I bowled on a "modified" U.S. Open Pattern last week. The ratio outside was actually 2 to 1. It did not matter because the volume of oil was so high until it was impossible to play outside of 10. The shot was punishing. I bowled 11 games. High game 209, low game 129. The shot was much tougher than the USBC Open shot in Louisiana.
Everything mattered. Ball speed, release, target--- miss any one and you had no chance of striking.
The 209 game (5th game) I did have the front five. Five perfect shots. But that's about all I can say I did good for 11 games. The rest was a lesson.
All that said, it is clear to me that are bowling scores in league bear little to no relationship to are ability to repeat shots. By manipulating the lane conditions, one can score at will, while in the house next door with a more difficult shot, the scores are lower but odds are the bowlers will be better in the long run.
There should be some way of addressing this inequity. I wish I had the opportunity to practice regularly on a tough shot where you get true feedback about how you throw the ball. I talked the the manager of the center and he told me that he had put the shot out on two lanes for several weeks. Several of the 220+ bowlers struggled to break a 200 game, and some bowled double digit games. That was some consolation, but not much. You really do not know how inconsistent you throw it until you get on a shot with flat, or almost flat oil.
CC
