Its even tougher.

[Susanne]

Hey Mandy. Robbo300 is Chris and Heva300 is Heather. Needless to say you are absolutely correct.

 

[mandyk]

sorry Chris/Heather !Still waiting to be notified that I didnt make the squad, oops I mean team...

 

[Tintam]

I like Robert Chinner are amazed at the number of NON Senior bowlers that want to make comment on this posting. At the Australian Open there wereover 40 bowlers that were 60 and over. Any bowler who is not at least 50 should not comment on what seniors need. When you reach 60+ and have arthritis in both hands, two crook shoulders, two knees that are shot and a back that is buggered then come and tell us what conditions you would like to bowl on. 98% of Seniors use these events as a chance to catch up with "old" friends, remember the good old days and share a few drinks. The easier the conditions the better at our age. Those seniors wanting to get OS conditions go and bowl in the Adult division "good luck".

Hey Steve, did you forget to take your pills. What planet are you on old boy !! Who travels 100's miles and outlays a fortune to travel across the country to catchup with old friends?? No one that bowls the Seniors Circuit thats for sure.
Its interesting reading posts from the younger bowlers, hey, they will be joining us soon, and they know their stuff, so be polite !!!!!!! ha ha

The last 2 senior tournaments were hard, for sure. But, the purpose was to lay a hard condition for those that wanted to be selected in the Worlds. You just cant give them an easy path to selection, it needs to be tough. BUT, this made is very unpopular for the other bowlers. 111 bowers in AO, and every one knew what the condition was to be, so just suck it up, the decision has been made - get Canberra over, select our top 8 bowlers, and look forward to Adelaide, Perth and Sydney tournaments and better lane conditions.

good luck to those hoping for selection,
brenda
ps: cant teach an old dog tricks, but, I am trying,,,,,, to bowl on a 3:1 pattern

 

[bridgie]

Hi Belly

I disagree with your above statement Steve. I do not use these events to "catch up with "old" friends, I bowl these events to satisfy my competitive nature. Although these patterns are extremely difficult for a large number of bowlers and more so, the ladies, I would prefer to bowl a low average in a ranked event than a huge average on a house pattern. I get no personal rewards from bowling on house patterns and avoid doing so on a regular basis. On the rare occasions that my body and my brain allow me to bowl successfully in a tournament is, to me, an achievement.

A very large number of Seniors suffer injuries but still get up and bowl when we can hardly walk. I don't believe we do this "to remember the good old days and share a few drinks" we could do this as a spectator and not waste our money.

Yes, I have made some friends and we do enjoy catching up, which is a bonus, but we leave that until we are off the lanes. The Senior & Grand Senior Ladies may not outwardly display their competitiveness but I can assure you it is alive and thriving and believe that most would agree with this.

PS: To those that did not bowl at Keon Park: The pattern played as I expected it would and as far as I could ascertain was set as advertised

Regards Susanne

 

[bridgie]

Well said Susanne, I can't believe the attitude of some seniors. I have always believed the sport is greater than the individual!! I get the impression that unless the lanes are "ditched" some people can't bowl, sorry, score. Name any other sport where the condition is altered just to make the competitor happy? Why is averaging 200+ so important? Is it only to satisfy ego? Surely where the bowler places in a tournament is more important than the score?
Keep in mind that there will be more and more "adult" bowlers becoming seniors and because they have been bought up on the tougher patterns they will dominate our tournaments on our "ditched" lane conditions.
We need to have tougher conditions so we can remain competitive and not just think we are competitive because we can hit a ditch.
Bridgie

 

[CHIN]

But in the 'old' days, bowlers were not travelling/bowling with so much equipment. Like it or not, it is the way our sport has developed - just look at league nowdays - 3 games x 6/8 balls. Competition is more about what equipment you have than what you score in some cases. In saying that, the equipment certainly kept me in the game for a lot more years of enjoyment. Cannot turn back the clock ! IMHO.

how many times do you hear or see on here people complaining they have been to a tournament with 8-10 balls, bowled crap, and the lanes have been nothing like what was advertised or what they expected or what they have practiced on.

 

[Dougy]

I dont like talking about other sports to ours but wat other sports test out wat they are about to play on? U dont test a pitch out for cricket or the courts for tennis or even the footy.. I say harden up play wat is in front of you and if your a good bowler god forbid u have to adjust with ya feet and change your line. We there to play agaist the lanes 'you V lanes' so it should'nt be easy.

 

[John_Velo]

Ok I am a senior, I think, well I have plenty of grey hair and I am old enough to remember when one ball was enough.

Unfortunately you some times just don't have the right ball with you. So you move your feet, until something works good enough.

But the one thing everybody will do is find the lanes the same way. They will take four or five steps, reach the black line and there they are.

Scores don't matter. Just have some fun, because when you are having fun, your scores will be better.

 

[CHIN]

I dont like talking about other sports to ours but wat other sports test out wat they are about to play on? U dont test a pitch out for cricket or the courts for tennis or even the footy.. I say harden up play wat is in front of you and if your a good bowler god forbid u have to adjust with ya feet and change your line. We there to play agaist the lanes 'you V lanes' so it should'nt be easy.

look out, there gonna come back at you with:-

you dont have to take 6-10 cricket bats or tennis rackets to play cricket or tennis

 

[Dougy]

look out, there gonna come back at you with:-

you dont have to take 6-10 cricket bats or tennis rackets to play cricket or tennis

Haha well those sports stars still take 4-5 batts/rackets cause wen we see them break they get a new one from the sheds or out of the bag.

 

[jimcross]

Haha well those sports stars still take 4-5 batts/rackets cause wen we see them break they get a new one from the sheds or out of the bag.

OK then: That's easy. When the ball you're using cracks open, you're allowed to use another one!
I like that idea.

 

[Brenton_Davy]

I dont like talking about other sports to ours but wat other sports test out wat they are about to play on? U dont test a pitch out for cricket or the courts for tennis or even the footy.. I say harden up play wat is in front of you and if your a good bowler god forbid u have to adjust with ya feet and change your line. We there to play agaist the lanes 'you V lanes' so it should'nt be easy.

Actually Dougy, Tennis player DO get to practice the surface they are going to play on in the days leading up to the tournament, including centre court (usually for the top seeds) and the nets at each ground are supposed to be representative of what they are going to find on the match pitch. Lawn bowls, darts, athletics, swimming, the list is endless. It is an unfortunate fact of bowling life that there are only probably 10% of the field capable of winning on any given weekend and of those, it's who has the best reaction/carry with the equipment they have with them. Indeed, this is the new skill set in bowling, ie, setting up your equipment in such a way that it best "matches up" with your game and the lane conditions you are competing on. I have put matches up in " " because that is the single greatest factor in determing who is going to win a tournament. Whether it is a WTBA/Sports pattern or THS, "matching up" is the secret to winning.

Practising on the surface/condition is a reasonable request for ANY sportsperson. Given that our playing surface is conditional on age, wear, environment, atmospherics, etc it will play differently from day to day, centre to centre, lane to lane. Having said all that, we can only play on what we are presented with and hope that we can find a way to "match up".