The Power of Positive Bowling

Bowling Digest, August, 2000 by John Jowdy

The biggest difference between the pros and the amateurs isn't the level of their bowling skills, but the strength of their concentration and confidence

THE FOLLOWING INSTRUCTIONAL column was inspired by a youngster named Eric, a 13-year-old who aspires to become a professional bowler. He wrote:

Hi, I'm Eric, and I have a problem. My mental game is non-existent. I'm 13, and my average is 194. I enter all the tournaments that I can--I even qualified for the Las Vegas National Championship--but my mental game pulls me down. I always go into tournaments and start with a 140 to 170 game. Then I try to get back in the game but still get a 170 or 180. It's like there's no way I can win.

Why is this? Can you please help me?

Thanks, Eric

Does this sound familiar? Isn't this indicative of many players who are accustomed to house conditions and then enter tournaments with unaided scoring circumstances, hit a stone wall--excuse the pun--and can't understand what went wrong?

The secret answer: The stone wall set up on house conditions isn't there! Good bowlers must execute properly and figure it out. This is the area where "the power of positive bowling" plays a major role. This is the element in a bowler's game that requires not only proper execution, but definitely necessitates "bowling smarts." This is the area that rewards the thinking player. Needless to say, I answered Eric and made some suggestions, namely, the power of positive bowling.

Knowledge of equipment may constitute as much as 50% of a player s mental game. Admittedly, the great majority of amateur players don't enjoy the luxury of PBA players, who are afforded the services of bowling ball representatives, specialists who make a scientific study of weights, balances, pin placements, ball surfaces, and sophisticated weight blocks. However, during the past five years, a number of ball manufacturers made concerted efforts to cater to top amateur players around the country. Some have added top non-professional players to their advisory staffs, and others are inked on limited arrangements.

Amateurs who don't have access to ball reps can either solicit advice from their pro shop operator or seek out a competent coach--and "competent" is the key word. Bowling is over-stocked with wannabe experts. It's extremely important that players who are serious about their game make serious efforts to absorb accurate information, both in proper execution as well as the mental aspect.

The modern bowling world is replete with excellent bowling manuals, books, and video tapes. Furthermore, the emergence of competent bowling instructors has played a major role in the development of outstanding talent. Unfortunately, however, instructional manuals, tapes, or books cannot successfully inject the essential ingredients into any individual's mental game--elements that more often than not play a major role in the success or failure of physically talented bowlers.

Most sports feature a defense to neutralize a player's offense. Bowling poses no defense for achieving success, though. It is solely dependent on individual prowess, and the power of positive bowling--namely, the mental toughness of the contestants--is the principal ingredient for success between players of equal ability.

On occasion, bowlers who uncork high-revving missiles have the physical capacity to overcome certain conditions that are more favorable to power players than average strokers. Conditions that are conducive to wide-arcing trajectories rarely require precision. This type of execution, "stand left and throw right," is commonly found on most house conditions. It is also affectionately referred to as "adult bumper bowling."

By the same token, a great number of bowlers who average well over 200 fall short of their expectations. They flounder, wallow, and waver, and are totally bewildered when confronted with dissimilar conditions: Lane heads dry out, oil is carried down, break points change, lane dressing is excessive in their favorite areas. This is due to a deficiency in the mental aspect of their game, and that is the principal disparity between amateur players and those who earn a living bowling on the professional tour.

Perhaps the term "non-professional" is a misnomer. Pro bowlers are defined as card-carrying members of the Professional Bowlers Association or the Professional Women's Bowling Association, but countless bowlers disguised as amateurs earn more than many players on either tour. For example, Tim Mack--perhaps America's most celebrated amateur bowler--earns in excess of $100,000 each year. He's a dominating force in megabucks tournaments, and although he has yet to annex a title in either the High Roller or the Eliminator games, he's one of the leading money winners in sweepers and brackets, year in and year out.

Mack has also established his reputation as one of the three top performers on the international scene; the other two, Tore Torgerson of Norway and Tomas Leanderson of Sweden, are amateurs who earn between $100,000 and $200,000 a year. The tremendous success enjoyed by these amateur superstars can be attributed to experience acquired through competition on all lane conditions, bolstered by their mental preparation.