Hi,
I call myself misfit bowler because I married into a family of bowlers; my mother and father in-law and my hubby. They all bowl atleast two leaques a week. My husband however bowls only during the fall and winter season. He's been bowling since his teen years and his parents have been involved for quite a few years as well. I love to bowl but I suck at it. I've been bowling off and on during our six year involment with each other. The in-laws want me to bowl leaque and I have on two separate occasions but because of lack of skill and self confidence I tend to feak out. My husband doesn't push the issue because I told him not to. Anyway, I've picked up the ball again and I'm practicing. I have my own balls, yes two of them and shoes etc. Now all I need is an unobjective coach. I've been looking at video aides with Fred Borden on them.
I just can't my timing and release down right. Also my back swing needs improvement.
Another reason I call myself "misfit" is because whenever the family is talking bowling, I feel like an out cast because I don't know what they're talking about half the time.
That's me in a nut shell.
Thanks for reading.
Misfit

Welcome to the site!

You've made a step in the right direction for becoming a better bowler by joining this site.

I think video is the most powerful tool if you want to get better. If you can post a video of yourself bowling on this site, then you can get a lot of good feedback and suggestions. There are many great coaches here.

hello ! welcome ! you'll be right at home here. good advice and lots to read. so have fun !

Welcome Misfit

All I can say is practice, practice and practice. Find a good Coach or a good bowler to give you some pointers.

For me making friends with the Pro Shop owner (a Silver Level Coach) has greatly improved my game, he always says work on one thing at a time and don't worry about your score when practicing.

Also just as important have FUN bowling, you gotta be able to laugh at your own miscues.

Welcome to the site Misfit.

Welcome to the site, misfit.

As has been mentioned, a good coach can make all the difference. I went from a practice average in the 160s to a league average near 200 after a couple of sessions with my coach (and a big equipment-related assist from CoachJim here). The bowl.com coach listing for your state (you can go to the bowl.com homepage and select "Coach" from the drop-down list on the left side) can be a good starting point, but your coach doesn't have to be USBC-certified (mine isn't)...just find one you can work with.

welcome to the boards. THe more you play the more you'll iron out those things you don't like.

Welcome to the site Misfit. Awh Married into a family of bowlers huh? You are like my wife both my mom, dad, and my self bowled.

If you want to improve the best way would be getting a coach. Or Since you husband and in laws bowl you can always consult them for some help. Also this site a great tool post a video and there a lot of qualified people on here who can point you in right direction.

Welcome Misfit,
Hang around here long enough and you won't feel like an outcast when the rest of your family talks bowling. You will be a wealth of knowledge yourself

Welcome to the site! In my opinion, I would only take solid advice from a coach. Like Richie said, go to bowl.com and check for coaches in your area. Other than that, just practice and you will get up to speed in no time at all.

Please ask questions, thats what everyone is here for.

Welcome fellow newb!

Welcome to the site misfit. There is vast wealth of knowledge here. Don't be afraid to ask questions, we can help you out.

As it was mentioned above, a video would definately help us fine tune your approach and style of play. A coach is not a bad idea either. Most of them if not all know their stuff a lot better than the rest of us. Just make sure that your coach isn't family (I had a bad experience with this).

And don't worry about your average, and total pins and high scores some much. You should focus more on proper technique and fundamentals. And if anyone gives you grief for it, tell them to shove it. More importantly, don't worry about being good at bowling, it'll come. Like all things that you have to work hard at (and the Law of Averages will start to take effect as well, so no worries).