Today was one of the most fun bowling experiences I’ve ever had.
That being said, your boy TC got owned by a bro twice in the 10th frame. I came up short both times and I’m still thinking about it. I was looking at a lead 2 times in the 10th as the last man and lost twice. I’ll set the scene.
Our league is taken a bit more serious than this one.
We dominated the first game. Nichter rolled a 200 and the entire squad was over 700 (this is a solid benchmark for a 5 person team). We were up by over 100 pins which should win the 4th game, which is total pins after 3 games, and let us bowl comfortably.
The 2nd game went down to the wire with us in the lead (another 700+ series which should display the competition level). I can’t remember exactly what happened but I think Watkins rolled 2 strikes in the 10th to keep us right there. Our team was up pins and my pony tailed counterpart went first. He rolled a strike. There is some pressure mounting as 9 other people are interested in the outcome of my shot. I rolled a ball that didn’t have enough hook and missed the head pin and left a little rail on the left side of the lane. At this point if I converted the spare we would have been in fine shape. I rolled a weak ass ball that connected with exactly 0 pins and feel like a shithead.
So now we’re 1-1 with a nice pin total lead for the 4th game. Their captain asked if we wanted to play a cash game for 5 bucks each. We agreed.
The game was fire. They started hot, we returned fire, and it was neck and neck until the 10th. I promise you that pressure mounts with every throw. This is where sports are more fun than just normal sports. Sam opened in the 10th. I note Sam because he hasn’t been mentioned yet but is an integral part of the team. He’s technically our substitute but has played every week and his average rises weekly (he just needs to buy a ball and there will be instant improvement). Anyway, Watkins bowled a 1 and followed it with a spare which is not how it’s written up. I’ll note briefly on Watkins because I’m going to send this to him and this is my critique. When his strike ball hits its beautiful. There is power hooking into the pocket which leads to instant strikes. However, the consistency of hitting the pocket, or at least Brooklyn, isn’t there. Major potential though and his average vs what he’s capable of rolling is a huge advantage. Wiz (might as well use real names) went open but their player did too. So Nichter comes up and goes double strikes in the 10th and put up 27 pins which is unbelievably huge. Pressure spots like this to come up clutch are tremendous as our 4th guy. I’ll also note that he was easily our best bowler tonight and made his 135 average look like a cupcake (he was ~180 tonight). He puts me in a great spot.
10 Pin
We have a few pin lead and my opponent goes first and rolls a 7. Perfect spot. You couldn’t find a better spot to lay down the hammer. I step up, not nervous because I’ve been here before, and know that it’s a bit of a mental game. After blowing it the last game with a bad first ball I made sure to throw a heater that was going to hit the right side of the head pin. I released and the ball was looking perfect. I was ready to celebrate because it was looking that nice and it connects squarely and leaves the 10 pin. Fuck.
All would have been fine if my opponent missed his spare but he hit it like a good anchor does. I stepped up to the 10 pin and was 2-2 during the night. The 10 pin is the one pin where I can’t throw my weighted ball and have a high % of making the shot. It has to hug the gutter and that’s always risky. I went with the straight ball that I had used earlier and threw the ball right in the gutter. Peoples (is this used properly) eyes were on screen as I walked away in disgust and knew we were going to lose. We did. I was the goat and let the team down. It’s not a great feeling because winning feels that much better but it’s a step. Most good achievements don’t come instantaneously. You work for it and it feels better when you eventually win. This was my lesson.
It was a learning experience that will make us better come playoffs.