“If you would attain to what you are not yet, you must always be displeased by what you are.  For where you are pleased with yourself there you have remained.  Keep adding, keep walking, keep advancing.”  ~Saint Augustine

Week in and week out I help readers out with their bowling game. I provide tips and articles for you to improve your game. These are minor changes in your bowling game to help you become a more effective efficient bowler. So with change, come a learning period, a transformation, and finally retention. So why do I see so many people who have either gotten a few tips, or a full blown lesson, to help improve there game go back and do all the things that they were doing before? The only answer I have for that is bowlers are afraid of change. More...

Bowling has been around for hundred’s, some even say thousand’s of years. There were articles of Egyptian carvings found with a sport very similar to bowling. Times have changed and there is so much new technology in the great sport of bowling. Think back to the days were there were pin boys. These were people who would sit behind the bowling lanes and set pins up. My uncle was one. From there we can consider the evolution of automatic machines. From the days of actually keeping score by hand, to now with all the computers that do it for you, heck they even have some computers that have coaching assistants to show you how you should stand and move to make the spare. The sport of bowling has evolved so much. Bowling balls have evolved too.  Have they evolved so much that the bowler can’t tell the difference? In this week’s article I will talk about some of the bowling equipment in the game and help you identify some of the differences in the cores of a bowling ball.  More...

GLC’s “Out of 5 Stars” Rating…

Appeal: 4.25 Length: 4.0 Back End: 4.0

All balls were equipped with Turbo Insert products including the #1 selling interchangeable thumb insert, Switch Grip. For details on their premium line of insert products and accessories, visit http://www.turbogrips.com/

GLC’s “Out of 5 Stars” Rating…

Appeal: 2.50 Length: 3.00 Back End: 3.75

All balls were equipped with Turbo Insert products including the #1 selling interchangeable thumb insert, Switch Grip. For details on their premium line of insert products and accessories, visit www.turbogrips.com

Each week I write about how to do this or you need to practice that. So I am stunned when I provide all this information and the tools to help each and every one of you bowlers a chance to get better. Why do so many people decide to veer from the teachings?  Is it a lack of commitment or does that individual bowler say they want to improve but what they are really thinking is I want to do that but I really don’t care?  This week I would like to challenge my bowlers out there to take a look into themselves and see if they really mean what they say or they don’t believe in it. 

I deal with customers from the entire spectrum of bowlers. Some just do it for a reason to get out of the house for a few hours.  Some people do it because it’s just something they have done since they were kids.  Some bowlers are the seasoned veterans and really take this sport to heart.  So which one are you? This article is more geared to the seasoned bowlers. 

I have traveled this great country of ours for bowling. I have bowled in different cities and states and have seen a lot. One thing I still see out there is the passion of bowlers to bowl well. I also see the stereo type minded people who see bowling not as a sport but as a recreational activity. You know the beer drinking out of shape mentality. That is fine for some people, but I tend to see things in a different view. The sport of bowling is exactly that, a sport. Bowlers have to have endurance when competing as well as the flexibility and muscle memory to repeat shots and stay competitive. The same could be said for a bowlers mind. Bowlers need to constantly learn and educate themselves on the sport. What type of oil pattern is being used?  What type of bowling ball surface will work on the given lane condition?  What type of bowling ball layout will give me the best chance to score?  What ball speed should I use?  What hand position will work the best for this condition?  What type of lane surface is this?  There are so many questions and variables that are involved with bowling at the highest level.  Back to my original opening, if you have the opportunity to learn this at your fingertips then why do you not take advantage of it?  If you have a coach that is willing to share and pass on this knowledge to you then why not take it? 

I have been involved in the bowling industry since I was 15 years old. As soon as I was able to work at a bowling center I did. You name it and I have done it in the bowling industry. But the one thing that has always been my passion is education. I love to take a bowler and pass on the knowledge I have collected from my years and watch the bowler grow into a competitive player. So this basically comes down to the title of this week’s article, commitment. A large amount of bowlers want to learn but I see this all the time, they are not committed to doing it. They will take the knowledge that they have learned, try it that time, and then push it off to the side. I can tell you, if you want to get better and you have been given the knowledge from someone to apply it to your game, then you have to be committed to using it. Getting better in a sport takes commitment. Just as with everything else in life, you have got to be committed to it. I can go on and on for hours about this but I won’t. I am going to wrap this up with a couple key things about having the commitment. First, take the knowledge you have been given and work with it. I don’t mean once or twice. You need to understand it, embrace it, and believe in it! Secondly, you need to apply it. If you have the drive to learn, you have the drive in you to get better. Last thing is to find time. I know everyone works and has families and other things to do, but if you want to be serious about something and you are passionate about it, you will find the time to do it!

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  

Week in and week out I talk about how to do this or how to do that. Wouldn’t it be great if there was a place where you could get all of this training?  A place where you could be educated as a bowler. Or as a Pro shop operator learn the latest in equipment?  How about a place where you can try out your new equipment? How about being able to bowl on two different synthetic lanes surfaces? Well the time has come. A new place has been built in Michigan; Bowling IQ.

Bowling IQ is a state of the art facility located in Sterling Heights Michigan equipped with eight new synthetic bowling lanes. Four of the lanes are AMF and four are Brunswick, equipped with the latest in AMF and Brunswick Scoring systems. The Brunswick lanes are equipped with A-2 machines, and the AMF lanes are equipped with two 82-70 and two 82-90XLI machines. The lanes are separated by a glass enclosure made from the same glass used in the NHL. There is a sliding glass system used to separate the AMF from the Brunswick side. The lanes can be separated if you have more then one group to teach or easily opened up for the larger groups. The settee area has the newest in AMF and Brunswick furniture. Burgundy and sea foam green color leather furniture complete the settee. There is a 4000 sq. ft showroom which displays all the latest in bowling equipment in the industry. The showroom has an Oak, Mahogany color scheme with some “Retro” bowling looks.  Wooden benches extracted from a local bowling center that opened back in the 1930’s accent the showroom floor. The past and the present come together in Bowling IQ.

Bowling IQ has two concession areas equipped with stainless steel appliances along with granite countertops. There are two education classrooms. One classroom can seat forty students and is equipped with one 47 inch Flat screen T.V. with Laptop port connections. The other classroom can seat one hundred students and is equipped with two 47 inch Flat screen T.V. s along with Laptop port connections. They are also equipped with Zone Speakers with wireless microphone capability.  There are two separate board rooms that can seat either four or eight people. All in all a facility that is second to none in the bowling industry.

About Bowling IQ

“ Bowling IQ exists to do just that, raise your bowling IQ. Whether you are a beginner or a seasoned bowler, Bowling IQ provides you with the tools for success. Our one and only goal is to insure that every person who enters our doors has a positive experience, and leaves with more knowledge than when they entered.

Versed in all available bowling equipment, our staff can provide you with expert information. We strive to insure that you fully understand the products you choose to use.

Our training staff lead by former Team USA and Gold Level Coach Sean Klug, give Bowling IQ the capacity to deliver on our promise of excellence. So whether you are a first time bowler or a seasoned veteran, Bowling IQ is your resource for bowling knowledge.”

You need to check this place out. Right now you can bowl on eight different lane conditions, one on each lane each and every Monday and Tuesday night from 8-10 p.m. $10.00 per person and that lets you bowl on any of the eight different PBA oil patterns they put out. We will also have Bowling Ball spinners at your access to fine tune your bowling equipment.

Bowling IQ is located at 7023 E. 14 Mile Rd. Sterling Heights MI 48312

Until Next week, if you need to learn anything, I can help you raise your Bowling IQ. Thomas Yeip is the Manger of GLC Bowling and the Lead Technical Advisor. He is an IBPSIA advanced certified technician. You can email your questions or comments to him directly at Thomas.yeip@glcbowling.com

Welcome to 2010 and most of you are about half way through your league season. Some of you might be bowling well this season, and some may not be. Most of you might be getting ready to start your Local City or State tournaments. So are you prepared for the tournament season? Do you think you have the right bowling balls to compete at the higher level for the tournaments? This week I would like to talk about some drilling layouts and bowling ball surfaces that you may want to have in your bag this tournament season. I will explain the different drilling techniques and surface preparations so you can better understand your equipment and have the right tools to excel on the conditions you might face.

Bowling tournaments can be a very fun time. It could also be a time where you struggle to bowl well. Having the right drilling layouts and ball surfaces will help you achieve greater success on the lanes. I am not saying that you will bowl better with the advice I give you here, remember equipment is a big factor to scoring, but it ultimately comes down to the bowler themselves. I can give you the advice, but you, the bowler, have to be able to execute your shot.

The first step I want to talk about is your bowling ball surface. You can not go into any tournament setting and have the same surfaces on every bowling ball you own and expect to have the right tools. It’s kind of like going to the golf course with a bag full of 9 irons. It’s much more difficult to make par 5’s with just 9 irons. So the first thing you should do is actually look at your equipment and have at least one bowling ball sanded to 500 grit or 1000 grit finish. These are for when you encounter a heavier oil condition. The duller the surface, the more friction you will have on those heavier oil patterns. Then next bowling ball should have anywhere from a 2000 to 4000 grit finish. These will be a little less aggressive then your lower grits, helping your bowling ball travel further on the lane surface before it begins to hook. These surfaces will be most effective on the medium oil conditions. Last, you should have at least one polished bowling ball in your bag. Having a bowling ball that is polished will have even less friction in the oil and front part of the lane surface.

Now how do you know which one of these to use? I will give you a very simple tip. Watch what your ball is doing. If your bowling ball is traveling to far down the lane then guess what, the bowling ball is telling you that for this pattern you don’t have the right ball . Go to my brother the duller surface ball. Sometimes I hear voices in my head haha. So if your bowling ball tells you to use another then now at least having these couple tips about surface will help you make the better decision.

Now on to the next part, about drilling layouts, you will need to have a couple different layouts in your bowling bag as well. The first one I would like to talk about is a drilling that will help you when you encounter heavier patterns. You should have a bowling ball in you bag that has a drilling layout where your locator pin (that’s the colored dot on the bowling ball) is placed even with or below your finger gripping holes. Having locator pins lower will help the bowling ball start to rev up faster on the lane thereby creating less length and a smoother back end reaction. If you have trouble understanding that part, let’s think of the lane conditions. If you have a heavier or longer oil pattern, the lane oil will make the bowling ball travel further down the lane. So just keeping it simple, if you use a bowling ball that is drilled to go long and you are bowling on heavier oil, which will make the ball go longer, what are your chances of having that bowling ball hit the pocket on a consistent basis? Not a good chance. You may be able to hit it a couple times, but if you miss a little bit from your target then you will not be happy. So my suggestion is to use pin down bowling ball when encountering heavier patterns.

When you encounter less oil then you would want to use drilling layouts that have the pins higher above your finger gripping holes. Having locator pins higher will create longer bowling ball motion down the lane. These will work best when you start to see your bowling ball hook to soon. Now I could get into a deeper conversation about Mass Bias or PSA placements, along with locator pin distances from you positive axis point, but that will be a very lengthy article. I will save that for another time.

So let’s recap this weeks article, You need bowling balls in your bag with different sanded or polished surfaces, and locator pins below or above your finger gripping holes to be able to attack different lane patterns. Having these tools in your bag and properly drilled will help you achieve greater success on the lane conditions of today’s sport. Remember, you have to observe and define what your bowling ball is doing on the lanes and be able to take that knowledge and turn it into something great. Until next week, have fun, bowl well, execute shots and let’s say it again: Have fun.

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

 By Tom Smallwood....Columbia 300 Staff Player, PBA Titlist

GLC’s “Out of 5 Stars” Rating…

Appeal: 4.00 Length:4.25 Back End: 4.75

All balls were equipped with Turbo Insert products including the #1 selling interchangeable thumb insert, Switch Grip. For details on their premium line of insert products and accessories, visit www.turbogrips.com

GLC’s “Out of 5 Stars” Rating…

Appeal: 4.25 Length: 3.75 Back End: 4.25

All balls were equipped with Turbo Insert products including the #1 selling interchangeable thumb insert, Switch Grip. For details on their premium line of insert products and accessories, visit www.turbogrips.com

On the lanes…

GLC’s “Out of 5 Stars” Rating…

Appeal: 4.00 Length: 4.50 Back End: 4.00

All balls were equipped with Turbo Insert products including the #1 selling interchangeable thumb insert, Switch Grip. For details on their premium line of insert products and accessories, visit www.turbogrips.com