Thinking Outside the Box

Most bowlers want to line up their bowling equipment from strong to weak like golf clubs:  Teeing off on a par 5?  Driver.  170 yards away?  5 Iron.  Out of the sand trap?  Wedge.  On the green?  Putter.

In a common bowler's mind, oily lanes, expensive ball.  Medium oil, mid performance, dry lanes, cheap ball. The other way people explain their stuff is expensive ball hits hard, medium ball hits good and cheap ball hits weak.  Are you kidding me?  

Everybody seems overly focused on the front part of the lane.  If they're tight or just freshly oiled, they tend to grab something strong that fights oil.  So out comes that dull high performance ball with the big weight block.  Then when they swing it out and the ball won't carry, they wonder why it isn't strong enough.  Of course it's because the friction on the outside is robbing the ball of all it's guts and the core being so strong is revving up like mad at the foul line.  So when the ball isn't hooking enough, we need to go to something weaker to get more energy stored for the backends.  Sounds backwards doesn't it?  Weaker ball for more finish.

I can't tell you how many people want to buy their way out of oily conditions with higher performance products.  All they have to do is grab something mid or mid upper performance, square up and slow down.  Is everyone becoming spoiled!  Doesn't anyone want to practice anymore and learn new skills?  

Now onto a challenge or sport condition.  The fronts tend to be tight but the patterns go from 35 to 43 feet.  That's around 17 feet of drier backends to play with or more.  We can use the strong piece and play outside, or move in and swing; or better still go weaker and square up.  Mid performance products are awesome on flatter conditions.

So what should you when you bowl?  Pay attention to the length of the pattern and the strength of the backends:  

• If the fronts are tight and the backends are ripping, something mid to weak would be in play.  
  
• If the fronts seem moderate and the backends appear a tad suspect, then something mid to strong that rolls heavier or kicks stronger might match up.  
  
• If the fronts are fresh and the backends seems tight, grab that high performance product and SLOW DOWN.  Work your hand revs and remove the yank.  Stop pulling the ball down hard because those easy house conditions let you and start doing some bowling.  
  
• Lastly, if the fronts seem broken but the backends seem to have carry down, (the toughest combo); perhaps a shiner ball that helps clear the front but smooth transition down the lane might be the choice.   

Every ball in your bag can be in play on most lane conditions.  We can use multiple pieces from different angles to create a balance of skid, hook and roll regardless of the pattern.  All it takes is a little practice, trust and an ability to think outside the box.