I bought a second Animal a few weeks ago after they went on "closeout".
I "talked" with Rick about trying a different layout on this second ball (see profile for layout on Animal #1). I had never tried a layout with the pin above the fingers and had some concerns about putting the pin above the fingers with the Morpheus 2 core since I had read on here that doing so may make the ball go too long or be too weak. Rick said that it would get the ball down the lane further than my other Animal and since that was kinda what I was looking for, I asked my driller to put the pin over the bridge and the MB just to the right of the thumb hole. I don't know the exact numbers but I'm going to guess its pretty close to a 5 X 5 layout, maybe even 5.5 X 5...note to self, measure layout next time you go to the bowling alley.
I have now bowled 12 games with this ball, as well as several other games with Animal #1 and my Untamed during this time. I've rolled it on fresh lanes, lanes with some carrydown, and lanes with semi-burnt heads. My league average for the year finished at 183 in April...with Animal #2 over these 12 games, I am averaging 208.9 while only averaging 187.6 with the other two balls over 12 games (6 each with Animal #1 and the Untamed) during the same time. Yeh, I'm a "numbers geek"...I keep up with these things.
Can a ball/layout make this much difference??? Why does this ball/layout perform so much better for me??? Does the ball/layout match my style/lane conditions better??? Why haven't I tried this layout sooner???
A 20-25 pin/game increase is HUGE in my opinion!!! I keep thinking this is just a coincidence or something, you know how you seem to bowl better with a new ball. But every time I hit the lanes, the reaction and consistency I'm getting with Animal #2 is phenominal, for me anyway. I've even had a few folks who have seen me bowl over the last year and a half, make comments about "how much better I'm bowling now". Its obvious to me its not the bowler that's "so much better", its the ball/layout that is making me look good...just compare the scores I've shot with Animal #1 and the Untamed during this same time.
I haven't shot any real high scores with it yet (I think 230-ish with a few 220-ish games) but I haven't shot anything under 185 with it either. And "clean" games are pretty much the norm with this ball...something I rarely did/do with the other balls.
Anybody got any thoughts/ideas on this???
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That which doesn't kill you will only make you stronger, that which doesn't make you stronger is a waste of time!
Edited on 5/22/2005 9:01 PM
