weekend warriors

[bfcc]

hi all , i was reading some of the old post and found this comment <BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Tahoma, Arial, Helvetica, ">quote

we in this country are amatuer bowlers.weekend warriors.when we play against professionals we lose.not all the time but more often than not they will win. this is not a bad attitude but the fact of the matter. so the upshot of that is that i am at a distinct disadvantage when i play against a professional.so i don't want to risk my money in this situation. so why am i expected to bowl against sponsored bowlers. they should be banned or at least handicapped in some way so i will feel that i have some sort of chance.in these days of carry contest everywhere i cannot hope to compete with these fortunate ones if i cannot afford to go and buy a new ball every 3-4 weeks,and i can't.what hope do i have in this situation.

now this may cause people to get upset but if this is the way some of the fringe tounrament bowlers are feeling is there anything that can be done to encourage them to compete??is being sponsored that big of an advantage?YES
i think the way the game is going today with the price of equipment the sponsored bowlers have a huge advantage,today game is all about equipment and who can afford to keep up . after bowling the last couple of tournaments i have decided to buy another ball and try and keep up , but i am looking at $400 outlay and this means i won't be able to bowl the next couple of tournaments, this were the advantage for the sponsored bowlers really starts to show. this will be the second new ball in the last 2 years(yes i have tried some second hand gear with limited success)i am not sure how many balls the sponsored bowlers have recieved but i think it would be more than 2.

now before all you sponsored bowlers jump down the net and kill me, i know that you have battled hard over the years to get your sponsorship and well done.i am just concerned with tournament numbers falling and the cost of bowling going through the roof we will end up with 10 or 12 sponsored bowlers showing up and bowling against each other and no one else!!

this topic is not meant to have a go at anyone,it is just meant to make everyone think and find away to get fringe tournament bowlers back to tournaments.

 

[GeorgeF]

Well BFCC you had to raise it again didn't you. Well once again I will make a small contribution to this topic as one of the "sponsored" bowlers you speak of.

I think the key to bringing the fringe bowlers back and making things a little fairer is for all the bowling centres to adobt the "SPORT" patterns. In doing so you will see more emphasis on shot making, unlike the past 5-7 years when it was very important to have the right ball in your hand. The scores will come down and bring back some skill into our game.

Yes I bowl with the best balls in the world and which gives me a tremendous advantage, but in the end of the day you still have to make the shots to win the game. Look at it from a sponsors point of view, they give free products to bowlers who they think are marketable, marketable in the sense that they can make the shots when they have to and win events. In doing so setting a good example for the company and the products they use.

If you look at the hand full of bowlers who are sponsored in Australia you will find a great selection of bowlers who can make shots when it counts. Frawls, Brenton, Michael Muir, Jason Walsh, Carl Bottomly just to name a few. All of these guys are experienced on an International stage and can make the shots when it counts (I know I hate playing these guys in matchplay).

In summary Jeff I see what your saying and can only offer my suggestion of the SPORT pattern solving some of these problems you raise. Having juniors averaging 240+ over 16 games is crazy, let's bring some skill back and get everyone involved again.

 

[Magoo]

Hi all,
As a "fringe bowler" myself here is my two bits.Firstly to george yes sports conditions would help bring a few more bowlers back into tournaments but it wouldn't make it entirely fair still to all bowlers who don't have any sort of sponsorship or financial backing from other sources.Why? well this game has come down to who has the latest and greatest thing on the market.Now I like bfcc am not bagging the people who have gotten sponsorship but just giving my point of view.Here is a question for you(using you so i can get a direct response).How much more confidence does it give you for whatever tournament it is to know that you have all the latest equipment in your bags?You are able to just change balls till you find something that carries everything.Where as the newset ball I own is a blue nail (which was second hand)Now as you and myself have just said yes sports conditions would help make it a bit fairer but it would still come down to who has the better equipment choice.Just a viewpoint from a fringe bowler.
Till next time
Tryhard

 

[milkman]

How the hell Track thinks you are marketable George when you bowl in tournaments with black and pink striped pants is beyond me :^)

 

[petebowl]

New equipment is only a slight advantage, in my opinion.Where the advantage now exists is the sponsored bowler's have access to the technical knowledge of the ball company, this information can become a substantial factor when used to it's full potential.
The reason the "sponsored bowlers" ended up having a sponsor is because they bowl better than the rest of us most of the time.
So what I am saying is, they already had an advantage BY BEING BETTER BOWLERS.
I recon that most sports today would have competitors of lesser ability, trying to point to the difference in equipment as the sole reason they are not getting the same level of results as the guys that are beating them week after week.....Sorry but fact is THE GUYS AND GIRLS THAT ARE WINNING ARE BETTER THAN THE REST OF US.......
and if I am wrong about you
Get your own ball sponsor !!!!!!!