Pin Perspectives: The Nuts and Bolts of Slump Busting

In a sport requiring consistency and repetition, combined with the many moving parts of the modern game, it only takes a small cog in the gears to get stuck to start you on your way to a slump.

Perhaps it’s something you heard Randy Pedersen talk about on a PBA show that you wanted to incorporate into your game, only to realize that what’s good for the pro bowler goose, is not necessarily good for the amateur bowler gander! Or maybe you decided to follow the advice of a well-meaning and higher-averaged fellow bowler, and by the time you figured out why we constantly stress the importance of working with a skilled and trained coach, it’s too late and you’re slumping. Or, to further enhance your spare shooting, you decide to use your polyester ball for all spares. After all, if Shannon O’Keefe of the PWBA can do it, shouldn’t you strive for that too?

Before we get into the nuts and bolts of how to get out of this mess, let’s be clear about what we mean by a slump. A slump is not one bad night or even one bad week. With the mental focus that our sport demands, if life stressors, outside of bowling, are preoccupying our mind, having a rough night or week on the lanes is completely understandable, and this is not what we mean by a slump! However, when multiple bowling outings come and go, with scores that are sub-par for you, with more splits than usual, with more missed makeable spares than usual, in the same house, on the same lanes, in the same league, with the same team…then yes, my bowling friend, ...