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Good bowlers, students of the
game, love to hear you talk like this. It means you have already
lost in your head. What a tremendous advantage you have given your
opponents! They know that because you think that, it is true. You
are shut out, but not because the lane conditions did it to you.
If you are shut out, it's because you have allowed yourself to be.
Maybe it's because you didn't play the right line with the right
ball. Maybe it's because you thought you were and sure enough, your
thought became your reality. (This is always true. There is more
about this in the "Bowling Out of Your Mind" chapter.) Experimenting
with your game and expanding your knowledge and ability to do different
things will prevent you from ever being shut out. It may be true
that you cannot score as well as the other-handed person or the
person with a dramatically different roll but you should always
find a way to get to the pocket - always be around the headpin.
Be a headhunter!
The three basic shots for any lane condition are: UP the boards
or pointing; DOWN the boards; and an AWAY or SWING shot. Each is
explained in more depth in the "You, Drifter, You" chapter. You
should be able to play these shots from the first board to a deep
inside line. You'll have a favorite shot or line, of course. What
you want to avoid is having that be your favorite shot because it's
the only one you do well! Your goal is to walk into a center and
feel confident that you can find the shot and once you do, you can
play it. Experiment so that you can expand the parameters of your
comfort zone. Know your strengths. Know the things that lanes might
require that you're not quite as strong in (for other people they
are a weakness, for you just an item to work on...).
Let's say the shot at your house is around the 8th board. That shouldn't
stop you from learning to play 15 in that house. Your goal is to
hit the 3rd arrow and the pocket and figure out how that FEELS to
you. Do you feel all jammed up or like you're too far left? What
do you need to do to keep your bowling shoulder on your target line?
Do you miss right and then miss left? What do you need to do with
body alignment to make sure that doesn't happen?
You should work on hitting that six inch arrow at all angles. Crossing
an arrow near its base, for instance, will give you a different
reaction than crossing at its apex. The angle at which you cross
it factors in a totally different reaction. The same is true of
all boards. Practice at the 1st board and the 5th arrow and everywhere
in between. Know how it feels to stand in front of the ball return.
Don't think you can't play the one board. You can, you'd just rather
not.
Try all these shots while targeting the arrows. Now target the splice
(the area of the lane where the maple blends with the pines just
beyond the arrows), then the dots, then halfway down the lane. Try
looking at the reflection of the pins as a target. Hit the pocket
from all these positions before you move on. You might just find
looking at these different target areas causes you to loft the ball
or pulls your torso forward. Pay attention to how looking at these
different areas of the lane affects your delivery, your point of
release, your launch angle through the heads, the break point, etc.
You'll get a different feel for each target area you use. Don't
think you CAN'T look at the dots or halfway down the lane. Learn
to do it. The more versatile you are the less likely you are to
be intimidated by lane conditions. Have the attitude that you can
and will do whatever it takes to get to the pocket.
Don't complain about lane conditions, play 'em! |
