Bring on Summer League

Last night was the first night of Summer League, here in Hazard, KY. I was lucky enough to get recruited by two of the more consistent bowlers from the most recent Fall League.  These guys were members from the team that came in either first or second, I forget which. They both averaged over 200 for the season, so it’s safe to say they’re two of the better bowlers in the house. I also happen to be involved with these same guys in a league/tournament being run in Pikeville, KY, with two other guys, who also happen to be among the better bowlers in the house.  Anyway, I digress…

Between league seasons, I made sure to get down to the center and bowl so as to not get too rusty in the three break. Over these three weeks, I was welcomed by such a wide variety of lane conditions, that I might as well have not bowled in the end.  Some times it was bone dry, enabling me to throw from the far left to the right gutter and still cross over and hit Brooklyn. Other times there was so much oil, I had to stand all the way to the right and throw straight down the gutter to even stand a chance of hitting the pocket, let alone striking.  My average game over these three weeks was about 150.  On the upside, I got a lot of practise shooting spares and splits.  Always useful.

So anyway, we take to the lanes and I’m decidedly nervous about bowling, given my form over the preceding weeks. During warm up, I strike my first 3 balls from my usual starting mark, so I decide to shoot spares for the rest of our warm up time.

So game one, I open with a big four (4,6,7,10 split). YAY! So I think to myself “This is going to be a GREAT night!” Thankfully, this was just first ball jitters, because I went on to strike the next 5 shots and finished out with a respectable 224. My partners didn’t fare quite so well, scoring 169 and 175 to round us out with a 568.

Game two, I started well and struck the first 2 shots, so I figured I would just pick up where the previous game finished. Unfortunately, the lanes were starting to transition and with it, so was my shot. I ended up opening a couple of frames littered among a couple more strikes and some spares to finish out with a 191. My partners rolled a 212 and 184 meaning we finished with a 586.

Game three, ended up being a relative non-event. I had about 3 opens in the game as well as a pair of first ball gutter balls.  My shot was completely lost, so I changed balls which allowed me to stay where I was the previous game and still carry the pocket.  Unfortunately, I figured this out a little too late and finished up with a 168.  My partners rolled a 212 and 209, so we finished with a 589.

All tolled I bowled a 583, which is a decent effort.  I currently carry 4 pins handicap (80% of 200) and average 194. My goal for this league is to finish with at least a 195 average, so tonights effort a step in that direction. I would love to bowl at least one 700 series this league and I would LOVE to throw either an 800 series or a 300 game. As a team, we bowled a 1744 series, with an average of 581.  It would be great if we could finish the season with all three of us carrying 200+ averages and no handicap. I’m pretty confident the other two will do that and only time will tell if I manage it.  Here’s hoping…


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