(Topic ID: 149494)

Any Bowlers In Here?

By fatality83

8 years ago


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  • 92 posts
  • 48 Pinsiders participating
  • Latest reply 5 months ago by xsvtoys
  • Topic is favorited by 2 Pinsiders

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There are 92 posts in this topic. You are on page 1 of 2.
#1 8 years ago

Any die hard bowlers like myself here? I have been bowling since I was 6 and am now 32. Of course there was a long break in between 15-30 where other priorities took place. I almost bowled my first perfect game a few weeks ago on my league. Bowled a 279, got 9 strikes in a row, choked in the 10th frame and got 9 down, picked up the spare and got a final strike in my last frame. It was the nerves that got to me I think. Just picked up a Roto Grip menace that I love once it broke in. My average has been going up ever since my new ball got broken in and am currently at 179.

So whats your high scores, what equipment you using, what average do you have right now?

#2 8 years ago

I rarely bowl but I really enjoy it, we take the kids to the local bowling alley that usually has 1 or 2 pins and killer pizza.

My wife bowled in leagues when she was younger but we are pretty even on the lanes.

I'm quite happy if I hit 150, I have a ball that has no holes drilled in it, had it over ten years now

#3 8 years ago

I roll. Currently have a Hammer Arson, 2 others that I don't recall right now and a plastic for spares. Avg is 184 right now. 278 is my high. Rolled a 615 last week.

#4 8 years ago

nice Hammer makes good stuff, I almost bougth a hammer the other day. 615 is a good series.

#5 8 years ago

Used to bowl until it became boring after they made all the equipment/lane changes in the late 2000's. From 2005-2011 I was ranked in the top 20 in the state of Delaware every year, finishing as high as 12th I believe. I bowled in the US Open Pro event that was held in NJ sometime around 2012. 500 entries, and I finished 134th. Just missed the cut to make it to the finals by like 50 pins. Anyway's, I ended up leaving bowling in 2013 and took up shooting in a pool league as I needed a new challenge. I left bowling carrying around a 230 average and there was no excitement during league nights. The only fun I has was bowling in high end scratch tournaments or regional pro events. I've bowled over a dozen 300 games, and have shot an 800 series 3 times. From 1995-2012 I used one ball, the Track T-Shark. In the fall of 2012 I bought my first ever "new" bowling ball, a Storm Modern Marvel.

#6 8 years ago
Quoted from djreddog:

Used to bowl until it became boring after they made all the equipment/lane changes in the late 2000's. From 2005-2011 I was ranked in the top 20 in the state of Delaware every year, finishing as high as 12th I believe. I bowled in the US Open Pro event that was held in NJ sometime around 2012. 500 entries, and I finished 134th. Just missed the cut to make it to the finals by like 50 pins. Anyway's, I ended up leaving bowling in 2013 and took up shooting in a pool league as I needed a new challenge. I left bowling carrying around a 230 average and there was no excitement during league nights. The only fun I has was bowling in high end scratch tournaments or regional pro events. I've bowled over a dozen 300 games, and have shot an 800 series 3 times. From 1995-2012 I used one ball, the Track T-Shark. In the fall of 2012 I bought my first ever "new" bowling ball, a Storm Modern Marvel.

I have been hearing that somewhat that with the newer bowling balls it is too easy to bowl strikes. I don't know, I still enjoy the sport and probably will until my body can no longer do it. At 32 I already have bad knees so it does hurt to do it but I enjoy it.

#7 8 years ago
Quoted from fatality83:

I have been hearing that somewhat that with the newer bowling balls it is too easy to bowl strikes. I don't know, I still enjoy the sport and probably will until my body can no longer do it. At 32 I already have bad knees so it does hurt to do it but I enjoy it.

Enjoy it while you can. I was ahead of the curve in bowling. In 1992 I won the youth bowler of the state award. Back in the 90's I was averaging 205-215. Most of your "regular bowlers" back then were averaging 160-180. When the year 2000 struck they made it easier to score by making changes to numerous things. Better bowling balls that created more "force" so when it hit the pins you got better pin reaction than the older bowling balls. Oiling machines became computer regulated, which means the oiling machine was 100% consistent from lane to lane and the oil pattern was setup in a way to make scoring easier. This was all done because bowling hit a deep decline in the mid to late 90s. Now all of a sudden that average bowler who used to bowl 175's, was now shooting 250's and averaging around 205 even though they didn't hone their game. Of course the quick question is how come I didn't go from 215 to 250, well I did make a small jump in average up to 230 but I did that with a bowling ball that was 15+ years old. I quickly grew tired of the sport in it's current condition. If they were to offer a "sport shot league" for an entire winter session and not just a 10 week summer league I will jump back in it in a heartbeat. On a "sport shot" I average around 190, so the challenge is very evident on different oil patterns.

#8 8 years ago

Got a 300 and 299 to my credit! Getting the 300 was a thrill, left the 10 pin on the 299.

Don't bowl much anymore since i dropped out of league.

#9 8 years ago

I've been bowling since I was 5. Have 8 league sanctioned 300's. Averaged over 200 since I was 15, but haven't picked up a ball since I had surgery a couple years ago. This thread is getting me in the mood.

#10 8 years ago

266 once. But it was No-Tap.

#11 8 years ago

I was a bowler from 1967 to 1997, my highest seasonal average was 212. I always felt that I'm a much better bowling coach than a bowler, I've made quite a few 200 average bowlers out of 130 average bowlers before I quit. Too many injuries took me out of the game, I miss it but I don't miss the pain.

Steve

#12 8 years ago
Quoted from djreddog:

Enjoy it while you can. I was ahead of the curve in bowling. In 1992 I won the youth bowler of the state award. Back in the 90's I was averaging 205-215. Most of your "regular bowlers" back then were averaging 160-180. When the year 2000 struck they made it easier to score by making changes to numerous things. Better bowling balls that created more "force" so when it hit the pins you got better pin reaction than the older bowling balls. Oiling machines became computer regulated, which means the oiling machine was 100% consistent from lane to lane and the oil pattern was setup in a way to make scoring easier. This was all done because bowling hit a deep decline in the mid to late 90s. Now all of a sudden that average bowler who used to bowl 175's, was now shooting 250's and averaging around 205 even though they didn't hone their game. Of course the quick question is how come I didn't go from 215 to 250, well I did make a small jump in average up to 230 but I did that with a bowling ball that was 15+ years old. I quickly grew tired of the sport in it's current condition. If they were to offer a "sport shot league" for an entire winter session and not just a 10 week summer league I will jump back in it in a heartbeat. On a "sport shot" I average around 190, so the challenge is very evident on different oil patterns.

Sounds like it's time to try to bowl with your non dominant bowling hand. That would definitely provide a challenge.

#13 8 years ago

I bowl. PBA Sanctioned 211. Bowl scratch only. I hate handicap leagues. Equipment depends on the house as some are dry as hell and others flooded. DV8 Marauder Mutiny on saturated houses and a Storm high road when its dry. Lefty crank over the thumb.

Hate the 7 pin, just sayin...

My favorite ball is the Lights Out. Smells like Apples.

#14 8 years ago

Dupe

#15 8 years ago

I've been in a few duckpin bowling leagues. Never could get into 10pin.

#16 8 years ago

I started bowling when I was 10 and continued into my late 30's. I was up to 3 leagues per week and averaging in the low 190's. No perfect games but numerous 289's. Damn those solid 8 pins. They changed everything up as far as the lanes, oil, etc,, but it was too late -our City outlawed smoking and the leagues folded like bedsheets. Alleys closed one after another. They have opened some new ones recently but they are all sanitized hipster spots and nothing like I crave. I long for the ole dirty, smoke-filled alley with the delightful background sounds of pins and pool balls breaking.

#17 8 years ago

I started bowling in a league at 17 and stopped around age 24. (4) sanctioned 300 games and an 800 series bowling in same year when I was 19. Usually carried a 210-220 average....last men's scratch fall league I averaged 225, which was around 10th best in that league.

I haven't gone bowling in over 5 years....don't miss it, since there aren't any pinball machines there anymore.

#18 8 years ago

I love bowling! I typically suck at it because I only actually go bowling a few times a year. It's still a lot of fun for me though.

I also like to watch pro bowling. Besides appreciating how consistently good pro bowlers are, there's just something about the sight and sound of the ball knocking over the pins that gets me. The physics behind how the ball and pins react and what pins are left standing never ceases to amaze me. And as much as I like to watch the pins fly from a power strike, seeing a successful tough spare pick up is the best!

My interest in bowling has carried over to pinball as well. I love my numerous bowling themed pinball games from my '49 Pin-Bowler to my future Big Lebowski and my big ball bowler is the King of EM arcade games!

#19 8 years ago

very nice glad to hear you also enjoy bowling pins.

#20 8 years ago
Quoted from gliebig:

I've been in a few duckpin bowling leagues. Never could get into 10pin.

THIS! Duckpin is such a challenge! I wish they had duckpin lanes closer to me as I would definitely bowl in one of those leagues. I've gone duckpin bowling about 10 times in my lifetime and the highest I have ever scored was like 135.

#21 8 years ago

That's a good score in duckpin. I was in a league for years and my highest average was 108. My best game was a 175. Followed that up with a 82 the next game. lol.

I've heard that no one has ever bowled a perfect game in duckpins.

#22 8 years ago

Bowling is great. I started back in early 1980's, quit for many years after I went to college, then started back in 2002. Now I have 3, 300's and average right around 200. The game has changed and bowling centers are changing also. I remember going to league night and coming out smelling like cigarettes. Those were the days.

I would say I miss the arcade... but I have a better arcade in my basement than they could ever have. In general I think bowling alley game rooms are just an afterthought anyway? They never put any energy into the games so most are trashed after just a few months.

#23 8 years ago

To your point....when I worked at a bowling center, we has 2 pins, a crane machine and about 6-8 vids. Before I worked there it was around 12-14 vids. Now the pins are gone....and the arcade is an afterthought since there isn't much money being generated there like when I was growing up. Half the space was taken to create more office space.

I don't miss the cigarette smelling cloths!

#24 8 years ago

My local bowling alley refurbished their game room. It's very new and clean, but unfortunately, it no longer has any pinball machines in it - just redemption games for the kiddies.

I miss bowling score tables.

Big_Lebowski_score_table_(resized).jpgBig_Lebowski_score_table_(resized).jpg

#25 8 years ago

Ya, no more transparencies and projectors. Above ground ball returns look cool, but I have whacked my foot on them a few times...not fun.

#26 8 years ago

I used to bowl a lot, but probably haven't picked up a ball in this millennium. I was the first guy in my area to own an AMF "Angle". It was the first polyurethane bowling ball, which in it's day was revolutionary. I think I paid $65 for it which was very expensive for a bowling ball back then. Shot 279 with that ball, but not in league. Then I got a Brunswick "Edge" which was a little under the legal durometer hardness limit (it hooked out the building!), but I gave that ball to a guy on my company league team. Man, I used to love it, but like everything else it has really changed. We used to drive about 40 minutes to a house to open bowl on Sunday mornings for 50 cents a line. We'd bowl up to 15 games, and then go get lunch. Loved that house, but it's long gone now. Loved the PBT on ABC and later on ESPN and other networks. I remember when early ESPN had a test pattern much of the time, and they replayed stuff like three time a day! They covered PBT back then, and I remember watching Mark Roth on those early ESPN events. I attended several pro tournaments as a spectator and met some of the legends who have now passed on. Met Chris Schenkel and got his autograph at Garden City Bowl on Long Island (NY). He was such a class act. His bowling acumen was a bit lacking, but he and Bo Burton were always entertaining. Met Earl, PDW, Mark Roth, Wayne Webb and others. Those were special times. I still like to watch the videos of those telecasts on Youtube. Those were the days!

#27 8 years ago

I use to watch the PBA on ABC years ago with Chris Shenkel and Billy Welu (and then when Nelson Burton Jr replaced Welu). It was very enjoyable to watch and they stuck with the same formula for the matches for a long time. I haven't picked up a ball in 25 years but would like to try it again. Right now, I am bowling vicariously with my Rockin' Bowl O Rama video game.

#28 8 years ago
Quoted from SteveO:

Right now, I am bowling vicariously with my Rockin' Bowl O Rama video game.

A friend of mine has one of these. It's a fun game AND looks cool too as it's made to resemble an old scoring table!

#29 8 years ago
Quoted from Tuna_Delight:

A friend of mine has one of these. It's a fun game AND looks cool too as it's made to resemble an old scoring table!

It has a fifties theme, plays about 30 different songs from that era. Fun game with great graphics.

#30 8 years ago

I was on the varsity bowling team in high school, got my letter! I still go a few times a year and can occasionally still break 200 and they have a spiderman pin there although its always beat to hell.

1 week later
#31 8 years ago
Quoted from gliebig:

That's a good score in duckpin. I was in a league for years and my highest average was 108. My best game was a 175. Followed that up with a 82 the next game. lol.
I've heard that no one has ever bowled a perfect game in duckpins.

Love bowling duckpins. Once threw a 202. Had 198 with one more shot in the 10th. Threw the ball and thought I was going to chop the 1-5, ended up picking up 4 pins to finish up. I was nervous as hell! The other two games in that set combined were a 202 (my average was a 112). Very hard to be consistent with duckpins.

#32 8 years ago

We should hit parkville lanes for a duckpin/Adams family tournament.

#33 8 years ago
Quoted from Don44:

I was on the varsity bowling team in high school, got my letter! I still go a few times a year and can occasionally still break 200 and they have a spiderman pin there although its always beat to hell.

you sure you don't live in kent, ohio? LOL that is the same for one of our area lanes here. the spider man although NOT the black version, the entire playfield is so dirty it might as well be the "black" version!

oh, back on topic, was a bowler back in my high school and college days (1986 - 1992), used a red hammer ... got back into 3 or 4 years ago for a few years, bought a roto grip outlaw. was averaging 220 or so weekly with it... now at 46, it hurts my knees and feet to much to bowl.

1 year later
#34 6 years ago

I am happy to bowl 150, not great. Much better pinball player then bowler. Pretty good at my Strike Zone(1970 Williams). Bad knees, two rounds and I am popping Advil.

#35 6 years ago

Bowler here!
Sad to say I've been bowling for 25+ years and have yet to bowl a 300...It really kills me. Guess I simply can't carry under presssure. I average around 210.
Shoes sst6 (the 2008 version)
Balls 2x High road
Virtual gravity
Defiant
And a white dot

#36 6 years ago
Quoted from gliebig:

We should hit parkville lanes for a duckpin/Adams family tournament.

Any updates on this? I'm all in.

#37 6 years ago

I don't know how I missed this thread before! My love for bowling also kicked off my love of pinball, since I would always try to play the pins at the alley while I was waiting for my dad to finish up. 43 years or so of bowling, usually average around 173 or so, but having a rough season this year bc of illness and injury, so only at 163. High game is a 256. I think my high series is around 645 or so.

Here are some tables I commissioned for my house!

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#38 6 years ago
Quoted from DaWezl:

I don't know how I missed this thread before! My love for bowling also kicked off my love of pinball, since I would always try to play the pins at the alley while I was waiting for my dad to finish up. 43 years or so of bowling, usually average around 173 or so, but having a rough season this year bc of illness and injury, so only at 163. High game is a 256. I think my high series is around 645 or so.
Here are some tables I commissioned for my house!

Love those tables!

#39 6 years ago

Been bowling in a league for years I'm terrible but I love it.

#40 6 years ago

I roll Duckpins. IMO, so much more fun than 10's. I don't know why ducks aren't more popular. I guess because people would rather see every pin fall down than to chop through the center 3x's in a row and mark a 3. lol.

3 weeks later
#41 6 years ago

225 and 227 are my highest scores thus far.
During league play earlier this year my highest 3-game totals were in the 580's, thus mid 190's for a 3-game avg.
Just finished up bowling in a league during the 2016-2017 yr. Was my 1st yr with this particular team, 2nd yr overall.
A few yrs ago I bowled with a different team at a different bowling alley in Lafayette, LA.
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#42 6 years ago

Bowling is brilliant but sadly our local alley closed down some years ago. Have no idea what I can bowl but I remember getting 6 strikes in a row and thought I was bad ass. It was $20 for unlimited play from 8pm onwards and the place had a bar, they made much more from our drinking.

#43 6 years ago

I'm a 5 pin bowler, (the Canadian game!!), bowl 3 times a week in different leagues, and do the mechanical work on the machines at my local alley. Have about a 230 average, (perfect game is 450), but in 5 pin, any game over 300 is very good, so probably equivalent to 250 in 10 pin. Had a 901 triple just the other night, one of my best ever!

Perfect games are much rarer than in 10 pin, so easy to punch the damn headpin!!

2 weeks later
#44 6 years ago

Hammer Black Widow Venom and a walled-up house shot = one of these.
IMG_0317 (resized).JPGIMG_0317 (resized).JPG

#45 6 years ago

Bowled from the age of 5 to 30. Never won any huge tournaments, but usually did pretty good. We didn't have any high school teams, but we did take it in PE, which landed me a job at the local bowling alley. (They always got the new pins, so that part was great!). I was averaging right around the 180 mark in the early 90s, which was pretty good for a teenager, and I was one of the top 3 youth bowlers in that particular alley. When I got 'promoted' to a mechanic it caused an issue with my Tuesday night league, and the owner let me learn how to bowl in street shoes, with the stipulation that they were never worn besides for bowling. So when we closed down for the evening, I could practice while the lane stripper did its thing. My average went up 20 pins that summer.

Worked in a bowling alley throughout college. Pay wasn't great, but the owner was super supportive of my class schedule, so I was there 7 days a week for the most part, working every job there. When I was homeless for 2 months one year I was allowed to set up a small cot in the banquet room, and he allowed me to eat there for free.

During that time I was averaging 223 at the alley I worked at, and 229 in the alley the next town over. I really enjoyed it. But one evening at a concert I was outside the pit, and had three big guys fall into my left knee, snapping it inwards and tearing my ACL. My bowling days were over.

I just recently donated my equipment, but kept the shoes. I had an old Hammer Nail, a speed zone, and a Beast. My bowling shoes were a pair of Vans Cabs.

I sure do miss it, but the small ball bowler helps me relive those days

#46 6 years ago
Quoted from djreddog:

Enjoy it while you can. I was ahead of the curve in bowling. In 1992 I won the youth bowler of the state award. Back in the 90's I was averaging 205-215. Most of your "regular bowlers" back then were averaging 160-180. When the year 2000 struck they made it easier to score by making changes to numerous things. Better bowling balls that created more "force" so when it hit the pins you got better pin reaction than the older bowling balls. Oiling machines became computer regulated, which means the oiling machine was 100% consistent from lane to lane and the oil pattern was setup in a way to make scoring easier. This was all done because bowling hit a deep decline in the mid to late 90s. Now all of a sudden that average bowler who used to bowl 175's, was now shooting 250's and averaging around 205 even though they didn't hone their game. Of course the quick question is how come I didn't go from 215 to 250, well I did make a small jump in average up to 230 but I did that with a bowling ball that was 15+ years old. I quickly grew tired of the sport in it's current condition. If they were to offer a "sport shot league" for an entire winter session and not just a 10 week summer league I will jump back in it in a heartbeat. On a "sport shot" I average around 190, so the challenge is very evident on different oil patterns.

Yes, anyone who has been around for a while (like since the 70s) has seen the terrible decline. Every bowler in every league is averaging 30-50 pins higher than they should be thanks to the house shot. If you are a higher average bowler it is ridiculous and boring. I finally got a chance to bowl in a PBA Pattern Sport League this summer, and it changes everything around. It is much more challenging, which I find much more enjoyable. You have to work like hell and focus on every shot. I'm gradually getting the hang of it, but still I am averaging in the high 150s. That's a 50 pin drop from the house shot!!!

One of the fun things about bowling is that it is very accessible to the fans at the pro level. There used to be a regular stop on the tour here which sadly is gone for now. Besides watching the pros bowl, for a few bucks you can bowl right on the same lanes with them in the Pro-Am. It is a great time and you can learn a lot talking from those guys and watching them up close.

Here's an old man bowler with two of the greatest in the sport.

Jim Walter Ray Williams (resized).jpgJim Walter Ray Williams (resized).jpgJim Jason Belmonte (resized).jpgJim Jason Belmonte (resized).jpg

#47 6 years ago

My last hurrah in bowling was 2013. The US Open was being held in NJ and I set out to bowl in it and score the highest from my state. I succeeded. I finished around 119th out of 500+ bowlers and I was the highest out of about 10 bowlers from Delaware. After the first 2 days of qualifying I was making the cut but on day 3 I had a couple of bad games that dropped me out of the top 85 or whatever. I bowled next Belmonte(last picture above) and I bowled with world horseshoe champion Walter Ray(first picture above).

#48 6 years ago

Been bowling a lot lately after not having for years. We have several lanes nearby, but I'm kind of liking Linbrook in Anaheim. A real blast from the past, that still is a lot like it was when it opened in the 50s.

There are three pinball machines there too. A ToM, Walking Dead pro, and a broken down Hobbit. We just bowl there and play pinball when we get home.

26879372624_d639302954_b (resized).jpg26879372624_d639302954_b (resized).jpg

#49 6 years ago

Well no public place is going to match what you have at home for pinballs I haven't been to Linbrook, but that is a cool sign they got there. Its mostly Fountain and Westminster for me.

#50 6 years ago
Quoted from djreddog:

My last hurrah in bowling was 2013. The US Open was being held in NJ and I set out to bowl in it and score the highest from my state. I succeeded. I finished around 119th out of 500+ bowlers and I was the highest out of about 10 bowlers from Delaware. After the first 2 days of qualifying I was making the cut but on day 3 I had a couple of bad games that dropped me out of the top 85 or whatever. I bowled next Belmonte(last picture above) and I bowled with world horseshoe champion Walter Ray(first picture above).

Nice, you bowled on the toughest of patterns and did well! You have to have a super high level of concentration and superior execution to hang in there with those guys. I looked back at the results, and just look at who the top finishers were. Malott, Belmo, PDW. A list of the greatest to ever bowl.

I also bowled with Weber in the ProAm he was a crackup.

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