Ever wonder why some bowlers whose games just don't seem all that impress consistently seem to get higher scores?  Be honest, if Walter Ray Williams was in your bowling league, would you notice?  Arguably the greatest bowler in the history of the sport bowls like just an average guy.  We fall into the trap of equating high speeds and revs as those who can attain greatness while those who are more tweener or stroker are those who "need equipment" to get those big scores.  In reality, Walter Ray is one of those people who's cut from special cloth, someone who can get the job done.  Give him an opening and he'll not only kick the door down but move in; and that's what separates winners from those with just talent. 

Ability doesn't guarantee success and that's a grim reality in any sport.  So many athletes are touted as can't miss: baseball has their 5 tool players, basketball has their 7 footers and in our sport, people who just flat out throws it sick.  We wonder how they fail to rise to those elite levels they seemed destined for.  Some dedicate themselves to serious practice which helps, but in the end, the mental side of the game is what will make or break you.

We all have to deal with success and failure.  How we deal with it is what makes us stronger or makes us suffer.  Is fear the ultimate enemy?  Is that what might get in Pete Weber's head when he bowls Walter Ray (he can't seem to beat him) or perhaps what keeps Chris Barnes from being the superstar he should be?  

We perform in a sport with far too much time on our hands.  Pop Quiz?  In a 4 person, 3 game league, how long do we spend actually bowling?  20 minutes?  Half hour?  Well, lets do the math:  4 person league - total league time is about 2 1/2 hours.  A shot start to finish is about 5 seconds.  An average bowler throws 15 strikes and 18 spares - about 50 shots X 5 seconds is 250 seconds - that's a tad over 4 minutes.  That leaves 2 hours and 26 minutes to do what?  With all this time what is there to do but think and ponder.  

It's easy to start with a few strikes and think about how great it would be to shoot 300 or open with a few bad frames and resign ourselves to the fact it's just not our day.  Most are quick to give up or put undo pressure on themselves way before anything has actually happened.  It's not like we opened league with back to back 300s and have the front 8.  Now you're thinking what I'm thinking...  immortality!  

First rule of competitive sports: LIVE IN THE MOMENT.  The expression, the past is history and the future a mystery.  Totally true.  You need to stay here and now.  That means you tackle the task at hand and absolutely nothing else.  You can't get caught up in what has happened or if only that had;  it's done and can't be changed.  Here you are and nothing will change it so deal with in.  Accept.  The flip side is good things are happening!  Perhaps from starting with the first 8 strikes and you haven't shot a 300 yet in your life.  Are you starting to feel your heart beating faster?  Breath changing?  Becoming more aware of the fact that nobody is talking to you anymore.  Lonely huh?  

Focus is the ability to keep extraneous thoughts out of your mind; to not dwell on what has happened or what could happen.  To quiet your mind and prepare yourself for the next task at hand.  Focus starts when your shoes go on and doesn't end until your last ball is thrown.  It's your game face.

We need to be focused because there's a lot out there to be absorbed and digested: Who's playing where?  Who has a nice look?  What's the scoring pace?  How's my ball reaction?  Should I change balls?  What's the cut?  Who's leading?  Your mind can get pretty loud in a hurry with all sorts of fleeting thoughts and ideas.  It's like daydreaming.  Get a couple bad ball reactions and your mind can start screaming at you.  Focus enhances your clarity of thought.  Helps you make smart decisions, and consider alternatives. 

BREATH.  Nothing will balance you faster and bring you back to the present faster than breathing.  It's a crucial tool when your head gets noisy and is a vital part to your pre-shot routine.  Breathing centers you, relieves tension and gets you calm.  Take a deep breathe as you finish drying your hand and another just before you start your approach.  It will get you centered and relieve some undo tension.

CONCENTRATION is your ability to take your focus into the shot.  It's what keeps doubt and distraction out of your game so you can deliver.  This is easier for those who don't bowl out of emotion.  It's my belief that those who are loud players can lose their concentration faster than those who tend to be more quiet.  

Bowling has similarities to golf; lots of time to get wrapped up in the past and future.  It's not nearly like playing tennis, soccer or basketball.  Those sports are reactionary while our sport isprogressive.  We are constantly trying to attain an easier, higher level of success through changes in ball, alignment or game.  Every shot we throw is intentionally or unintentionally analyzed as to it's motion and ultimate outcome, strikes.  

So focus is the ability to keep your mind quiet so that you can figure out what needs to change.  Think, decide, commit.  Now once you have a plan, to change balls, move my feet, slow down, turn it more, ease up on my fingers, whatever, your concentration is what you use to execute it.  That's the recipe for success.

Thoughts?  Although this is a blog, we can all learn from each other.  So any opinions on the subject are welcome.

It's the same as golf's short game; or the quarterback that floats a pass into a receiver's hands between two defenders;  or a hockey player who stick handles around two defense men, lures the goalie out of the crease and lays the puck into the open net.  Feel!

Everyone has an "A" game, the unconscious method where you put the ball in your hand, stare at a target and let it fly.  You might change the ball or move your feet or target but when the "salt and pepper" doesn't work, that's when you need to think outside the box.

There are lots of ways to deviate from your mindless game into something that matches up the conditions better.  It's the gray area of your timing and release.  What can you change?  Three things: your speed, axis rotation and rev rate.  Same as in billiards, you can change how hard, the spin or English and the rate of spin.  Same philosophy in baseball.  Some pitchers are speed orientated, 100mph guys but the ones who truly know how to pitch, change speed, arm angle, and amount of break to deceive the batter.

There are as many ways to alter your game as there are styles of bowlers.  What works for me might not be the best way for you but I offer it as a guideline.

I change my speed by moving my eyes from the arrows to the dots, holding the ball lower and moving up on the approach about a foot.  I focus on gravity governing my arm swing.  This method helps on extremely oily lanes to get the ball rolling earlier.  Control of my break point is vital and I don't want to spend cover texture to offset the skid.  Sometimes a shinier or very mildly dull surface thrown slower is the better alternative with my "B" game than a dull ball with my A game.  On this kind of condition, the rev dominant players has an advantage.  Not being rev dominant, I have to emulate one.  This can be achieved by keeping my hand revs the same and reducing my speed.  This method lets me move my feet left when most tweener/stroker types are grabbing super dull stuff or super strong cores and moving right.  

I can change my axis rotation or turn from up the back, about 15 degrees to an aggressive 45 degrees.  This causes the ball to clear the front part of the lane better, getting farther down the lane, with a stronger angle at the break point.  When I have to play deeper in the lane and cover more boards, this helps get the ball to finish stronger.  When I'm more on top of my target and playing up the grain of the lane, releasing more up the back of the ball controls the back ends, especially when the lane conditions are fresh.  Generally the last part of the lane is more aggressive when the lanes are freshly oiled do I usually don't need to magnify them with lots of side roll.  

I change my rev rate or tightness of spin by adjusting my finger pressure.  Releasing the ball with my fingers open lets the ball roll off my hand easier while pulling my fingers toward my palm at release gets the weight block energized.  Spare shooting is always performed with my hand in the mellow position but if corners are starting to pop up, a little more "hit" can push them out.

Combinations of these choices work excellent together.  Heavy oil would suggest less speed, more turn and more hit playing inside.  That would be a Shark combo and my B game.  My Agame is mellow speed, up the back with mild hit.  That's my challenge, sport flavor.  In total, 3 pairs or variables create 8 possible permutations so each ball in my bag can have as many as 8 different looks. Combine that with standing anywhere from 10 to 45 and looking 3 to 25, that's plenty of choices to find the lane's key to higher scores.

Think of bowling as a combination lock.  Left 25, Right 17, Left 3?  I think that was my locker combination in high school!  Well bowling is the same thing.  What-Where-How.  BALL - ALIGNMENT - TIMING / RELEASE.

There are ways to practice these combos.  Start by leaving your resin balls in the bag.  Grab your plastic.  Bowl. and score.  Shoot ALL your spares with it too.  When your done, move 5 boards deeper in the lane.  Think you're throwing it too hard?  You probably are so slow down, lift the ball, turn it.  Be patient and let it swing.  Less grab, more flow.  Gravity fed bowling.  Slow your feet and feel your shots.  Move outside.  Play the gutter shot with your plastic ball.  Grab something reactive and practice playing the lane wrong.  Stand where there's no shot and make it work.  The best bowlers in the world have dozens of changes with many levels for each characteristic and they can dial it in like a recipe from a cookbook.  

Practice like this will stretch your game.  Give you choices.  Soon you'll have confidence that any ball in your bag is a viable option on any lane condition.  So the next time you're out polishing your A game, work on the alternatives.  Anything you can do to change speed, rev rate, or axis rotation is the goal.  The trick is to be able to read a lane and give it what it's asking for as quickly as possible.  To throw one shot and make educated complex moves; ball, feet, target, and hand to go from a weak reaction to a strong one...   now that's real bowling.