Bowling is the only sport that the best aren’t rewarded as the best. Either through earnings or public acknowledgement.

Top prize for winning a regular Professional Bowlers Association (PBA) tournament this year is a mere $25,000. Phil Mickelson won 1.4 million dollars last week in Florida. Now $25,000 isn’t a bad pay day but remember, that’s IF you win.

But what if you don’t? Entry into a regular PBA tournament is $500. Minimum prize fund check is $1800. You profit $1300. Well, sort of. That’s before your travel expenses: food, gasoline (or airfare and rental car depending on tournament location) and your lodging at the local Motel 6 (sponsor of the PBA tour). Average weekly expenses for a touring player are in the $500 range. And don’t forget at the end of the year, you have to pay taxes on those earnings.

Ok so you’re thinking, “wow it’s a $500 entry and $500 in expenses and I’m guaranteed $1800 – that’s $800 in profit, not so bad. Especially considering that if I was good enough to make it on tour; I wouldn’t finish last every week”. Well… I forgot to mention that the tour season is only 20 weeks long. So what do you do for the other 32 weeks of the year that you still have a mortgage, car payment, phone bill & general living expenses? Your guess is as good as mine!  Good luck finding a decent payment “regular” job that allows you to take 20 weeks of vacation – in a row.

In 2008 NASCAR’s Sprint Cup Champion (think of it as player of the year), Jimmie Johnson won earnings of 7.3 million dollars. That’s one year of earnings. That’s not too bad for spending four hours in a car making a left turn.

Now let’s put that in perspective for anyone who’s not a math major. A professional bowler would have to win EVERY tournament (in a 20 week tour season) for 14 years to win that much money. You can get the calculator out…I’ll wait.

Ok so what IS the professional bowlers association doing for our sport? It’s pretty obvious they’re not providing an extraordinary lifestyle for their best athletes. And what are their corporate sponsors doing for the sport? Certainly TV wouldn’t be the same if Tiger Woods didn’t adorn the ever branded Nike swoosh on every piece of apparel he wore. Or Derek Jeter didn’t ask the standard: “is IT in you” in every other Gatorade commercial. What if Jeff Gordon wasn’t drinking Pepsi after every race he won?

The NBA, through its NBA Cares program, understands the responsibility they have to give back to the communities that support them and they do so through a diverse array of outreach programs and events. I can’t remember a PBA event where fans got to interact with the professionals in any manner that was free to them.

During the breaks on the PBA telecast, PBA sponsors air their commercials every week. Over the years only a small number of these commercials show a professional bowler, using or endorsing any of these products. Why??? I drink Gatorade, wear Hanes and eat Ball Park Franks because “I wanna be like Mike”.

More people participated in the sport of bowling last year then any other recreational sport. So why don’t people want to be like Walter Ray Williams?

I am a huge baseball fan and I try to watch as many games as I can during the season. However I haven’t participated in a game of baseball since I was in high school. Yet I live and die with every inning April through September in hopes that my team will get to see the likes of October.

On the flip side of that, I bowl in a league four times a week. I participate in local, state and national tournaments on a more than average basis. However, I could care less about who wins on the PBA telecasts on Sundays. Why is this?

This isn’t something that only I’m guilty for either. As I stated earlier, bowling has more participants than any other sport. Why aren’t these people watching the PBA telecasts? Why aren’t these people rooting their favorite bowlers onto victory? I hope you have the answer because I’m pretty sure I don’t and I’m almost positive no one at the PBA has it.

Bowling today is far more advanced then days of the past. The technology and equipment have well surpassed the days of old. New core designs, new cover stocks, new oils, not to mention lane surfaces. So why do so many people still think the sciences of years ago apply to today’s bowling environment?  I still hear this everyday when I encounter bowlers from all across the country.  I tell them all the same thing:  Static weights don’t adversely affect ball reaction!!!

I know I can hear it now:  side weight makes my ball hook more in the back end.  Thumb weight makes my ball roll earlier.  Finger weight makes my bowling ball go further down the lane.  Don’t get me wrong, back in the days of Rubber and Plastic bowling balls, this was the norm.  But let’s realize that today we have far more technology then we did then.  I am not saying they were wrong with their statements; they just didn’t have the technical knowledge we have today.

Let’s first start out by defining what I mean by static weight.  When the person drilling the ball positions it for drilling and they shift the weight block to one quadrant of the bowling ball this causes an imbalance to the ball.  These imbalances make the ball wobble, therefore creating a different ball reaction.  If they shift the core to the side of the gripping holes it creates side weight. Shifting the core towards the fingers creates finger weight, and so on. The ruling bodies created parameters for this. You aren’t allowed to have more then one ounce of finger, side, or thumb weight.  You are not allowed to have more then three ounces of top, or bottom weight.  This rule applies still today.

Now let’s get back to the tip of the week.  Ball motion.  If you are looking for your ball to go longer, you should pick a weaker core design or a weaker cover stock bowling ball.  If you want a more aggressive bowling ball for oil, then you should pick a stronger core design and stronger cover stock bowling ball.  First you have to understand your bowling center and your bowling style.  Everyone will see the lanes differently based on their bowling style.  Some bowlers will think the lanes are oily while others might think they are dry.  That’s O.K. Bowlers are all different. You need to pick the right ball for your bowling style.

Placing locator pins further from your P.A.P. or positive axis point, will make your ball go further down the lane. Pins closer to your P.A.P. will start to hook sooner. Pins positioned in between these will create stronger overall ball motion.

While drilling techniques still play an important role in ball motion; core, cover stock and pin placement can be just as important given today’s technology.  You need to first figure out what kind of lane condition you are bowling on, and then talk to your local pro shop to find the correct ball for your needs.

Next week I will go over the other question I get asked all the time:  Why do you have so many bowling balls in your bag? Until then, have fun, and let’s shoot some big scores!!!

In keeping with the rich colors of the previous two Cells, this purple-royal color combination is another great looking ball a little flare but nothing too flashy. I think the color combo compliments the others in the Crown Line from Roto-Grip.

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Recreational bowlers always ask the same questions. Why do you have more then one bowling ball? Why can’t I ever seem to make a corner pin?  Why does my bowling ball hook at the last minute when I try to make a spare? These are all great questions.  I am glad to hear bowlers becoming more interested in the sport of bowling. Today I will answer these questions.

Spare shooting, in my opinion has lost some of it’s importance in today’s bowling environment. Today’s bowlers like to see strikes, because they think strikes are more important. When I was growing up I learned that spares are more important then strikes. I can hear some of you now saying; Strikes get you perfect games. But let’s think about that for a second. Actually, let’s look at the make shift scores below:

Now let’s fill those open frames with spares and let’s see the score.

Wow!!! Look at the difference spares make in your score!!! 62 pins better!! 

Now let’s answer the question about making spares and having more then one bowling ball. Get yourself a Polyester (Plastic) bowling ball for your spares. These bowling balls have the least amount of friction to the lane surface, or go the straightest[see last weeks tip], which means that you are more likely to pick up your spares more effectively and more consistently. Weren’t we always taught that the quickest way from point A to point B is a straight line? Well with your plastic bowling ball you can make that happen. Once you figure out how to line up correctly, then all you have to do is execute your shot. 

Using a Plastic bowling ball will always give you the same reaction and outcome regardless of the oil pattern. So the proof is there as to why you have more than one bowling ball. For your spares!! Improve your scores, and improve your average, simply by making spares. So once again I will ask you this question; Are Spares or Strikes more important? You Decide. 

T.J. Yeip is the Manager of GLC Bowling and the Lead Technical Advisor. He is an IBPSIA Advanced Certified Member and former PBA member. You can email your questions to him personally at thomas.yeip@glcbowling.com

‘From My Perspective’ is an editorial column brought to you each week by a guest writer who is given the opportunity to speak their mind about products, the game or the industry. GLC Bowling does not necessarily agree with or endorse all guest writers’ opinions. We simply print them! Do you have something you’d like to share? Submit your article to thomas.yeip@glcbowling.com and we might just share your perspective with the world!

PBA Experience means just that…

Chris Schlemer Week in and week out bowling enthusiasts tune in on Sunday afternoon in hopes of witnessing bowling history or in hopes of getting to watch their favorite PBA professional. Week in and week out ESPN color analyst and Storm staffer Randy Pedersen describes the lane pattern and the angles of play best suited for that particular pattern. That is the very point in time when the Lumber Liquidators PBA tour and the PBA Experience league are separated into two opposite ends of the bowling world. It’s safe to say that none of you out there in your PBA leagues are bowling on LIVE television and dealing with the fatigue, adrenaline and anxiety that go along with it. Not to mention everything that happens to that particular pair of lanes long before the cameras start recording.

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GLC Bowling is proud to present you with another “Celebrity Guest” ball review. We hope to offer you more of these reviews completed by bowlers YOU know! Be ready, we could ask you next!

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