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Author Topic: "Sport" bowling must die.  (Read 39718 times)

Impending Doom

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"Sport" bowling must die.
« on: May 10, 2012, 12:30:54 PM »
DISCLAIMER: I love bowling. I love everything about it. This post is about the politics of bowling. Let us just get that out of the way.

Let me start off by saying that I have taken the last 3 years off of league and tournament bowling. Last league was in summer 2009, just before my daughter was born. I open bowled a little when I got time between being a student, husband, and daddy.

I started bowling in a Kegel league this last Tuesday. I walked in without a lick of practice for the last 2 months, and shoed up. First 3 weeks is the USBC pattern. Was super stoked about it. Knew I couldn't just fling it to the ditch and watch it scream back.

I averaged 140 for 4. I moved all over the lane, switched balls 4 times, and couldn't make a spare.

I was still stoked. The thought of working on things to actually get better excited me.

This is what the sport of bowling should be. Hence, the word sport. This got me thinking about how other sports view themselves.

How many pro golfers go and only golf at mini golf courses? How many pro baseball players play T Ball?

You never hear about someone playing sport golf, or sport baseball, or sport football. The activity implies that it's a sport. Only kiddie versions of the sport have another word attached to it. Pee Wee Football, T Ball, Mini Golf.

We need to make the hard decisions, and quit worrying about who leaves the game, and who goes out of business. It's a hole which we as a bowling community have dug for ourselves.

USBC is garbage. We need a governing body willing to take 3 steps back to take 1 step forward. If toughening up conditions will make bowlers leave, let them leave. Integrity doesn't have a member number attached to it.

People will go out of business. Bowlers will leave the sport. It happens. It's HAPPENING. If you don't evolve, your business will die.

Stop calling this little offshoot of bowling "sport bowling". Bowling is a sport.

If you don't want to play the sport, and just pretend you're good, let's call the THS "child's play". Also, go play T Ball at your local park district. Brag about that to your friends. Leave the real bowling to the bowlers. You know, people willing to work for it.

If you're not willing to work at bowling, leave. Bowling doesn't need you. It needs skilled athletes willing to showcase their skills that they've honed by hard work, practice and sacrifice. Everyone that just wants to play like they're good without actually putting in the effort to become good can GTFO for all I care.

I know this will somehow become a rant about equipment, but there are ways to regulate that. It will just take a couple of years to put into effect. Let's take care of one problem at a time.

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TDC57

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Re: "Sport" bowling must die.
« Reply #181 on: June 01, 2012, 11:36:24 AM »
i would just like to add one thing to the comments about other sports and how they are similar to bowling by always adding the next best thing to the sport. I played slowpitch softball for years and first came high compression softballs that increased the distance the ball flew, then came composite bats. All at once you had guys who weighed 140 lbs. who at best were gap hitters, now could hit the ball 450 feet. (That is no exaggeration). I was a singles hitter and in my first time at the plate with one of these super bats (Miken Ultra II), I hit a homerun to dead center that went about 320 feet. Every sport deals with this at one time or another in some way, bowling is no different.
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milorafferty

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Re: "Sport" bowling must die.
« Reply #182 on: June 01, 2012, 11:42:59 AM »
Has anyone ever considered a having low ball league?
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avabob

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Re: "Sport" bowling must die.
« Reply #183 on: June 01, 2012, 09:57:33 PM »
If I go back over the 45 years I have bowled competitively the biggest change has nothing to do with scoring per se.  The biggest change is that 45 years ago the lane man had too much control over the lane condition and too little knowledge.  Today, because of the balls, the lane man has too little control over the lane condition despite more knowledge and better technology. 

We have the ability to control the way lanes need to be played the same way gorundskeepers in golf control the playing enviornment, but the balls allow the bowlers to morph any pattern into what they want it to be too quickly.

Keep in mind I am not talking about most leagues, but about high scratch levels of competition.  I would love to see polyester balls mandated for high level competition.  We could cut the oil volume in half or less.  Scoring enviornment could then be control effectively based on lateral dispersion of oil.  Want a high scoring environment? No problem put out 10 ml of oil at a 5-1 or greater ratio and you get high scores regardless of buff length.  Want them tougher put out 2 or 3 to one ratio and guys have to play straigher for more games before they can open the shot up
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