Reconbbs, you are young. Bowl the way you want.

We have a very good thumbless bowler (230 average and Nationals all events 11th place). He knows different shots and is very consistent. But he's plagued with injuries. He bowls, but you never know when something is going to get thrown off and then he'll not be able to bowl for a month or so. Its his shoulder, his elbow, his wrist, a hangnail on a bowling finger. He's in his mid 20s. He's extremely consistent and uses his thumb in the ball for spares. He's got a system and it works for him for now. But I think even he knows that he will not be bowling like this in 5 years.

Erin

Reconbbs, you are young. Bowl the way you want.

We have a very good thumbless bowler (230 average and Nationals all events 11th place). He knows different shots and is very consistent. But he's plagued with injuries. He bowls, but you never know when something is going to get thrown off and then he'll not be able to bowl for a month or so. Its his shoulder, his elbow, his wrist, a hangnail on a bowling finger. He's in his mid 20s. He's extremely consistent and uses his thumb in the ball for spares. He's got a system and it works for him for now. But I think even he knows that he will not be bowling like this in 5 years.

Erin

Personally,

I havent "spot" bowled ever in my entire bowling life. Well spot meaning an arrow or a dot. I basically know exactly where to stand on the approach for every shot, am very consistent in my approach to the foul line, no drifting, precise arm swing consistently, and I dont have to look anywhere on the lane at all, but everyone has there own style. My eyes are generally focused just a foot or two beyond the foul line at a particular group of boards, but yet I dont physically try to place the ball there, its just that my head is angled down until right after the point of release.

If I were to start spot bowling now, Id go from 230 down to 200.
At my age, if its not broken, dont fix it.
Dont let anyone tell you that you need to spot bowl. Its whatever works for you.

I really have to disagree there. Personally, I'd say success is a 190 average on sport shots.

Like I said, it's all about what someone defines as personal success. I'd also personally go with 190 on a sport shot, but that's me. If someone picks 150 on a house shot and that makes them happy. More power to them. Everyone should get out of bowling what they want.

I agree that success means different things to different people. But I don't think anyone should define success in bowling as something that comes easily. When I read the quote shown above, I see someone defining success as something that they can already do, as opposed to something that they have to work to attain. It seems like the kind of thinking that leads to the wide open house shots we have today - I define a 200 average as successful, and then tweak the shot instead of working on my game to attain that.

I am like you sort of. I play the arrows for my ball position and I play another board down the lane for my breakpoint.. the thing is I don't look at the arrows. I think I look pretty much where you do.. a foot or two beyond the foul line..I think where I put the ball onto the lane. I have tried.. and If I look at the arrow when I am releasing I will not hit it and my release will be bad.. I can hit any arrow though.. just can't look at them when I throw.

I agree with cgeorg there. To me success would be averaging 210+ on a house shot and 190+ because neither of those are something I'm currently doing. At this moment I'm 17 pins away from the 210(although I'm normally within 5-10 pins) and 25 pins away from the sport shot average. I've got my work cut out for me if I plan to be successful by my standards. I'd take 180 even in sport shots but either way I'm at 166 with 16 games so to get where I want to be is going to take most of the season unless I put up some big numbers soon.

I look at it a bit differently since I bowl in many different houses. I have the benefit of different houses within driving distance and a travel league. Rather then bowl in one house and do it well, I try to at least get two different houses in both winter and summer. I try to hit as many centers as possible on whatever they call house shots and average 200+. For me if I can do that in any house I walk into, then I'm doing good. That's my goal. I've been all over Northern California and two counties of league bowling. This summer was the first time in about 7 years I have not avearged 200 (in one league), I averaged 188 in a summer league.

Erin

I don't see a quantifyable measurement as the answer to good or bad bowling. There are many times when I, and I am sure many of you have seen this, bowl well but do not score particularly well.

Bowling is a function of numerous variables, and some are beyond our control. What matters is yourown control of your game, and your body. Bowling is a game of bodily repetition. And, repeating that movement, even under different conditions, is the improtant thing.

A bowler who is proficient at this bodily control, will see the higher scores come with it. Hence, 200+ in every House on a House shot. Conversely, even with bodily control, sometimes the conditions faced will cause lower scores, eg PBA Patterns. So, being able to maintain your control, even under adverse conditions, is the key to me.

Arrows, dots, breakpoint are just targeting aids. Without the control of your game, these help, but minimally.