Senior lane conditions??

[twenban]

After listening to what every one is saying including the TBA I believe there has been a misunderstanding of what Senior's want from their tournaments. I believe the majority don't want 11:1 patterns that you can't miss on but need the lane conditions to be not physically taxing, and it is this that we mean easy. Yo have to remember we are over 50 years old and don't throw 30 revs.

At my age I no longer have the physical capability of hurling the ball down the lane to combat dry conditions of days gone by and now look to having head oil to stroke the ball down the lanes, they don't have to be easy to score on just a fair condition. I am just tired of lane conditions being so inconsistent because centers try to provide a high scoring condition when we simply just want to enjoy our bowling.

Myself, I have thoroughly enjoyed bowling league on the WTBA patterns because they actually improved my game. I know these would be quite a culture shock so I certainly don't advocate bowling our events on those patterns but I am sure the TBA or someone could come
up with adjusted Senior patterns so that both sides of the game can agree on. I look forward to everyone's input, because bowling can still be fun without 230 - 240 averages being bowled.

What do you think?? Can we have set Senior patterns in Senior bowling that everyone will enjoy, and will this improve our
competitiveness when we compete overseas - especially those thinking of going to Las Vegas in December.

 

[Susanne]

Hi Terry

Absolutely agree and I believe that decisions made in meetings 2 or 3 years ago need to be revisited.

 

[twenban]

Thanks, I just wanted to raise the issue and see who if anyone wishes to add their two cents to the topic. The TBA should be more on-board with Seniors because it is a large demographic with growing numbers in tournaments and I want to see it stay this way. With younger bowlers coming out they will start averaging over 240 or even 250 in each event and we should be setting something up to ensure the future or it may just go the way of so many other good things in bowling.

 

[jimcross]

Sorry for being dense, but which ones are you saying will be averaging 240 / 250?

 

[jason_doust]

Hey Sue, Jim and Terry. (Ladies first.) Happy New Year. Shaun Cummings just "aged in" and averaged 249 and a bit for 10 games in a shoot out at Nth Strathfield. (With a ball drilled for him at Bowler's Edge. Yay! First gratuitous plug of the year!) There were a couple of 240-odd results last year.

Seriously though, forget the high rev guys. The straighter guys like Shaun or Christian Purdue will take the money on some of those house shots. They won't be able to miss the hole on most of them. Work out how to carry on the tug-left-into-the-hold shot and it's all over. And God help all of us when George gets old enough. He'll just sit on that blend for a 4 board move day. (2 left when they carry down a bit, then two right as they "burn up" LHS-style. (His line, not mine!) A lot depends on the surface though. Some houses just play awfully when you put the WTBA patterns down. (Anything with old panels, basically...)

Bring back crown oil! Multiple angles means multiple ways to play it and hopefully something closer to being fair for more styles. Less room for more player parity sounds like a fair deal to me.

 

[Brookie King]

Just a quick question Terry...what did you think about last weekends condition at the Hammer Classic ? I though it was pretty good for all styles.

Kev

 

[Susanne]

Hi Terry, Jason.
I (Steven) aged in last year and found that the conditions were much different to house conditions in the way they played as they broke down. In my opinion they are too dry and favour the less trafficed areas on the left.
Jason.....An ATBSONSW monthly tournament bowled in a very high scoring house on a house pattern with 12 of 17 bowlers over the card is no recommendation. However it does show how ridiculous the so called house or tournament patterns have become.
The only tournament last year to set a pattern that challenged bowlers was Sydney and the averages were reduced to a reasonable level.
The Hammer this year played better than the posted pattern may have indicated, but still favoured a minority, with 3 of the top 4 positions being filled by southpaws( mens division ).
Congratulations to those bowlers who managed to find a way of carrying the corners.
In summary, I agree that the oiling patterns are too dry on the right and tournament organisers should look to set a fair and even condition that will not see averages run wild. Those who bowled in Guam last year should agree that what we bowled on all year did nothing to prepare us for International competition.

Steven Smith

 

[bobw]

I also completely agree with Terry. I believe that we Seniors should have a series of patterns that we could lay down for each tournament.
Patterns that do not provide for 70% of the field to shoot the card but make you think about where and how you put the ball down to shoot the card.
We are not to old to continue to develop our game and still learn.
I know we all want to call home and tell our partners we shot 400 over but really is this helping our game at all or just making us feel good?
It doesn't have to be a Guam condition but something that makes you think about what you are doing as opposed to closing our eyes and
throwing it at an arrow.
Perhaps a poll could be taken and if there are more in favour of this change then we could make a request to TBA to come up with a series
of senior patterns that must be used in order to be sanctioned.
As Terry suggested there are pattern already available and most houses these days have a kegel so we don't have to re invent anything.

 

[zoedog]

Hi All,

I don't often make comments on these forums but I would like to see more oil volume in the Senior's Tournaments and so you have to think, focus and bowl correctly to score. In the bag I have heavy oil and medium oil bowling balls but cannot remember the last time I had to use them !!

 

[strop]

Well, I for one don't care what pattern is laid down.

How-ever over the past few years now with the Seniors I thought they preferred a pattern that was scorable
and that every-one could go home feeling good.

I found with the tougher conditions prior to the last one with the SA Classic, more people *****ed about
how hard they were, yet last year when we put down a very similar, very score-able, very Seniors Aust. Open pattern down.
I only got a couple of comments.

People spending a lot of money to come and bowl crap.......??????....well you tell, what's it going to be............

Have I been brain washed incorrectly by the Certain seniors or what.

We will be running the same pattern as last year, except putting it down a bit sooner to take hold as suggested
by a very good senior female bowler,......no names...JB.

Cheers

Tony

 

[Aussie]

MMMM!!!! The Second Highest ave Was Janette Baker so whats the beef here???????
OHHHHH!!!!!!! you forgot to mention that.

 

[Lefty Can't Carry]

In reply to Steve Smith that it was dry on the right, well it was dry on the left as well

I would like to see the volume of oil increased, so that one doesn't have to hurl the ball, with all your might on each shot. It gets very wearing after 8 games per day.

My 2 cents

 

[strop]

No beef Andy,

Last year the Pattern wasn't laid down until the weekend of the tournament.

Her request was to put it down a few days earlier to let the condition settle in...............Go Figure!!

Cheers

Tony

 

[twenban]

Firstly, last weekend was way too dry especially on Saturday when I had to resort to spinning the ball to get it down the lane something I have only done a few times in 50 years of bowling. The Sunday was better with the ball going further down but still bowling with my longest ball. The reason for the corners was due to being dry, if the pattern had more volume and a bit longer then the ball would retain the energy to carry the corners. Plus the left domination is starting to become an issue because a right hander (men) hasn't won a major senior event in QLD since 2010 and I can't see it improving this year.

I like what Tony has done by using a pattern known to be successful with maybe a tweak due to the local condition and totally agree with his logic that it enables bowlers to travel and have an idea what the condition is. I hope Canberra simply does the same as last year I know it's a huge ratio but due to the lane condition it is necessary.

So maybe we have pattern number #1 already and now need to find two more, but we could use the Rooty Hill condition as number #3 and adjust #1 using Jason's thoughts, of a crown pattern. More volume and then we could use all the balls we own instead of the same one every senior event. Plus don't we want to be prepared for overseas events, I would have thought everyone would like to finally do what we have dreamed of so for so long and that' really compete on an international level. If we could find out what pattern was going to be put down in December in Vegas that would be a big help too many. It's time for change instead of simply plodding along waiting for the decline. But firstly who sets the patterns and how do we effect the change??