Oh yeah, it's painfully evident that scoring on a house pattern has very little to do with bowling well. Still, I'm a believer in keeping as much integrity in the game as possible. All I've been using is a low hooking control ball straight up 5-10, depending on where the shot is that night, for the last couple months. Reacts a lot like a semi-strong urethane ball.
I may not score as well as most of the flingers (although I'm still around 700 a lot), but when I have a chance to bowl in a tournament with tougher conditions, it'll be my turn to be on top. I know this guy that thinks he's too good to bowl in the city (in his own words, no less, and a youth bowler at that, thinks he's better than EVERYBODY in the city), and he's pretty good, I'll give him that. But put him on a tougher shot, he'll be lost. We'd go to traveling youth tournaments last year that put out sport patterns (variations), and I'd always make the cut at around 190 (I led one of them at 205, I was 50 pins ahead of the field after the 8 game qualifying block), and he never would, always averaged between 165 and 175. If I'd have bowled all the events that year, I'd have won bowler of the year, missed two events and still ended up 3rd in points.
My point is, you know you're good, Jason. If people want to be super proud of flinging and scoring on their little wall shot, let them. Do what it takes to score well, like you say you have been, just keep your abilities sharp so you're ready to take their money if the chickens ever show up to tournaments with tougher shots. People may think I'm cocky when I get some attitude going about, but it's just frustration at making a bad shot on an easy pattern, the pocket's hard to miss. It sucks, but keep your head up.
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The weekly signature series, by Hamster.
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