Finally

Well, today is my Friday and in two and a half hours my weekend will begin. Last week we learned how horrible a lane condition Burley's bowling alley has. I was excited to bowl league night on Friday. It was going to be on a lane condition that actually uses oil, it was going to be in my hometown, and it was going to be at the bowling alley that I grew up bowling at. Walking in the bowling center I learned that we were going to be on lanes 11 & 12! Yikes! Those lanes are the worst in the house. I have only bowled on good game on those lanes in my life, that being a 290. It was some 9 years ago maybe? Lanes 11 and 12 always seem to cause havoc. If you know anything about bowling, you know that hitting the pocket is the place to attack the pins. Well, it seems 11 and 12 do not understand this theory. To me, they have always left me with pocket 9 pins, pocket 8 pins and pocket splits. I knew for certain that I have never bowled a 700 series on those lanes and have been rewarded when bowling good.
Burley really upset me the week before. On the drive home I decided that I might not even want to bowl a league at all next year. This piece of crap bowling center in some po-dunk town forced me to doubt the joy that bowling sometimes brings. It made me doubt any hint of talent that I thought I had, and it also made me think that my new style of bowling wasn't going to work. So, back to hometown bowling and oil on the lanes. My first game was a 217, nothing too great, but over average on the worst pair in the house so I was pleased. Game two was a bit better, had an open after missing a ten pin, but managed to score a 245. The guy that I was bowling against on the other team was probably bowling his best all year, but was mad that I was winning. He wasn't expressing his displeasure to me, but I over heard him talking with his team about it. On this league (handicap) I had to beat him by 20 pins a game in order to capture a point for my team. The first game I beat him barely and the second game even though I bowled the 245 I had to strike all three in the tenth to beat him for he had already posted a 221. He struck in the first frame of the last game and I spared. I then overheard him tell his team that if he bowls a 300 I couldn't beat him. He fell way off the pace and I strung together 4 or 5 strikes and going into the tenth frame I needed a strike and a spare or a 9 spare and strike to get my first 700 series of the year. I struck my first ball and needed only 9 pins to get a 700. I needed 9 pins in two attempts of throwing the ball. I hit the pocket and left a ten pin, finally with three weeks left for this year's winter league I hit a 700. I picked the ten pin and hit a 239 for a 701 series. I had been close three other times before during this crappy year shooting a 694 and two other 697s. Friday night gave me hope that my new style might work, and maybe just maybe give me incentive on bowling another league next year. We will have to see how I feel after Nationals in July?