Obviously, preparation comes from prac-
tice. Not simple bowl-a-few-games prac- tice, mind you. Good preparation comes from organized, purposeful practice. You should be willing to devote yourself to three to fi ve organized practice sessions. A good practice regimen should help im-
prove your consistency and your ability to ad- just. In today’s game, versatility is critical. Be-
ing able to alter your speed and your release are key to that versatility, and are things that should be added into your practice routine. The key to productive practice is to work
not only on areas of strength, but also on ar- eas of weakness. We all fall into the trap of working on things we’re good at. But working on all areas of the game, particularly versatil- ity, is important because when you fi nd your-
NARROW MINDED: The key to practicing on your physical game is to focus on one thing.
self on conditions that call for something that may not necessarily be part of your “A” game, you can adjust with the knowledge that you haven’t totally ignored that part of your game. When I was coaching at Delaware State, I
never asked my players to do something that they hadn’t at least practiced. Naturally, there are several ways to accomplish most tasks, and as a bowler you need to know which ways work best for you. If a condition calls for you to get the ball further down the lane, one bowler may accom- plish that through a change in speed, whereas another may do it with a change in release. You can only determine which approach you’ll be more successful with if you’ve practiced that task.
Get Down To It Set aside one week for practice. If you can manage to bowl fi ve practice sessions, great. If not, try to set aside at least three days. An hour should give you ample time. Too much longer and it will be diffi cult for you to maintain focus and energy. Practice should be broken down into
three categories: Spares, your physi- cal game and ball motion/lane play. Always start with spares. There is no fun
way to practice spares, and it is too easy to dis- miss them. Get them out of the way fi rst. I’m a fi rm believer in just shooting 10 of
Patrick Allen
whatever spare you are practicing, and aim- ing for a high percentage of success. Shoot 10 7-pins, then 10 10-pins, followed by 10 2-pins and 10 3-pins. There are no shortcuts to this. If you are lucky enough to be at a bowling cen-
ter whose pinsetters allow you to set up particular spares, great. If not, shoot these spares off of a full rack. If you’re shooting at a 10 pin, you’re success- ful as long as you don’t hit the 3 pin in the pro- cess. The same with a 7 pin. As long as you don’t hit the 2, it’s a good shot. If you are shooting the 2 or 3, just make sure you don’t hit the head pin.
17 USBOWLER APRIL 2012
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