Well Greetings again everyone, as I have had an extended absence period, and I apologize for that. I have decided, well by facebook request, to do a entry on the mental game. Let me start off by saying that I have been working with a Sports Psychologist for about a year now and let me say its one of the best decisions I have ever made. I feel like mentally I have made such a huge improvement from where I used to be and I feel like it has taken my game to the next level.
I was just recently at the JBT Touring Players Championship at Sunset Station, which happens to be my last tournament as a youth bowler or an Under 22 bowler. I can honestly say it was one of the hardest tournaments I have bowled before because the pair to pair and even lane to lane differences were very hard to keep up with and try to figure out. It was like this all week long, so it really was a definition of a mental grind in my opinion because you always had to be thinking and attacking each lane differently in between shots. It's almost like your mind is non stop working and always turning and all these different thoughts and ideas going through your head trying to give you the best chance to succeed.
Now let me first to say that the scoring pace was not high and I knew that by how the first couple games went, and let me also say that emotions were running high, good and bad, because its one of the biggest tournaments of the year. With this being my last potential JBT tournament, I had a lot of fire and want to go out and win the whole thing and go out on top, so even my emotions were running high almost as if i had double shot of adrenaline going through my veins.
I noticed a lot of people freaking out a.k.a. frying out in game 1 of the tournament since strikes were not a plenty and the lane to lane differences really got to them. Now since the lane conditions were very tough, I found my body temperature rising and I really wasting a lot of energy and emotion on bad breaks, whether if it was a bowler error or a lane result. I then asked my self the question, "Am i utilizing my time right now good or bad right now?" I have already noticed the scoring pace wasn't high and I know that lane condition is tough and the lane surface made it that much tougher, why am I getting upset right now? I was getting upset I was not striking, I was wasting time worrying about not striking instead of trying to figure out how to attack the pattern and give my self the best chance to get me to the pocket. that doesn't mean I have to strike on the shot, just execute a good shot and give it a chance to strike. After I completely changed my game plan, I then become what Randy Pedersen calls Chris Barnes, a Tactician, or an everyday Norm Duke, always one step ahead, and always analyzing and figuring out what they need to do on the next shot. That's exactly what I became, a Tactician. I was honestly throwing a shot and coming back and getting my mind on the next shot and what I had to do to make sure I gave myself the best chance to score, which should be everyone mind set by treating each shot on its own. Its just another shot, just another frame, no more important then the last one I threw. I really took hold of this because of the differences from lane to lane and pair to pair, because it keep my head on track and it allowed me to buy into what i was doing and to also remained focused on the task at hand which was to execute a good first shot and fill the box.
After a couple games of doing this, I started to feel my body temperature go down, my stress level decrease and more importantly my score was going up, which happen to be all pluses. I felt in control of everything I was doing, I felt like I was just along for the ride. Every pair that I got to watch, I began taking little mental notes and talk to the players a little bit and picking their brains and what they saw with the lanes. I listened, but didn't really 100% buy into their thoughts, not because I'm trying to be arrogant, i am just going to figure out the lanes with my eyes and my knowledge that I have. their information gave me little mental notes and little warning signs if you will, and then I would make the necessary adjustments to get my self the best chance to score. Because every ones physical games are different, there are different factors that can go into what happens behind the foul line and beyond it. In order to be successful, you have to know your game and know your game inside and out, if you don't then that's the first thing you need to work on.
Now, lets get into the actual topic instead of me rambling on about non sense. How do you spend your time at a tournament? do you spend it frying out about shooting a 130? do you freak out about every bad break? Let be honest and say that I am for one is guilty as charged, but I feel like I have made such a huge improvement from where I used to be. By saying this I am not saying that don't go out and just whatever going through the motions, because we are competitors and we are people who want to win; hence why we are at the bowling tournament with our shoes on and our equipment on the rack, don't matter what tournament. Everyone shows emotion good and bad, but its what you do after that is what sets the elite players from the rest of the pack. the average player will shoot 150 and fry out and kick and slam ball returns and cuss and complain to their friends, and then proceed to shoot 130 the next game and take them out of the tournament. On the other hand, the Elite player will not be satisfied with that game, obviously, but will figure out what went wrong, what went right and what they have to do in the next game to make it better. They are breaking down that last game and begin to start going through ideas and thoughts of what they have to do get them back into it and back on track. The average players who are frying out are the ones using their time in between shots freaking out, while the elite players are back thinking about what they can do better or if they need to make a line change or a ball change.
I had a younger bowler come down and talk to me during the quarterfinals which was 5 games of match play, after the bowler had opened up 160 then with a 130, and basically threw in the towel saying they were not going to make the next cut. I began to ask how tough they were, and to show me how tough they were because there was still plenty of bowling to be done. at this point they were done, didn't give them a chance and didn't even want to try and figure it out. After we had the talk, that bowler went and finished out with a 260 and a 210. I flat out told them that this was a hard pattern and it wasn't easy. You can always find a way to make something work, but you must find it within yourself to allow that to happen and to give yourself a chance to succeed. Never give up on yourself. IF it doesn't happen that day, so be it at least you can walk out of the center saying I didn't give up and I gave it everything I got. This way you can learn from it and make it better the next time.
Here is my question to you, are you wasting time at tournaments frying out? I'll let you answer that!
Once again, yours truly
PC4
Now let me first to say that the scoring pace was not high and I knew that by how the first couple games went, and let me also say that emotions were running high, good and bad, because its one of the biggest tournaments of the year. With this being my last potential JBT tournament, I had a lot of fire and want to go out and win the whole thing and go out on top, so even my emotions were running high almost as if i had double shot of adrenaline going through my veins.
I noticed a lot of people freaking out a.k.a. frying out in game 1 of the tournament since strikes were not a plenty and the lane to lane differences really got to them. Now since the lane conditions were very tough, I found my body temperature rising and I really wasting a lot of energy and emotion on bad breaks, whether if it was a bowler error or a lane result. I then asked my self the question, "Am i utilizing my time right now good or bad right now?" I have already noticed the scoring pace wasn't high and I know that lane condition is tough and the lane surface made it that much tougher, why am I getting upset right now? I was getting upset I was not striking, I was wasting time worrying about not striking instead of trying to figure out how to attack the pattern and give my self the best chance to get me to the pocket. that doesn't mean I have to strike on the shot, just execute a good shot and give it a chance to strike. After I completely changed my game plan, I then become what Randy Pedersen calls Chris Barnes, a Tactician, or an everyday Norm Duke, always one step ahead, and always analyzing and figuring out what they need to do on the next shot. That's exactly what I became, a Tactician. I was honestly throwing a shot and coming back and getting my mind on the next shot and what I had to do to make sure I gave myself the best chance to score, which should be everyone mind set by treating each shot on its own. Its just another shot, just another frame, no more important then the last one I threw. I really took hold of this because of the differences from lane to lane and pair to pair, because it keep my head on track and it allowed me to buy into what i was doing and to also remained focused on the task at hand which was to execute a good first shot and fill the box.
After a couple games of doing this, I started to feel my body temperature go down, my stress level decrease and more importantly my score was going up, which happen to be all pluses. I felt in control of everything I was doing, I felt like I was just along for the ride. Every pair that I got to watch, I began taking little mental notes and talk to the players a little bit and picking their brains and what they saw with the lanes. I listened, but didn't really 100% buy into their thoughts, not because I'm trying to be arrogant, i am just going to figure out the lanes with my eyes and my knowledge that I have. their information gave me little mental notes and little warning signs if you will, and then I would make the necessary adjustments to get my self the best chance to score. Because every ones physical games are different, there are different factors that can go into what happens behind the foul line and beyond it. In order to be successful, you have to know your game and know your game inside and out, if you don't then that's the first thing you need to work on.
Now, lets get into the actual topic instead of me rambling on about non sense. How do you spend your time at a tournament? do you spend it frying out about shooting a 130? do you freak out about every bad break? Let be honest and say that I am for one is guilty as charged, but I feel like I have made such a huge improvement from where I used to be. By saying this I am not saying that don't go out and just whatever going through the motions, because we are competitors and we are people who want to win; hence why we are at the bowling tournament with our shoes on and our equipment on the rack, don't matter what tournament. Everyone shows emotion good and bad, but its what you do after that is what sets the elite players from the rest of the pack. the average player will shoot 150 and fry out and kick and slam ball returns and cuss and complain to their friends, and then proceed to shoot 130 the next game and take them out of the tournament. On the other hand, the Elite player will not be satisfied with that game, obviously, but will figure out what went wrong, what went right and what they have to do in the next game to make it better. They are breaking down that last game and begin to start going through ideas and thoughts of what they have to do get them back into it and back on track. The average players who are frying out are the ones using their time in between shots freaking out, while the elite players are back thinking about what they can do better or if they need to make a line change or a ball change.
I had a younger bowler come down and talk to me during the quarterfinals which was 5 games of match play, after the bowler had opened up 160 then with a 130, and basically threw in the towel saying they were not going to make the next cut. I began to ask how tough they were, and to show me how tough they were because there was still plenty of bowling to be done. at this point they were done, didn't give them a chance and didn't even want to try and figure it out. After we had the talk, that bowler went and finished out with a 260 and a 210. I flat out told them that this was a hard pattern and it wasn't easy. You can always find a way to make something work, but you must find it within yourself to allow that to happen and to give yourself a chance to succeed. Never give up on yourself. IF it doesn't happen that day, so be it at least you can walk out of the center saying I didn't give up and I gave it everything I got. This way you can learn from it and make it better the next time.
Here is my question to you, are you wasting time at tournaments frying out? I'll let you answer that!
Once again, yours truly
PC4
