-up equipment to beat them.

all spare ball plastic ball would be the greatest. i'm not a cranker but i can throw my spare ball about 20 mph. thats so much fun when you hit them at that speed. i dont throw it that fast in league but just warming up i do. fun fun fun. i want to do that here but i got to talk to her boss first and see if he's up for it

Its not all about the balls, its about the lane conditions as well. The centers control that and in order to bring in bowlers, most will put down an easier shot. With the USBC now getting into bed with the Bowlering Proprierters Association of America, I doubt we will see tough conditions across the country.

if they do it, do u guys think they will throw it straight, or atleast attempt to hook it, i mean i can usually make my plastic ball hook atleast a little bit.

Definately hook, how much will depend on the pattern used. Maybe they will us the old time 24 foot pattern from the '80s, or the Cheetah, plenty of friction there. I think its a common misconception that plastic can't hook. It can and will with the right release and look at the rev rates of some of the Pros.

Word is that the plastic ball tourney will be on Cheetah.

I agree that walled patterns are a big part of the scoring problem, but the ball technology must be addressed as well, IMHO. Simply making the patterns tougher is not enough because, as I said earlier, the ball companies will just produce more potent bowling balls to beat them.

Anyone who doubts that plastic can hook only need watch some pre-1981 matches on Youtube. Hook existed before urethane, resin, etc., except it came more from the player's technique than from the ball itself--and the lower volumes of oil on the lanes didn't hurt, either!

i definately think it will be interesting to watch!

There is a misconception about there being low volumes of oil, there were low volumes of oil compared to now, but if you were to have the ball skid as much as it did back then, then they would still need about 10x the amount of oil that they use these days.

I bowled in several pro events back then and I could hook the ball fairly well and the ball would skid all the way through the pins I haven't seen that amount of oil since I got back into bowling back in 92. If I use my plastic ball on a house pattern, I can still hook my white dot fairly well as long as I keep it out in the dry. IF they put a flatter pattern down like the USBC National pattern, the plastic ball would skid through the pin deck.

I have said this before and I will say it again, house patterns are a form of cheating, just because it is not you that is putting the shot down, doesn't mean that it isn't still cheating. The lanes are artificially helping your ball get to the pocket on errant shots that otherwise would be in the gutter or picking off the corner.

At the Petersen Classic, they have a side tourny that is called the Lumberjack. The pins I think are between 4 and 5 pounds. And it is 9 pin no-tap (I think). 4 games. Last time I was there, a buddy of mine shot 935 for 4 and was in the top 5. Getting the ball to the pocket is only part of the battle. You need to have enough force to get the pins down.