Author Topic: low 200s vs 220 +, How do these guys do it? (Read 4363 times)

LuckyLefty · « **on:** May 20, 2003, 11:22:39 AM »

This year I bowled in a high level handicap league.

The conditions were spotty! Particularly on the left.

It seemed our breakpoint was real wet a lot of weeks and then occassionally explosive. I had an average that would make Nicanor proud! Funny thing is I think I was beaten about 3 times all year by another lefty.

At the end of the year I noticed the averages in this house ended being really canted towards the power righty. A couple in the mid 230's.

For the lefties 2 full timers over 200. One at 208 and one at 222.
The 208 guy wins a lot of tournaments in our area both scratch and handicap bowls 4 leagues a week.

The 222 guy was a long time top bowler in our area who has been higher.
He used one ball, and every time he bowled on our pair with us he shot between 560 to 590. (I think I beat him every time but we were not matched up).
The next week I would invariably be next to him and he would be ripping out a 770 or 780 maybe for a couple of weeks in a row. I did not notice how the guy from our team did in the matches when this guy was averaging 185 against our team.
REmember 222 composite.

Now a new league has started. Talked to a couple of lefties that are over 220 at a local lefty friendly house. I said "what do you think you will average here?".
All said "shot is a little tougher here on left, umm about 211".
I said, "not a one of you will average 211". After 2 weeks all are at about 195!

Meanwhile down the house a top local lefty(very little hook by the way).
Looks like he'll easily be over 230. (Note as a sub in league I struggled in he was about 245 for 3 or 4 sub sessions).

This guy is known for being deadly accurate and not having much ball and will loft or not loft quite a bit to adjust his breakpoint.

The other guys above gunning for 211 actually throw the ball awesome!
Good sparemaking, good athletes, and good looking form.

Why the 20+ pin difference?

It is not visible to the naked eye that is for sure.

REGards,

Luckylefty
PS One of the wannabee 211 bowlers throws it as good as anybody,
and many a time I've bowled with our 245 sub guy and thought I've got him today.
My ball looks better, sometimes I'll be 20, 30 pins ahead and when all is said and done he posts another 750 and I end up low 600.

TECH SUPPORT · « **Reply #1 on:** May 21, 2003, 05:41:37 AM »

BrianN I also noticed that lower rg balls got to the pocket more for me and were easy for me to controle.I always strugled with the amount of revs I got on the ball and was always told to use high rg and low diff balls to get down the lane,this just didnt work.A while back I decided to drill a carbid bomb with a cg out two help the ball rev up earlier.By doing this it took alot of stress off of presure shots and made my swing alot more relaxed.I was able to relax my swing and not worry about controling the ball because it reved up so much easier it took less hand action witch leeds to better accuracy.

I think it helps when you have balls that do this for you,it has helped me since,regardless of condition I have a low rg ball with the surface to match.

10 In The Pit · « **Reply #2 on:** May 21, 2003, 05:47:30 AM »

To the best of my knowledge, the highest average bowler in my state is a lefty who bowls in my league house.....this fellow averages some 248. Now for the REAL kicker.....he carries this 248 average using an old urethane Gyro ball!!! Yep, he is using a 3 piece, pancake weightblock Ebonite Gyro urethane ball, and has been for the entire season. I was matched up against him the night that he threw his career high 849 series, with 33 out of 36 strikes that night.

So, maybe there is something to bowling on the wrong side of the lane after all.

LuckyLefty · « **Reply #3 on:** May 21, 2003, 06:00:28 AM »

Well,

Brian this is also something I noticed.
It seems the lefties doing the best somehow are creating less angle to the pocket.

A more direct hit. Our signature leave in this house is the awesome looking ringing 7 pin.

I recently tried a 10:30 drill pearlish low rg (Sledge Hammer) and only left 6 of them!

Versus 19 one night!!!

The two guys I mentioned both seem to have a more direct line to the pocket than I do. I don't know if urethane would work in our house as we seem to need to cut thru a bunch of carrydown.

REgards,

Luckylefty
Is Gyro pearl or solid?

The Hose · « **Reply #4 on:** May 21, 2003, 06:23:21 AM »

I believe I could average 220 in my house using only one ball, even if it's urethane. The pattern is consistently on the leftside and I don't that much play with me.

Keep in mind that most lefties play the same shot night after night in there league house. When faced with a new house, if the shot isn't the same, many will suffer for a while. Hence the drop from 220 to 195.

I pot bowled last night in a new house that I've only bowled in a couple of times. The first couple of times, I had a great shot to the pocket, but the carry was bad. I left 7's all night. There is a lot of oil inside with the last 8 boards being bone dry and really aggressive back ends. I had tried to play with too much hook in the ball but couldn't carry. Last night, I went with a Stinger Low Flare and played more direct, breaking the ball only a few boards. If I missed out a board of two, the ball would recover and I had a little tug therefore allowing me to carry more consistently.

Leftyhi-trak · « **Reply #5 on:** May 21, 2003, 06:25:37 AM »

The game isn't about pretty or how good you look it's what it takes to score. I have found for me the last few years less is more. I have signifigantly cut back on hook and my scores have gone up considerably. Have you compared the amount of axis rotation the guy who throws straighter has to yours or others. The difference between 200's and 220's is details,details details. I will throw a back-up ball if thats what the scoring is calling for.
I also agree with Low RG balls. They are much more controllable for me. I don't even care how high the differential is. On the average house shot it usually isn't a big deal but any tourney shots that are tough I always end up with some form of a low RG ball. (My tourney bag-V2,V2particle,Silver Streak- all low RG's)

LuckyLefty · « **Reply #6 on:** May 21, 2003, 09:12:15 AM »

Hose,

Note that in our House the high righty was 238, high lefty was the 222.
Except the 3 set sub lefty of 245.

It appears to be a righty shot right now.

REgards,

Luckylefty

Pinbuster · « **Reply #7 on:** May 21, 2003, 09:27:10 AM »

LuckyLefty - I don't understand your last statement. There are probably 10 times as many righties in any house than lefties. Why would you assume that the best lefty would be better than the best righty and if not then it must be the shot? The shot may be fantastic on the left side and none of the lefties are any good? The opposite also could be the case.

My home house as long been considered a lefty house. Last year they resurfaced the lanes (50 year old wood lanes) and the shot change on the left side. We had droves of lefties quit as there averages plummeted 20+ pins. The right hand side averages remained the same. Shortly after the first of the year the left side suddenly got better again and the remaining lefties started to wack them. You could watch them spray the ball all over the left side of the lane and everthing would funnel back into the pocket.

The high average in this house is almost always by right handed bowlers. We have a large talent pool of high quality bowlers. In our scratch league the right handed bowlers will have to move 15 to 20 boards with their feet during the night and bring their targets in 10 boards, the lefties will make maybe 3 board adjustments with their feet.

These is a no win arguement in that since both sides do not play on the same field it can not be determined who is really better.

Steven · « **Reply #8 on:** May 21, 2003, 09:35:02 AM »

quote:
I don't understand your last statement. There are probably 10 times as many righties in any house than lefties. Why would you assume that the best lefty would be better than the best righty and if not then it must be the shot?

Pinbuster: Thanks for pointing this out -- you beat me to the punch. Unfortunately, statements like those above only hurt the credibility of lefthanded bowlers.

Pinbuster · « **Reply #9 on:** May 21, 2003, 10:51:26 AM »

You cannot label a house a lefty house or righty house based on high averages. His house could be either or it maybe balanced. But average alone cannot tell the whole story.

LuckyLefty · « **Reply #10 on:** May 21, 2003, 12:08:00 PM »

There WAS a lot of spraying, all over the place on the right!

Classic step left spray right type of shot!!!

On the left, very tight!

Long term the 222 bowler will wack the 238 righty all over town!!!
Year after year and week after week.

Much more accurate, and consistently higher averages over the years!

REgards,

Luckylefty
PS still my real point is still it was a tougher left shot but one guy still averaged over 220. The others all congregated lower. The one guy who subbed 3 weeks(really good had a 3 week sub average of 245) Why the difference!

PS stroker righties did not have it that easy either! Many 230 guys down in high teens.

mumzie · « **Reply #11 on:** May 21, 2003, 01:39:34 PM »

One thing said in the original post bothers me.
"It seemed our breakpoint was real wet a lot of weeks and then occassionally explosive. "

Isn't the point finding the correct angle and breakpoint for the carry?

In the house I averaged 220, hitting the pocket is "stupid easy". But carry - that's another thing. The key to good scoring was finding the right angle for each night. Sometimes I might play 22-5, some nights straight up 14. Just depends. I could hit the pocket from both spots each night (a generalization, but not that far from the truth), but could only find carry from one.

This is a bit of knowledge that is expanding in my head more and more every week. I'm always learning - and hopefully improving.
--------------------
Golf was invented by the same people who think music comes out of bagpipes.

LuckyLefty · « **Reply #12 on:** May 22, 2003, 05:17:12 AM »

Yeah,

For weeks the sweet hit the pocket spot was just inside third arrow out to 9 but carry = yuck. All this on the left of course, carry looked pretty easy on the right everywhere.

Where the consistent carry place was I never really found.
The last 4 weeks I used a Dynamic groove and had three straight weeks with one game starting with at least a seven bagger, but it always looked like a precarious proposition that could change at any time. Very touchy a fairly long pattern and that ball, but it would carry.

Before that with stronger stuff, (AMF Evolution Extra) for example, a silly strong ball for carrydown I could throw high games but never really could string them despite owning the pocket.

I honestly could say I never found "the shot" for this league and it was so pair dependant.

Maybe time for me to talk to these 220 plus people and see what insight they could share with me!

REgards,

Luckylefty
PS right now I'm practicing in the afternoon on what I would call "remnants"
lots of head oil on the left and all sorts of wet at the breakpoint! Just like league. I'm seeming to have real good luck with this slop with the EZ Money, and a Reaction REV.

Funny they let me practice for a little while they oil and suppossedly strip for the 6:00 pm leagues. The fresh shot lasts for about 7 frames and then all of a sudden goes real sloppy quick. EZ Money too strong at first, and then all of a sudden a real good fit with a quick 7 or 8 board move to the left.

One of the oil men has told me all year that the stripper has been mixed by two guys. One guy mixes it weak one guy strong. That is what I have seen.
Sloppy in some leagues, fresh looking most of the night in others.
The sloppy nights, each lane on a pair could play up to 10 boards different!!
At the beginning of practice!

LuckyLefty · « **Reply #13 on:** May 23, 2003, 05:34:48 AM »

Plus 40,

You have described what happened perfectly.

Carrydown right after the first few shots in the first game.

You'd think you were dialed in and then quickly you weren't.

Thanks for the analysis.

REGards,

Luckylefty
PS note an almost all backup ball, plastic ball 170 highest average league is right before us. Lanes on each pair could vary dramatically because of the remnants and also averages varied dramatically based on team placement.
Teams that finished higher typically bowled near the middle of the house 15 16.
Teams near the bottom bowled down on 31 and 32 where many a 550 minus was shot by our 220 and up players.

Players near the top of the league ended up nearly 14 pins above norm many guys in lower teams ended up about -10 for the year! Thanks for the great analysis.
Oh I have a side release too!

Author Topic: low 200s vs 220 +, How do these guys do it? (Read 4363 times)

LuckyLefty

low 200s vs 220 +, How do these guys do it?

TECH SUPPORT

Re: low 200s vs 220 +, How do these guys do it?

10 In The Pit

Re: low 200s vs 220 +, How do these guys do it?

LuckyLefty

Re: low 200s vs 220 +, How do these guys do it?

The Hose

Re: low 200s vs 220 +, How do these guys do it?

Leftyhi-trak

Re: low 200s vs 220 +, How do these guys do it?

LuckyLefty

Re: low 200s vs 220 +, How do these guys do it?

Pinbuster

Re: low 200s vs 220 +, How do these guys do it?

Steven

Re: low 200s vs 220 +, How do these guys do it?

Pinbuster

Re: low 200s vs 220 +, How do these guys do it?

LuckyLefty

Re: low 200s vs 220 +, How do these guys do it?

mumzie

Re: low 200s vs 220 +, How do these guys do it?

LuckyLefty

Re: low 200s vs 220 +, How do these guys do it?

LuckyLefty

Re: low 200s vs 220 +, How do these guys do it?