I read the thread on Complete's $100,000 payout league. Within it there are a number of other posters talking about leagues with lots of bowlers and waiting lists, etc. So I want to try and tap into these resources to get some ideas as to how we can attract bowlers to our league.
 
We have a Sports Shot League every Thursday night. We sanction as a Sports league so that our bowlers can't try and use this average to enter handicap events (another league on Tuesday nights bowls sport patterns but is not sanctioned sport and bowlers have tried to use this average as a "regular" average). We want to be "the" league in our area, to showcase the best bowlers bowling on the harder shots. This year we had 9 3 man teams. We are looking at ways we can bring in more bowlers. We are a draft league so the highest averages become captains and then we draft from the lowest captain average to the highest. For round two the combined averages for each team is calculated and the lowest drafts first, and so on. We have a wide range of bowlers, from Storm Amatuer staff, to Team Canada members at the top end to a a group averaging in the 170-185 range (sport), to a few in the 160's (sport).
 
For next year we are going to try doing two halfs, drafting the first week and halfway through our season. Each half we will bowl on 2 Sport patterns, one long, one short. The last 2 weeks of each half will be a playoff that will have it's own prize money. These are new and some things we thought might attract more bowlers. We are already the highest payout in the city, and one of the more expensive league fee's as well.
 
Sorry for the long post, but wanted to give you the background of our league. Does anyone have any ideas on what we can do to attract more bowlers? We are open to most anything. I would love to hear some of BR.com members ideas. Thanks in advance for your thoughts.

A local center is doing a 2 ball challenge sport league and has had better turn out than I expected.  They teamed with their pro shop and for $100 up front fee you got the two balls that had to be used. Now, should the majority of the people be bowling on a sport shot (me included, at least the first two weeks), no they were drawn in for the deal on two new balls.  But they did draw 22 three person teams for 16 weeks in the summer.

Its very hard to get house bowlers to join Sport shot leagues because they dont want to see where their game is lacking. This week i was talking to a guy that has been bowling over 40years and i asked him why he doesn't want to bowl the pba league this summer. He told me straight forward that he doesn't want to have to struggle and bowl badly. He wants to be able to shoot high scores and not have to adjust must over a night. The next reason was his real answer. He said he doesn't like to lose, why bother bowling when it will take him to long to figure out how to bowl on a shot and have no chance on winning the league.

People want to win with little or no effort. They enjoy throwing the ball anywhere and striking and hoping the next guy throws less strikes then them.

Thanks everyone for taking the time. I know there is no easy answer. We have a "have a ball" league in the spring (now). I don't see it working for an entire winter league though, but something to keep in mind.
 
Icon, I wanted to address your post in particular. You mentioned talking to bowler who has been bowling for 40 years. You say his real answer is "he doesn't like to lose". But does he realize that everyone will be bowling below there house league average? Does he think he will struggle that much more then everyone else that he will lose all the time? Why does he think he has no shot to win the league when everyone will be bowling "bad"? This is the type of thinking I want to get beyond and was hoping someone had an idea or something that worked in their area. I just don't understand people's thinking around not wanting to bowl in a league like this. It will be a way to increase one's skill level which will help them bowl better in their house shot leagues and give them a better chance to win those leagues. It will help them bowl better in tournaments, if they enter them. It will help them bowl better at the USBC Open, if they attend. The pluses far outweigh the minuses if you sit back and take an objective look at it. But yet people won't do that or put more weight on not "bowling bad". I just don't get that.

Jorge, in your last post you mentioned it will help them bowl better in league/tournaments. There is one young man in my son's youth league, last winter (2011-2012) he carried a low 170. He joined a summer sports league and admitted he really struggled, but learned a lot. This past winter he carried roughly 205-210 in two different leagues.

Txbowler,
      I understand what you said. But in our league we do it by draft. And the positions are set based on averages. So if we had 9 teams as we did this year, the lowest average on the team bowls leadoff, the middle average middle, and the highest average last. Since we draft based on average, the leadoffs are usually the lowest 9 averages in the league. Now at any given time, someone may start improving, or match up to a pattern better and move from leadoff to second or the opposite. So with that in mind, you are bowling against others at your skill level on the tougher patterns. So a "decent" bowler will be bowling against other "decent" bowlers, for the most part. So unless they improve, they won't be bowling against the "true" good bowlers.
 
I understand the thinking though. But what I don't understand is why people think this way. Why wouldn't you want to better your skills by bowling in a Sports league? If you want to "win" more on your THS leagues, then this is a way to do it. It will also help you improve if you go to tournaments. Now, I do realize there is a certain population of bowlers that will never bowl in a sports shot league. I am not trying to convert them as I know that is impossible. What I am looking for is the next level up from that, the 180-210 average THS bowlers. I know there is no easy answers, but anything anyone has tried that has worked, I'd be willing to listen to. Thanks for taking the time to reply.

We have a alot of pretty good bowlers in the area and alot of guys that enjoy getting away from the same old ths so we have pretty big numbers in our PBAX league.

One thing i noticed is that all of the talk about the league is positive from guys that bowl in it to people that hear about then tell others everyone says how much it is or how much fun it looks like. And how guys havea great time that by itself has generated great interest in the league.

A little off the subject, but I think the real benefit of sport leagues is learning some versatility.  I have never agree that a house shot rewards sprayers.  What a house shot rewards is extreme releases, either very powerful or very straight.  Guys averaging 220+ on house shots are repeating shots without throwing it all over the lane.  What they aren't doing is developing a release that allows them to plays different angles without using a lot of out angle.