Using bowlliards to track progress?
- Thread starter Chili Palmer
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dquarasr
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I played my first full game of Bowlliards. Wow, humbling.
Here's what I learned or confirmed I already knew:
- It's SO easy to get caught up in playing the rack that I forget to focus on fundamentals, tangent line recognition, and speed control for the shot I am down on. I know it is recommended we stop thinking when shoot, but given only 2 days ago I overhauled my stroke, I MUST focus on elbow and shoulder position to eliminate a habitual chicken-wing. When I focus on a steady shoulder, accuracy goes up tremendously.
- My decision making is terrible. From league play, I knew it needed improvement, but I had no idea just how much it killed runs. Keeping score was eye-opening.
My best run didn't come until the 8th frame, and it was an 8, resulting in my only mark of the game, a spare. Did I leverage it in the 9th frame? Um, no. A three on the first inning of the 9th frame.
So, my first inning of frames at the beginning of this game was 1, 1 , 2, 3, 2. This was with BIH in the kitchen. Terrible! After I paid more attention to pattern play, and focusing on shot making and shape (remember, I said I get caught up in the game and forget to focus), it got better, but not great.
I hesitate to disclose my embarrassing final score: 61. I plan to use Bowlliards to help me make better decisions and learn to focus. This is highly instructive, and despite my horrid results, I really enjoyed it.
(I am SL4/SL5 in APA 8/9.)
Here's what I learned or confirmed I already knew:
- It's SO easy to get caught up in playing the rack that I forget to focus on fundamentals, tangent line recognition, and speed control for the shot I am down on. I know it is recommended we stop thinking when shoot, but given only 2 days ago I overhauled my stroke, I MUST focus on elbow and shoulder position to eliminate a habitual chicken-wing. When I focus on a steady shoulder, accuracy goes up tremendously.
- My decision making is terrible. From league play, I knew it needed improvement, but I had no idea just how much it killed runs. Keeping score was eye-opening.
My best run didn't come until the 8th frame, and it was an 8, resulting in my only mark of the game, a spare. Did I leverage it in the 9th frame? Um, no. A three on the first inning of the 9th frame.
So, my first inning of frames at the beginning of this game was 1, 1 , 2, 3, 2. This was with BIH in the kitchen.
Terrible! After I paid more attention to pattern play, and focusing on shot making and shape (remember, I said I get caught up in the game and forget to focus), it got better, but not great.I hesitate to disclose my embarrassing final score: 61. I plan to use Bowlliards to help me make better decisions and learn to focus. This is highly instructive, and despite my horrid results, I really enjoyed it.
(I am SL4/SL5 in APA 8/9.)
I use fairly light….guessing 8-10 mph? Enough to separate, get 7,8 out of the triangle. Ideal is having 1 or 2 somewhere between head string and mid table to go side pocket for 1st shot. I usually end up with 6 or more below mid table or 3rd diamond. My friend blasts and couldn’t care less about spotting pocketed balls. And whoops me.
I love seeing this topic come up. I had a Diamond 9 footer in the basement of my old house and tended to practice/play alone most of the time because most of my buddies lived fairly far away. Besides straight pool, Bowliards became my go-to game to practice. One of the biggest lessons I learned from that game that I haven't seen mentioned yet, is how to deal with a missed ball.
Let's face it. We all start out with a 300 in mind. But as soon as that goal went out the window it was difficult for me to retain focus for the rest of the game. But the more I played the better I got at putting that miss behind me. Sure it stung particularly bad when I'd strung together 6 or 7 racks. But I eventually got to a point to where I'd just take a break, sit at the table, figure out what I did wrong, maybe get something to drink, and go back at it. I never did get a 300 but on one magical night I did put together something in the 260's. I don't remember the actual number but I know I was in the zone.
Oh, and full disclosure... That 260-something was nowhere near my average at the time. If I remember correctly I started in the 120's and by the time I sold my house/table I was averaging somewhere around the 170's.
Let's face it. We all start out with a 300 in mind. But as soon as that goal went out the window it was difficult for me to retain focus for the rest of the game. But the more I played the better I got at putting that miss behind me. Sure it stung particularly bad when I'd strung together 6 or 7 racks. But I eventually got to a point to where I'd just take a break, sit at the table, figure out what I did wrong, maybe get something to drink, and go back at it. I never did get a 300 but on one magical night I did put together something in the 260's. I don't remember the actual number but I know I was in the zone.
Oh, and full disclosure... That 260-something was nowhere near my average at the time. If I remember correctly I started in the 120's and by the time I sold my house/table I was averaging somewhere around the 170's.
dquarasr
Registered
As a newbie at Bowlliards, I recognized in half a game that a worthy goal was to have a few balls go into then out of the kitchen. Using high speed i got many balls in the kitchen but none eligible for shots in the sides so only had long shots from the kitchen; i also made at least one ball that i spotted which clustered the spot. I took a little off the speed, and i made no balls on the break so no spotting, and strangely, balls that entered the kitchen came out to mid-table so I could shoot them.
There is a possibility that leaving the cue is the best possible choice after the break but, I would guess that's rarely the case. Given it's only 10 balls and anything goes anywhere there are, obviously, tons of options, but I suggest you always look at every ball on the table before making that decision.
I played my first full game of Bowlliards. Wow, humbling.
Here's what I learned or confirmed I already knew:
- It's SO easy to get caught up in playing the rack that I forget to focus on fundamentals, tangent line recognition, and speed control for the shot I am down on. I know it is recommended we stop thinking when shoot, but given only 2 days ago I overhauled my stroke, I MUST focus on elbow and shoulder position to eliminate a habitual chicken-wing. When I focus on a steady shoulder, accuracy goes up tremendously.
- My decision making is terrible. From league play, I knew it needed improvement, but I had no idea just how much it killed runs. Keeping score was eye-opening.
My best run didn't come until the 8th frame, and it was an 8, resulting in my only mark of the game, a spare. Did I leverage it in the 9th frame? Um, no. A three on the first inning of the 9th frame.
So, my first inning of frames at the beginning of this game was 1, 1 , 2, 3, 2. This was with BIH in the kitchen.
I hesitate to disclose my embarrassing final score: 61. I plan to use Bowlliards to help me make better decisions and learn to focus. This is highly instructive, and despite my horrid results, I really enjoyed it.
(I am SL4/SL5 in APA 8/9.)
I highlighted the key word in your post - humbling. I have shown lots of people this game and the majority of those people are either humbled or pissed when the match is over. I think the key point is in 14.1 there's generally no end goal. Sure, you're trying to beat your previous high score but really, you're just trying not to miss and when you do the game is over but, in Bowlliards you have an ACTUAL goal of making all 100 balls. It is an entirely different mental process, especially when you miss and then realize how that miss will affect your final score.
Here are some things I utilize bowlliards to work on. You can use most games to work on most of these things but bowlliards is such a simple game it's easy to focus on these things instead of the game itself, if that makes sense.
1) The break:
I hit them as hard as I can while still trying to keep whitey in the middle of the table. This doesn't help my break for any rotation style games but it has helped my stroke in general (this skill has transferred directly to stun follow/draw shots) and my 8B break over the years.
2) Spotting trouble balls:
Immediately after the break I'm looking for locked up balls, balls on the rail, balls blocked by other balls, etc. If there are trouble spots I address them immediately if possible or look for the first opportunity to do so i.e. if there are a couple of balls that nee to be separated (and hint - quit smacking balls when you need to break them out, see more below).
3) Break outs and how to play them:
First: Start learning IF things need to be broken out. An example from the other day, me and my son were playing a game (not bowlliards but irrelevant) and the 5 was on the long rail (about 2 diamonds up from corner pocket) and the 4 was just about touching it but slightly closer to the side pocket - the 4 passed the 5 to the closest pocket but it was close, it definitely went the long way down the rail into the other corner pocket on the same long rail. He chose to smack the 3B and try blasting the 4/5 - he missed the 3 and didn't touch the 4/5.
Start to really look at balls and evaluate every ball into every pocket - do not move stuff that does not need to be moved.
Second: "What happens when I break those out and I get a crap roll and whitey stops right there - what other balls can I make after that - THIS is the number one reason you breakout balls early - so you have options when things go wrong, because they will. Once I find an easy ball to make after the breakout I start looking at how to get to the breakout using nothing but stop shots. If a shot requires the CB to move to get into position for the breakout then just shoot the breakout now because that one time the CB rolls that extra inch you'll be screwed and you'll get a crap score - ask me how I know
Third - stop smacking stuff when doing breakouts. Study the tangent line, learn how it affects ball movement and utilize it. I rarely hit breakouts hard enough for the CB to roll much further than the breakout (if possible). Pay attention to where balls will go, how far they will go, will they block other things, maybe you can use one mess of balls to breakout something at the other end of the table - start looking at tangent lines and where locked up balls will go - you'd be surprised at how many times you can kill two birds with one stone with a little imagination.
3) Combos:
I will play combos in bowlliards but not too often. I generally look to see what happens with the middle ball (the first object ball in a combo) and see where it's going to go. I try not to have to setup for that middle ball after a combo, a simple miss-hit can/will send the CB or that middle OB on a different tangent line (even when you make the OB) - play the combo to setup for something else if possible.
4) Stop shots - this really is one of the major things I have focused on, especially in the early years, when playing bowlliards.
Move the CB as LITTLE as possible! Period, end of story. This takes time to change your thinking process but it will pay off. After I look for troubled balls after the break I will always start looking for stop shot patterns. How many balls can I make using stop shots, should I start with those? Should I end with those? Should I break out now or after a couple of stop shots, etc.
My suggestion is immediately after the break grab the CB and line up every ball/pocket combo on the table. Yes, I mean put the CB on the table and act like you're lining up a ball in a corner pocket and look for the following 1) What happens if I do a stop shot 2) Where does the tangent line take me if I cut this (either direction) 3) what happens if I follow or draw - meanwhile, I'm looking to see what other object balls will fall into line after I make this ball. After you've lined up the first ball into one of the pockets, do the same in the other 5 pockets with the same ball, when that's done - do the same for the other 9 balls! If you put the work in, it will pay off and you'll start to see patterns and you'll start realizing how little you have to move the CB to get stuff done.
If I played with BIH in kitchen that's how I would do it also, much like a 9B break IMHO but since I take BIH anywhere I hit them hard.
I'm glad others are enjoying the game, as mentioned in my first post, there are many ways to practice pool and track your progress, I have found this game to be the most fun and convenient way of doing that for over 35 years
LOL, still chuckling at humbling, for those that have never played - I DARE you to post up what you think you'll get then post up what you actually get
That's an excellent point about the miss. I have a buddy (older 75 y/o) who immediately gets flustered when he misses and the next few racks are complete crap, I think his highest score was 115'sh.
This is a great game to work on that.
People also need to separate practice from high run attempts.
I rarely go for a high run anymore and am generally just shooting around having fun but people should take the time and focus on practicing a couple of matches, at least rack and break 10 balls and just work on your game - THEN go for a high run - don't do both at the same time
I certainly am not a pro, but, have enjoyed a great amateur run way beyond any thoughts I had years ago. I heard about bowlliards back in 1980's and have kept my yearly totals and accumulating totals on two old plastic grocery counters. I do about 1500 games a year of bowlliards and now have over 43,000 games on bowlliards, love the apollo free bowling scoresheets you can print online, Thanks Much, I however, do not start the game with ball in hand after the break, I play it where it lies, hurts the score for sure, but, ball in hand became to boring. Best I can tell, about a 203 lifetime average on 8 foot tables, fairly tough pockets. I love this game as your making balls, using stroke, and most important, not getting bored while practicing.
That's a whole lot of bowlliards. I would put mine somewhere around sub 10K?
Played my first game. * Full disclosure: 7 ft. Valley with standard pockets and championship tour cloth
I chose to play no bih to help balance the valley pockets.
Final score 127.
Thoughts: missed a couple easy shots due to lack of concentration. This was the difference between scoring a strike or spare and leaving an open frame...in at least 3 different turns.
I broke just hard enough to feel confident in squatting the cue ball.
It is embarrassing how many times I rattled a ball and thought "BS, that ball should have fallen"...and was VERY tempted to tap it in and continue my run...how sad is it to consider cheating your own self?
I feel 150-175 is very attainable after a few dozen more tries...
Thanks for the thread...definitely a fun way to practice...
I chose to play no bih to help balance the valley pockets.
Final score 127.
Thoughts: missed a couple easy shots due to lack of concentration. This was the difference between scoring a strike or spare and leaving an open frame...in at least 3 different turns.
I broke just hard enough to feel confident in squatting the cue ball.
It is embarrassing how many times I rattled a ball and thought "BS, that ball should have fallen"...and was VERY tempted to tap it in and continue my run...how sad is it to consider cheating your own self?
I feel 150-175 is very attainable after a few dozen more tries...
Thanks for the thread...definitely a fun way to practice...
Another thought to improve your score, sometimes, you get out of shape and if your playing without taking ball in hand after the break, you need to look at the situation. Instead of taking a wild bank shot, if you have not missed yet, tap the cue ball to a location where you can continue your run and get the spare as if you go for the strike and miss, then end up with nothing, your score will suffer. I have always thought of this as playing a safe in a match. Do this twice a round if needed and you probably put 20 to 30 points on your score right away by just playing smarter.
Well done, it's amazing how much those misses hurt. I believe when I hit my high of 257 I had two spares and no open frames, I will have to take a look later to confirm. Point being, in this game it's very easy to see the ramifications of a miss. I think I mentioned this before but in 14.1 when you miss you're just done, 1 miss ends the game (high run attempts anyways), but in bowling, you keep shooting and have to deal with the ramifications of that miss, it's a slightly different pressure.
Here's a link to the website I use for scoring, I'm sure there are others and a friend of mine uses a different one and is happy, I like this one because I found it's one of the easiest to score. Someday I would like to find a free bowling app that allows you to retain your scores. As is, I just screen print my games and sometimes I write them down and sometimes I don't.
www.bowlinggenius.com
Bowling Score Calculator
A bowling score calculator to help you keep score or adjust a score in any frame. A simple but powerful tool that allows multiple games, handicap score, maximum score and much more.
www.bowlinggenius.com
Been lucky enough to make a few 300's. A miss in the 7th or 8th frame and then finishing out strong is sooo hard sometimes.
I found an app for android called "my bowling scoreboard" keeps track of individual scores as well as keeps your average.Here's a link to the website I use for scoring, I'm sure there are others and a friend of mine uses a different one and is happy, I like this one because I found it's one of the easiest to score. Someday I would like to find a free bowling app that allows you to retain your scores. As is, I just screen print my games and sometimes I write them down and sometimes I don't.
Bowling Score Calculator
A bowling score calculator to help you keep score or adjust a score in any frame. A simple but powerful tool that allows multiple games, handicap score, maximum score and much more.
No doubt. I finished a game the other night and I was mentally exhausted from focusing on each and every shot.
For those of you trying this out, or those that have played it - post up your FargoRate and/or league ratings.
I would be interested to know how this game compares.
I would be interested to know how this game compares.
What did people do befor technology? Played and judged success by winning, or loosing.
Even at Boys Club if you were in the zone you kept playing. Loose sat down.
Technology is great until it fails, or crashes.
Even at Boys Club if you were in the zone you kept playing. Loose sat down.
Technology is great until it fails, or crashes.
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This sounds easy, just like 14.1 sounds easy lol. I’ve learned my lesson there long since. I shall enter into it in serious mode.
As a side note, I didn’t have the slightest clue how to score a game of bowling. Just looked it up. I knew 300 was the max and I was pretty sure there was ten rounds. I thought a strike just got you 30 pts.
I used to rack 15 and run until I missed (not counting the break) and I’ve gotten over a hundo that way, so it’s possible to get a 300 for me i think. A lil easier with only 10 at a time maybe but maybe not too. More congestion but less options and breakout opportunities. And 100 was not my normal number that was my crowning achievement.
We shall see. I will guess 150 for tonight since I really haven’t internalized the scoring and what a single miss or two will do
As a side note, I didn’t have the slightest clue how to score a game of bowling. Just looked it up. I knew 300 was the max and I was pretty sure there was ten rounds. I thought a strike just got you 30 pts.
I used to rack 15 and run until I missed (not counting the break) and I’ve gotten over a hundo that way, so it’s possible to get a 300 for me i think. A lil easier with only 10 at a time maybe but maybe not too. More congestion but less options and breakout opportunities. And 100 was not my normal number
that was my crowning achievement. We shall see. I will guess 150 for tonight since I really haven’t internalized the scoring and what a single miss or two will do