I always hear people say to "shake it off" or "keep your head in the game."  To me though, I think I bowl better when I'm absolutely livid.  There's two kinds of pissed though, there's "I'm not gonna take this anymore" pissed and then there's "I give up" pissed.  Last night, I'm having the same old problems.  Can't get the ball off my hand, then when I can, I dump it or don't put anything on it, I'm killing it at the bottom, can't project it, or when I think I figure something out, there's always some other little thing I screw up.  I tugged, dumped, fluffed, killed, etc., my way to a 224 and a 227 the first two games.  All the while I'm still thinking about what I need to do.  Strike first frame, then enter the second.  I get up, set myself, and start my approach.  Two and a half steps in, I notice a small piece of a leaf on the approach.  By this time, my arm is already on the way back down (4 step approach), and wouldn't you know it, I step right on the freakin leaf.  Missed inside, hit flat, left a 10.  Kicked most of the crumbled leaf out of the way.  Same thing happened on the spare, didn't quite get rid of all the leaf, and ditched the spare shot.  I was livid.  Had two clean games, and I NEVER miss 10 pins.  I don't mean I miss a few now and then, I mean I don't miss them.  I think I've missed 3 this year bowling 4 nights a week, and both the other ones I either stuck or slid too much.  

Get the next two strikes, both were average shots, didn't really like either of them.  Still thinking.  Still can't project, now I was flapping my wrist, turning my shoulders to the left, my armswing was too far away from my body, twisting my wrist in my backswing, just all kinds of things.  Well, I was trying to get the ball into the lane early and roll it.  Not my game, never been my game.  Nearly everyone has a little loft.  Since I was grabbing the ball at release, I thought it would help to try and get my thumb out earlier.  Nope.  Well, I was dumping it and it wasn't rolling back up when I was doing that, so my shoulders were turning and my armswing was getting worse to try and make up for it.  Shoulders and armswing were the biggest problems, but I needed to get around the ball without twisting my wrist or flapping it.  Relaxed it just a tad, and worked with the loft.  Even with using the loft, I still cut it back, my armswing was tighter, I kept my shoulders in line, I didn't twist my wrist, and when I got to the release, wouldn't you know it I threw the ball exactly the way I wanted to.  The ball wasn't quite WHERE I wanted it, but it rolled really well and I carried a mixer.  It was the last thing I needed to correct, and I can't believe I figured it out.  I was literally about to switch hands for the rest of the year, I'd just come from practicing a bit lefthanded before league.  Clean shot after clean shot after clean shot, struck through the first shot in the 10th.  Caught a little too much oil the 11th and left a 4-5 (lol) for 255 and a 706.  

So after missing the 10, the anger got me on track.  It helped me concentrate on not screwing up again.  So I guess all I have to do is insult myself and find something to piss me off before I bowl, lol.  So through this longwinded post, does anger help or hurt you?
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New member of the Metal Militia!!!  If you think Simple Plan is metal, then you must die.  And not get to be a member . .\m/!!!