In 2022, I bought a new bowling ball, the Infinite Physix by Storm. It was definitely a more aggressive ball that I don't usually throw, but over the first few months of using it, I eventually figured out where to stand on the lanes in order to throw decent games, and by the end of the first season I found myself just missing out on a 200-average season.
Then came the 2023-24 season, which was a big change for me. I decided to try a league at Fiesta Lanes with my friends, breaking the streak of bowling with the IBMers and at Bowlero for 16 years. Part of the reason was my work and streaming schedule had me staying up at some pretty late hours, and bowling on the east side of town just wasn't convenient at that time in my life. Regardless, even though my average wasn't 200+, it was a still a season where we ended up in 3rd place overall.
The 2024-25 season, I found myself back at Bowlero because Fiesta Lanes had major damage during the monsoon season that summer. I joined a team halfway through the season and ended up with a 207 average, my highest ever albeit in less games than a full season.
Since I didn't bowl a full season, I decided to join a summer league with my friends once Fiesta Lanes reopened (now renamed to PINZ Fiesta). However, I found it difficult to keep up with the dry lanes and had a below average season, nowhere near the level of my expectations. In fact, I had always felt that Fiesta was just a more difficult house to throw at than Bowlero.
Here are my past years with the Infinite Physix so far:
As an experienced bowler, I feel like my ability to read the lanes is really good. I know when I need to adjust my boards when the lanes are more oily or more dry. However, I would often struggle when the lanes became too dry as the night wore on, or if the lanes were dry to begin with. When the lanes are dry and I throw the Infinite Physix, my path to the pocket becomes a bit tight and it's easy to miss the pocket and leave splits. I would talk to and see other bowlers with 210+ averages and I came to the conclusion that there was still a big hole in my game: I was only throwing one ball for all lane conditions. Thus, I pursued throwing another ball for when conditions are too dry.
I began to do a lot of research on the bowling balls I've used in the past, starting with the Code Red and now the Infinite Physix. The Code Red was a less reactive ball with less hook, and my starting board with that ball was on board 9 (board 9 being the 9th board from the left, or board 31 if you want to get technical for right-handed bowlers). That starting board was a good 2 boards to the right of where my starting board is with the Infinite Physix, which is a more reactive ball with bigger hook.
Based on the specifications of each ball, I compiled a Google spreadsheet that shows the behavior of each ball and how they will roll for me. Using the data, I decided the new ball I should buy would be the Storm Typhoon, which had similar stats as the Code Red.
And so begins my quest to become a better bowler! I am now taking 3 balls with me to bowling league instead of 2. One ball for oily conditions (Infinite Physix), one ball for dry conditions (Typhoon), and then one ball for the 6, 9, and 10 pins. Here's hoping that this is the missing piece to expanding my game!
