Everyone has goals they set at the beginning of the season.  Usually I have several, but this year I had just one, I didn't want to have a single set under 600.  Yeah having score goals is kind of unpredictable, especially since one of my leagues is second shift behind a mixed league no less, so the shot varies somewhat, sometimes significantly, from week to week.  But at the same time, I thought it would be a good test of versatility, and because the only leagues I'm in are competitive scratch leagues, score matters.  It's almost like going to Nationals, every single pin counts, and honestly it's the name of the game.  I've had a couple close calls for one reason or another (the closest of which was having 379 after 2 and having an absolutely terrible look), but have pulled through, and now, 3 weeks away in one league, and 5 weeks away in the other, I think I'm actually going to make it.  My lowest set this calendar year is in the 620s, and I've only had 3 sets under 700.  Barring something crazy, I'm pretty confident I'll get it done.  It's actually taught me quite a bit too believe it or not, I didn't expect trying to score on a house shot would.  Anybody else out there with goals either still alive or already accomplished? 

I'm the same way, so I get that.  Every shot to me is just as important as any other shot.  Like I said, if you can keep the game from being close in the first place, you never have to worry about striking out in the 10th.  I don't need an outside influence either, I want to strike on every single shot.  It's just a different perspective, like I said, I'm not trying to put up big scores so I can feel good about myself, I'm trying to bowl better than the other guy.  There's more to that than just hitting what you're aiming at though.  The score itself wasn't the goal of my goal haha, it just was a way to represent focusing on more than just making a good shot.  Maybe everybody else already realizes that and I'm just slow . . I definitely identify with what you're saying and it's a great way to look at it.  I was just getting so caught up in the details that I forgot what the point of everything was. 

Well, Gizmo, I guess you are different, at least in my experience.  I don't need an outside influence to motivate me to bowl well.  I don't need the tenth frame with the score close to motivate me.  All I need for motivation is me, the lanes, and the act of delivering my ball over my intended spot.  That is all I can control.  Putting extra stress on yourself because the game is close and you need to strike out to win is the exact reason many people cannot perform in those situations.  It is why some people have numerous 10 or 11 in a row games and no 300s.  Every ball should be delivered with the same determination and zeal as the next.  10th frames aren't different, they are just the 10th time you have gone up to bowl in that game.

And if your 10-pins are making you lose games, they aren't good shots.  Then again, 10-pins usually aren't good shots to begin with, irregardless of the score outcome.

And didn't we (BR.com) recently say a good judge of how well a person scored is better determined by the relation of the score to all others?  550 could be a good set, if it was the highest set.  I might average 230, but if I open up with 550 my first 3 at the US Open, then I might be happy.