Custard, it has been said many times here, but since you are new, it can be said again. Turn the scores off when you practice. They don't mean anything.

Practice something specific, like targeting, or timing, your armswing or release. Maybe just picking up corner pins. If you do these things, your scores really don't count, and you will help your game.

Also. I should add that you should not feel upset if you bowl badly after a great practice session from a few days earlier or so.

Just go out and have fun. Try to not over-think. If you do then you could end up in trouble or feel lost.

Dennis, how do you turn the scores off? I think that is something I should do. Or did you just mean not pay attention to them during practice?

You can ask the counter if they can turn them off. If they say that they can't, then just don't pay attention.

Many times they can put the scorer into practice mode as well, where the screen will be on but not keeping Track of frames. The computer at the desk will usually still know how many frames you bowled. The other option is to just ignore them. Shoot at 7 or 10 pins on your first ball. Then, you have no expectations of scoring, so even if you see a 43 in the 7th frame, it's ok - you're not trying to strike. Same thing with anything you work on - if you are working on timing, release, whatever, do it in a part of the lane that you *know* you won't strike. This way you can just concentrate on the thing you are practicing, not on how you are scoring. The added bonus is that if you never strike, you get 2 balls every frame. Make the most of your money.

Pre-bowled for my Thursday league (do to up-coming foot surgery) and finally shot well and consistent. 192, 203, 200 - 595. Only missed 1 "easy" spare (chopped a 4/7) and had 3 splits which I missed. Overall I feel much better about my shooting today. Only downside is now I won't be bowling for about 5-6 weeks because of my surgery. But it will give me time to finish the book, though.

258, 234, 227 = 719 series. 24 strikes, 6 spares, 2 splits (one made), one other open (chopped the 2-4-5, over cut it a bit). Afterward, we had a local Make-a-Wish Foundation tournament, which is a doubles tournament in which we had two games to roll as close to book averages as we could without going over, and the first of those games was a 231, which brought my 4 game total to exactly 950. The second game of the pair involved some sandbagging to bring our total down, so i only rolled a 166, but four of the frames were bowled with my plastic ball and thumbless, to keep my score low (Any of the shots that i made regularly were as easy as those in the first four games, i probably could have rolled in the mid-200s again if the tournament were for highest score). We ended up with -2, a very good score, don't know if it will hold up.

Bowled in the phantom leauge with my seven year old daughter today, first game 186 then a bit better for a 213.been in the leauge since the start of august and we have hit first place!!! there are eighteen teams...my daughter averages 91 and consistently improving each week, she bowled 83 then 87 then had a practice game and bowled 115 of course...cheers..

Not so good of a day for me. 141-133-197-176 on the Scorpion and 128-192-214 on house shot today. I guess I can chalk it up to trying some new things in my approach, as well as just being inconsistent in general.

My saga continues. Cannot string any strikes. 9 counts abound. It has to be my release, as I don't believe I am getting the finish I should. And, it's every ball.

180-190-200 as a Sub on Fri.