Bronze, Silver and GOLD patterns!

[BELMO]

Hey i was just thinking to myself while im enjoying life in Nice, France

There is a lot a chat about what a 300 is worth.....here could be a good idea!

What would a Gold Level/Silver Level/Bronze level lane pattern events or comps sound like.
Let me explain!

Example:
Monday night THS, state, national tournaments where the lanes are easy (bronze) if a 300 is bowled or any other honor score TBA could recognize this achievement at a BRONZE Level ??

State/national/sport series tournament a slightly tougher pattern (Silver)........ same as above

International events (maybe 1 or 2)/ Sport series....... GOLD oil patterns which can cater for perhaps the overseas player market and our higher averaged players here!

Each TOURNAMENT can be announced that its going to be either BRONZE/SILVER/GOLD

Each time an honor score is bowled TBA can accreditate you within each level.
Who determines the level of the oiling pattern....well im not sure about that one, but with some other peoples help on here i think this could work.


That way, those who bowl 300 on a house shot still get the recognition they deserve and those who think 300 on a NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL is worth a little more, well they forever go into history as a GOLD level award!

Just an idea??

Any thoughts people???

Belmo

ps- Will check back after Kimberly and I visit the Cannes film festival!

 

[Straight_kut]

My opinion is...
Not everyone bowls more than just their weekly league and i dont think its really fair to make them feel their 300 is any less important than someone elses. EG.. their Bronze 300 VS a gold 300 in an international event.


Atleast at the moment its only some people saying 300's mean less on xxxx condition or whatever.

 

[Dozza]

Belmo
I think that's a great concept and it has heaps of merit. The fact that there are different levels but that everyone is celebrated is great. The levels are in keeping things all relative to each situation.

Dozza

P.S. Hope you're both enjoying France.

 

[the_bowen]

That is a Very good idea Belmo

 

[CSP]

I like the idea belmo. TBA have to move forward in alot of areas to change the image and this is one area that sounds apealling to bowlers for different level of awards.

If TBA change the tournament system/format, rankings system, they might aswell change the awards system.

 

[Tiger]

Hey i was just thinking to myself while im enjoying life in Nice, France
There is a lot a chat about what a 300 is worth.....here could be a good idea!
What would a Gold Level/Silver Level/Bronze level lane pattern events or comps sound like.
Let me explain!
Example:
Monday night THS, state, national tournaments where the lanes are easy (bronze) if a 300 is bowled or any other honor score TBA could recognize this achievement at a BRONZE Level ??
State/national/sport series tournament a slightly tougher pattern (Silver)........ same as above
International events (maybe 1 or 2)/ Sport series....... GOLD oil patterns which can cater for perhaps the overseas player market and our higher averaged players here!
Each TOURNAMENT can be announced that its going to be either BRONZE/SILVER/GOLD
Each time an honor score is bowled TBA can accreditate you within each level.
Who determines the level of the oiling pattern....well im not sure about that one, but with some other peoples help on here i think this could work.
That way, those who bowl 300 on a house shot still get the recognition they deserve and those who think 300 on a NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL is worth a little more, well they forever go into history as a GOLD level award!
Just an idea??
Any thoughts people???

What would you classify a 300 as (Gold, Silver or Bronze?) having being bowled on lanes that haven't been washed/oiled for about 36 hours and having two full days, plus one night's worth of open play on them, plus the local Disabled League?
Might have been set as a THS 36-hours earlier, but by that stage, it would be playing as anything but that.

Your thoughts?

 

[BELMO]

What would you classify a 300 as (Gold, Silver or Bronze?) having being bowled on lanes that haven't been washed/oiled for about 36 hours and having two full days, plus one night's worth of open play on them, plus the local Disabled League?
Might have been set as a THS 36-hours earlier, but by that stage, it would be playing as anything but that.

Your thoughts?

Like i said in my first post.....im not sure who determines the level of the oil pattern.
Maybe we need to go back to the days where the lanes are tested for those bowling centres who oil the lanes like that!!!!
9 times out of 10 the bowler and the centre will know what pattern is on the lane!

I still think this idea has merit!!

Belmo

 

[TWIN CITIES TENPIN BOWL]

Jason if you can make it to our skins next year the challange if you accept it is to bowl our first 300.We have been in this location for ten years and still waiting.It truly would be GOLD.

 

[Straight_kut]

After having more of a think about this....
Instead of naming gold, silver and bronze.. just have them as you described..
A league 300.
A state level 300.
An international 300.
This to me is better than a gold, silver, bronze which is more of a 1st 2nd 3rd type thing.

All for defining what tournament or whatever they were bowled in but dont like the idea of the 1st 2nd 3rd type description.

 

[GoTheCell]

I think Trav is on the money myself. The league, state, tournament thing also takes into account the added pressure of the occasion.

 

[Easy Tiger]

I think StraightKut is on the money. I think that 99% of bowlers recognise that a 300 in a major tournament is probably more prestigious than a 300 thrown in league. It's a different, more pressured environment with much more on the line. Just like a 300 on TV is probably more prestigious than a 300 shot in qualifying (a good example is the PBA).

 

[AdrianS]

Arghh!!! if i hear one more nickname for an oiling pattern im going to scream!!!

 

[jhk67]

Very nice idea there to grade 300 games. However it doesnt matter what level it is bowled on, any 300 game is to be cherished. It is still not an easy task to bowl one (I havent as yet), but to grade them to give professionals an idea of their difficulty of the 300 is a good idea. They bowl a decent amount of them, it is hard to pick which were the tougher to bowl.

 

[VETSTAR]

Hey i was just thinking to myself while im enjoying life in Nice, France
There is a lot a chat about what a 300 is worth.....here could be a good idea!
What would a Gold Level/Silver Level/Bronze level lane pattern events or comps sound like.
Let me explain!
Example:
Monday night THS, state, national tournaments where the lanes are easy (bronze) if a 300 is bowled or any other honor score TBA could recognize this achievement at a BRONZE Level ??
State/national/sport series tournament a slightly tougher pattern (Silver)........ same as above
International events (maybe 1 or 2)/ Sport series....... GOLD oil patterns which can cater for perhaps the overseas player market and our higher averaged players here!
Each TOURNAMENT can be announced that its going to be either BRONZE/SILVER/GOLD
Each time an honor score is bowled TBA can accreditate you within each level.
Who determines the level of the oiling pattern....well im not sure about that one, but with some other peoples help on here i think this could work.
That way, those who bowl 300 on a house shot still get the recognition they deserve and those who think 300 on a NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL is worth a little more, well they forever go into history as a GOLD level award!
Just an idea??
Any thoughts people???
Belmo
ps- Will check back after Kimberly and I visit the Cannes film festival!

Like the idea but saying that I think we would need to have a different wording for it. Bowling a 300 is Pefect no matter what anyone says and having it saying its bronze level isn't something I would like to see on my award.

I like the idea of the league state and national but saying that it doesn't fix the problem centres still have diffferent house patterns.

 

[jason_doust]

I like the idea Jason. I read something similar in Bowling This Month (I think - just had a quick look and couldn't find it) a while back where I think it was John Janawicz (might've been Steve Wunderlich) was discussing rating different surface and pattern combinations in a way similar to how golf courses are rated. They were close to having a complex, but reasonable algorithm for it.

Having three readily understandable categories is a tidy solution though. Nice!

 

[jason_doust]

Arghh!!! if i hear one more nickname for an oiling pattern im going to scream!!!

How about "the hambone..." It's greasy like bacon fat!

 

[BELMO]

Ok here is my angle with all this!

Here me out on this before you make a judgment ok!

The reason why i think we do need a level of toughness to be awarded is because unlike every other sport (like golf, tennis, darts, snooker) our hazards are invisible.
When you see Tiger hit a hole in 1 thats 200 meters away, over water, in between 3 bunkers and a green that looks more like one you would see on a putt putt course, you know thats harder than a par 3 thats 110 meters away with a green extremely flat because you can SEE IT.
Now the later of the 2 holes is much easier, but its still extremely hard to get it in 1 shot.....right!


To say that a 300 game bowled on a house shot is the same as to bowling one at the US OPEN is the same is wrong.
Dont get me wrong, i have posted in other threads that every 300 game is special and should be acknowledged but because we cant see how 'hard' or 'easy' the lanes are, having a guide to toughness means you can strive for more than just a 300.

Let me explain.

Many people around will have bowled a perfect game on a house shot (for argument sake- BRONZE). They may never bowl a tournament so they may never see what a tougher pattern looks like.
Now if this person is able to understand and accept that there is a harder lane pattern on which people are bowling on, he now must enter these tournaments, bowl 300 (or any other honor score) to receive a higher acknowledgement.

What this also does is allows players to improve their high score. So instead of having a 300, they now have a 300 on a bronze level pattern and can now aspire to reach the next level.....Silver!

Outside the industry no one knows what oil really is on the lane. All they know is past that black line its slippery.
This is also a great tool to teach the public that there are different levels of patterns on a lane.


OK here is my next question and I know its going to sound awful, but again here me out!

Those who dont like the sound of bronze, silver and gold, (because it RANKS each level) are you disliking it because your 300's are/have been bowled on a bronze lane pattern. Thus making it sound like your 300 is worth less than that of say the one I bowled at the High Roller??

Ok the next question to those people:
Do you think bowling a 300 in league (where most nights you will stand in around about the same area every night) is equal to that of one where the lane pattern is regarded as 'impossible' and your changing pairs (not just 2 or 3 pairs left and right, but 30)???

OK i know you yelling at the screen saying your a knob Belmo, I cherish my 300/300's and it was not easy for me.
Well let me say that i have never said that bowling 300 was EASY!
I said it in another thread but i think i have bowled close to 310,000 games in my life and i have only bowled 31 300's. Most of those were on easier patterns to! But each one was not easy....many of them i had heaps of luck too!

All im asking is can you open your minds to see what I'm trying to say....some 300's are harder than others, but none of them are easy!

Ok my next point.

Regarding tournaments we can attain sponsorship from outside companies with a package.
If you sponsor the Tenpin CITY International Tournament, you are apart of a GOLD level event. Its the hardest pattern bowlers in Australia face and it has the most prestige attached to it because of that reason.
Your company will be apart of something that is prestigious. Its a selling point!

Ok now ill back up and talk a little more about lower averages.
If you bowl in a TUESDAY night doubles (THS) and bowl your highest game of 202, no one will dare tell you, you didnt deserve it, but now that player can understand how hard and how amazing a 300 is on a gold pattern.

For me its all about educating people. Do you know how many times i have heard (mostly from new people i have met that dont bowl apart from once a year) that they see on TV a 160 game bowled and they think they are rubblish. Thats because we cant see the oil.
Now if we tell that same person that 160 on a gold is like 200 on a bronze, i bet you the same guy cant bowl 200 on the easiest pattern in the world, and if does some how do that, it would be on a bronze pattern and now he can understand the skill we all have when playing our weekly comps to our national/international events!


THIS is all just an IDEA....if it doesnt look like working, then no harm no foul.
So to any of those who I may of offended, please understand that im not having a go, im just throwing an idea out there.

And i have no idea how to deal with how to grade what is a bronze, silver or gold pattern.........thats something for the smarter people out there not me!

Belmo

Hey Mr and Mrs Owner of totalbowling!!!!!!!!!!!!, can you add a poll to this thread, I got no idea what im doing.

YES I DO LIKE THE IDEA
NO I DONT LIKE THE IDEA
YES/NO. Some parts i like, some parts i dont!

Cheers guys

Belmo

 

[VETSTAR]

Ok here is my angle with all this!

Here me out on this before you make a judgment ok!

The reason why i think we do need a level of toughness to be awarded is because unlike every other sport (like golf, tennis, darts, snooker) our hazards are invisible.
When you see Tiger hit a hole in 1 thats 200 meters away, over water, in between 3 bunkers and a green that looks more like one you would see on a putt putt course, you know thats harder than a par 3 thats 110 meters away with a green extremely flat because you can SEE IT.
Now the later of the 2 holes is much easier, but its still extremely hard to get it in 1 shot.....right!


To say that a 300 game bowled on a house shot is the same as to bowling one at the US OPEN is the same is wrong.
Dont get me wrong, i have posted in other threads that every 300 game is special and should be acknowledged but because we cant see how 'hard' or 'easy' the lanes are, having a guide to toughness means you can strive for more than just a 300.

Let me explain.

Many people around will have bowled a perfect game on a house shot (for argument sake- BRONZE). They may never bowl a tournament so they may never see what a tougher pattern looks like.
Now if this person is able to understand and accept that there is a harder lane pattern on which people are bowling on, he now must enter these tournaments, bowl 300 (or any other honor score) to receive a higher acknowledgement.

What this also does is allows players to improve their high score. So instead of having a 300, they now have a 300 on a bronze level pattern and can now aspire to reach the next level.....Silver!

Outside the industry no one knows what oil really is on the lane. All they know is past that black line its slippery.
This is also a great tool to teach the public that there are different levels of patterns on a lane.


OK here is my next question and I know its going to sound awful, but again here me out!

Those who dont like the sound of bronze, silver and gold, (because it RANKS each level) are you disliking it because your 300's are/have been bowled on a bronze lane pattern. Thus making it sound like your 300 is worth less than that of say the one I bowled at the High Roller??

Ok the next question to those people:
Do you think bowling a 300 in league (where most nights you will stand in around about the same area every night) is equal to that of one where the lane pattern is regarded as 'impossible' and your changing pairs (not just 2 or 3 pairs left and right, but 30)???

OK i know you yelling at the screen saying your a knob Belmo, I cherish my 300/300's and it was not easy for me.
Well let me say that i have never said that bowling 300 was EASY!
I said it in another thread but i think i have bowled close to 310,000 games in my life and i have only bowled 31 300's. Most of those were on easier patterns to! But each one was not easy....many of them i had heaps of luck too!

All im asking is can you open your minds to see what I'm trying to say....some 300's are harder than others, but none of them are easy!

Ok my next point.

Regarding tournaments we can attain sponsorship from outside companies with a package.
If you sponsor the Tenpin CITY International Tournament, you are apart of a GOLD level event. Its the hardest pattern bowlers in Australia face and it has the most prestige attached to it because of that reason.
Your company will be apart of something that is prestigious. Its a selling point!

Ok now ill back up and talk a little more about lower averages.
If you bowl in a TUESDAY night doubles (THS) and bowl your highest game of 202, no one will dare tell you, you didnt deserve it, but now that player can understand how hard and how amazing a 300 is on a gold pattern.

For me its all about educating people. Do you know how many times i have heard (mostly from new people i have met that dont bowl apart from once a year) that they see on TV a 160 game bowled and they think they are rubblish. Thats because we cant see the oil.
Now if we tell that same person that 160 on a gold is like 200 on a bronze, i bet you the same guy cant bowl 200 on the easiest pattern in the world, and if does some how do that, it would be on a bronze pattern and now he can understand the skill we all have when playing our weekly comps to our national/international events!


THIS is all just an IDEA....if it doesnt look like working, then no harm no foul.
So to any of those who I may of offended, please understand that im not having a go, im just throwing an idea out there.

And i have no idea how to deal with how to grade what is a bronze, silver or gold pattern.........thats something for the smarter people out there not me!

Belmo

Hey Mr and Mrs Owner of totalbowling!!!!!!!!!!!!, can you add a poll to this thread, I got no idea what im doing.

YES I DO LIKE THE IDEA
NO I DONT LIKE THE IDEA
YES/NO. Some parts i like, some parts i dont!

Cheers guys

Belmo

Fair points I dont disagree with what you are you saying all leagues should be bronze? If so I disagree some much harder then others and being so how would you go to work out what levels are what centres and on top of that some leagues have down differenet patterns on different nights lot of problems in my view but could be hitting something here

 

[jason_doust]

I found the article(s)! Neil Stremmel (USBC Technical Director) wrote a series of excellent articles in BTM from October-December 2006 on how to rate a bowling centre's difficulty and then apply a rating to it, much like a slope or course rating in golf. This would then allow a "par" score to be attached to the house. It was very in depth and looked at:

• Oil pattern
• Lane surface (Type and Age)
• Age and type of pins
• Flat gutters
• Kickbacks and kickback plates
• Temperature and humidity
• Lane topography
• Ball and bowler

He deliberately left deck tilt out of the article, as he said it was trouble enough for an article of it's own.

Maybe we could ask a new USBC ambassador to send him an e-mail and see how it's going or if they've got a similar idea in the pipes? If only we knew such a great and well connected guy...

Cheers,
Jason

 

[BELMO]

Jase,

Ill call a few guys who may know someone who you are looking for!

Belmo