I think some people are looking at this whole thing from the wrong perspective. I'm not sure it's about people being scared by the other bowlers. Personally, I think it would be cool to see myself lined up against a Bill O'Neil, Walter Ray, PDW, etc. in a bracket. Well, at least it would be cool until the results were posted because I'd probably lose those battles 999 times out of 1000. Still, if I decide to cut back on brackets going forward, it's not because I'm scared of the other guys in that division. If I do so, it's because I know that I don't belong in that division.
Over the past four years, I've averaged 218.25 bowling one league in one house one time per week. Over the last four years at the Open Championships, I've averaged 184.97. That clearly shows that I don't belong in that upper division against the true 210 plus bowlers of the world.
Now, I'm not saying that as a complaint. Heck, if anything, put it on me for not driving out of my area and finding a house that puts down a tougher pattern. Still, whatever the reason, does it make a whole lot of sense for me to throw a bunch of my money out there to compete against guys who are typically 25 pins per game better than I am? Probably not. Now, I only spend roughly $50 per event in brackets anyhow, so I will probably continue doing so going forward; however, if I were a guy who maxed out, there is no way I'd do that anymore. It's not being scared; it's just being smart.
I'm not scared of other bowlers. Heck, if we're bowling on a house shot, I'll put my money up against anyone because I know that I have the ability to be competitive in that environment, but the Open Championships isn't contested on a house shot (and that's good). In the OC environment, I'm a pretender at best. Sure, there will be others right there with me due to inflated house averages across the country. Still, it bears mentioning.