Professional Bowlers Association

Welcome to the Mark Baker Bowling world of coaching.  For those of you with good memories (or a beta recorder), I bowled on the PBA Tour from 1982 to 1990. While my bowling accomplishments weren’t quite impressive enough to get me in the Hall of Fame, I did win four titles and had a couple runner-up finishes in the Firestone Tournament of Champions and the Touring Players Championship. OK, enough about my bowling…(but if you just can’t get enough of La Mode slacks and bad mullets, feel free to visit youtube to see it in the flesh).

The real purpose of this blog is to share my experiences as a bowling coach. I am now a professional bowling instructor, which means I coach for a living six days a week. Besides working with four of the best players in the world (more on that later), I also coach people who don’t even own their own ball or shoes, and pretty much everyone in between. So, on a daily basis, I see some amazing and unique things in the sport of bowling, which I plan on sharing here each week.

Coaching is not only just about individual lessons. While I do my fair share of these, I am also the “House Pro” at Fountain and Cal Bowl (in Southern California) four days a month. I run a weekly clinic at Fountain with PBA Hall-of-Famer Barry Asher, and I also run one-day clinics, usually on the weekends. I also serve as camp director of both Camp Bakes and the Bowlers Dream Camp, which I run in various cities throughout the country several times a year.

Through my affiliation with Ebonite International, I’ve had the opportunity to work with four amazing and talented bowlers the last three years. This season has probably been the most exciting for me as a coach so far, as “my guys” have each either reached career milestones or fought through (and back from) adversity to reclaim their rightful places among the best in the world.

Bill O’Neill

He is the Real Deal. The 2010-2011 season has been a continuation of the rise of this young man that we saw beginning in 08-09, when he qualified for seven different ESPN telecasts. This season, all Bill’s done is lead the PBA World Championship (where he eventually finished 2^nd after a tough TV loss to Chris Barnes), win the Viper Championship, finish top 10 in the T of C, lead qualifying at the Masters (a kiss of death for the finals), lead qualifying again at the U.S. Open and then overcome a rough 20 games in match play before finding a way to turn it around and make the show. This kid is bowling so good, the only thing I tell him after having a look at his game and seeing that it’s (as usual) in tip-top shape: “Just be ready to bowl when it’s your turn!”

Chris Barnes

When you set the bar so high, it’s hard to be objective about this year’s performance. Let’s see: 1^st at the PBA World Championship (which gave him the career Triple Crown), which included his best performance on TV in some time. Shot 270 in the position round at the T of C to miss the show by 15 pins (he finished 5^th). A deep run at the Masters, where he ran into Mika and an 800-plus set (enough said). Leaves a 10-pin on a four-bagger at the U.S. Open to miss that show by five pins (he finished 7^th). Now, if I had this run in my day, I’d have been ecstatic! But knowing Chris, at my camp in May we’ll be working on his game each day after coaching for eight hours!

Tommy Jones

While basically bowling on one leg this year, Tommy had a decent World Series, where he finished 22^nd overall in the World Championship and 3^rd in the Viper Championship. But after having, in his words, “his worst tournament as a pro” at the T of C, we worked on getting the position of the ball at the top of his swing into a better place to get him back on track for the rest of the season.

Now here’s the nice thing about working with great talent. After struggling to throw it consistently for about an hour, he throws one shot from out that looked pretty good. I told him, “Now take that same swing thought and move in and hook it.” Boom! The next day he starts throwing it great, he makes the show the next week at Earl’s place, he goes deep in the field at the Masters, then almost leads the U.S. Open (he qualified second for the TV show where he ultimately finished 3^rd). And all of this with a bone spur on his left hip that makes it extremely painful just to throw a shot! You gotta like working with talent!

Jason Couch

After having two knee surgeries the last three years, he had to do something no professional athlete ever wants to do, which is change the style that made him a first-ballot Hall-of-Famer. 

I’ve never seen someone so dejected as Jason at the T of C after leaving a solid 9-pin on the second shot in the 10^th frame of the last qualifying game that cost him making the top 24. He had worked so hard on his game, with virtually no results. So myself, Del Ballard, and Ed Gallagher all told him the same thing: That this was the best we’ve seen you throw it in a long time and to stay with it. The next week he finished 6^th at Earl’s place, then last week he returns back to the winners circle for the first time in four years at the Mark Roth Plastic Ball Championship! No one can ever doubt Jason’s guts or his determination.

Oh yeah, that change that got him back to the top? The key was keeping his head behind his right knee at release. This move allows him to control his release point and, more importantly, takes pressure off of his knee. If you go back and watch the show again you can actually hear him repeating this to himself.

Others

Over the course of the season, I had the chance to work with a few other Tour players as well, most recently Joe Ciccone and Hall-of-Famer Johnny Petraglia. I always enjoy and learn from working with players at this level. After working together, both bowlers had nice weeks at the Plastic Ball Championship, with Joe finishing 5^th and Johnny 8^th (at the age of 64!)

But if I had to give this group a grade for the year, it would be an A minus. That’s right TJ, if you would’ve snapped off a win, the group gets an A, so you’re buying dinner at the Dream Camp this year! Oh yeah, Del Ballard also deserves an A…mostly for dealing with the guys week-in, week-out!

Well, I guess I’m officially a blogger and, depending on your feedback, I may do it again soon! Also, I am almost done writing my first book on coaching, which will explain my unique philosophy of the physical game that I believe will help bowlers of all skill levels and applies to just about any different style of bowling you can imagine. More info to come on that subject soon!

Later,

Bakes

Rhino Page figured after four missed opportunities, he had probably blown his chance of winning a title in his rookie season.

Instead, Page used the motivation of his worst week of the season last week to drive him to a 244-220 win over Jack Jurek in Sunday’s Go RVing Classic to cement what is the greatest rookie season in PBA history.

Page had already broken or tied six PBA records coming into Sunday, including making five championship rounds, all of which came after he had to qualify for the event through the Denny’s PBA Tour Qualifying Round. He had come up empty in his four previous championship rounds, however, finishing second twice, third once and fifth.

The 24-year-old missed the cut in the TQR of last week’s Don Johnson Buckeye State Classic, just the third time all season he didn’t advance to the Round of 64. He spent the following days practicing with his old coach who helped him with his physical game but also got him back on track mentally.

The practice paid off as Page defeated fellow left-hander Mike Scroggins, 245-235, in the semifinals to advance to his third title match of the season.

In the title match against Jurek, Page looked like he would cruise to the title after striking with his first five shots in the match. But a pocket 7-10 split and open in the sixth frame let Jurek back in the match. But the Tour veteran, who was looking for his first win since 1995, could not take advantage, suffering four consecutive nine-spares.

Jurek could have put pressure on Page in the 10th by striking out, but after a strike with his first shot he left the 3-4-6-7 meaning Page only needed a mark to win. The rookie finished it off in style by striking for the win.

“It feels so good. I didn’t expect by any means to make this many shows this season,” Page (Topeka, Kan.) said. “After my fourth show I thought, ‘Man, you missed out.’ Fortunately, I got to work on my game last week and after the week I had last week, that really motivated me. I know I’m not that kind of bowler and I was determined to never let that happen again.”

Page used some key strategy against Scroggins to get through to the title match, denying the five-time titlist a chance at his third win of the season.

“I came in with a really good game plan,” Page said. “I knew Scroggins could strike a lot from where he was playing so I tried to throw a dull ball and burn the lanes up and change where he was playing. Luckily it helped me also get the room I needed to shoot some big scores.”

Should he win the PBA Rookie of the Year award – which is a lock at this point – Page would become just the sixth Rookie of the Year to win a title in the 43 years the award has been handed out. He also moved into seventh in the PBA Player of the Year point standings with two events remaining.

Page’s win in the semifinal also came down to the final frame. Scroggins took the lead for the first time in the match with a strike in the seventh and after that point the two traded strikes and leads until the 10th frame. Page struck with his final six shots including all three in the 10th to force Scroggins to double. After a strike with his first shot, Scroggins got just eight pins to give Page the win.

Jurek advanced to the championship round with a 236-223 win over Mike Edwards. In a match-up between bowlers each looking for their first title since the early 1990s, Jurek took control with a four-bagger in frames four through seven and never looked back. After an eight-spare in the ninth, Edwards struck out in the 10th to force Jurek to mark and the Lackawanna, N.Y., native struck with his first ball for the victory.

Page, who had already wrapped up an exemption via the PBA World Point Rankings, earned $25,000 for his win. Jurek earned $13,000 for second while Edwards (Tulsa, Okla.) and Scroggins (Amarillo, Texas) took home $6,000 each for third and fourth, respectively.

The Denny’s PBA Tour takes a one-week hiatus before returning for the final two events of the season, starting with the GEICO Classic, March 19-23 at AMF Babylon Lanes in West Babylon, N.Y. The live ESPN-televised finals take place Sunday, March 23 at 1 p.m. ET.


Denny’s PBA Tour
2008 Go RVing Classic
Norwich Bowling and Entertainment Center
Norwich, Conn.
Sunday, March 9

CHAMPIONSHIP ROUND

Pos.		Name, hometown		Total/Games		Money
1.		Rhino Page, Topeka, Kan.		489 (2 games)		$25,000
2.		Jack Jurek, Lackawanna, N.Y.		456 (2 games)		$13,000
3.		Mike Edwards, Tulsa, Okla.		223 (1 game)		$6,000
4.		Mike Scroggins, Amarillo, Texas		235 (1 game)		$6,000

SCORES – In the first match, Page def. Scroggins, 245-235; in the second match, Jurek def. Edwards, 236-223; and in the final, Page def. Jurek, 244-220.

This is Page’s first Denny’s PBA Tour title.

By Chris Barnes

What a roller coaster week! I guess we could start with the show in Grand Rapids, my chance to really pull into the POY race with a win in the World Championship. Some good breaks, some bad ones, a bad choice and a 4-pin later, the best bowler that week won when Doug Kent doubled in the 9th and 10th to shut me out. I catch a quick flight home to spend a couple of nights in my own bed and the first ones in our house since we moved.

Monday is a little disappointing as it rains so I am not able to spend much time outside with my kids. The upside is that we get to go bowling and a little practice is in order for me as well with our final major - the Tournament of Champions - waiting. We get our share in and then go to the airport and pick up my cousin, Austin, who is flying in for a day. He and a business partner, Dave, come in and we keep the boys up way too late and have a ball.

Tuesday the rain stops and the swinging, swearing, and chasing starts with a round of golf. I am forced to keep the swearing to myself though as Austin and Dave are both ministers. Fortunately 3-putts were kept to a minimum....

Wednesday - up WAY too early to catch a 6:55 a.m. flight to Hartford to get there in time for the Pro-Am. I pick up Mika Koivuniemi and we relax for a while before our 7:00 p.m. Pro-Am. The Pro-Am is great. A lot of entries and I get a chance to bowl with a lot of kids. They are the best in the Pro-Ams. Their energy is refreshing and helps us get recharged for the upcoming week.

Thursday - Practice session and WOW... you forget how slick 50 feet of oil can be! It’s time to gear the speed down a bunch and pull out the scotch brite and abralon pads. Two hours later and a couple of worn out 360 & 500 pads, the arsenal is pretty well set for the week. We get to bowl in a competition with the 14 Pro-Am winners from the season and have a lot of fun on the tournament pattern. That night we have a draw party to see our brackets for the tournament. A little trash talking and a couple of improbable superpower match-ups cause the most reaction with Parker bowling Couch and Walter Ray Williams and Petey going at it in the first round.

Friday - I pulled Rick Lawrence in the first round and he, as well as the other lefties, come out firing. Before I know what hit me Rick has me down 3-0 and is averaging almost 250. Fortunately for me, his ball starts to hook too early and he loses some reaction and my barrage of 220 games is enough to win one. The hook starts to make my shot a little better and I improve a little each game to 230, 240, and finally 250 to close out the match and a desperate comeback that leaves my Player of the Year chances intact. It is ugly for a couple of other hopefuls, as Walter Ray continued his dominance of PDW and hurt his chances while Big Wes is swept by Patrick Allen. I think Wes has had the best and most consistent season, but this is not the statement he wanted to go out on.

Norm Duke and Doug Kent both win and the chase continues... I bowl Patrick Healey Jr. in the next round. We are former college teammates, Team USA teammates, as well as World Team Challenge and ABC teammates. That being said, I guess it is safe to say we are not the best of friends these days. He is Mika's ex roommate and I guess that doesn't help much either. Patrick and I both start out well but I miss a spare to give him a chance to shut me out. He ring 10's a couple of times and I strike out to win game one. In game two he starts well but after a 10-pin, he moves left of 20 and leaves me alone around 16 and I am able to keep my reaction longer than I thought. He rebounds to win game three but moves even further left and I am able to get back on track in game four. Game five is ugly and he splits twice to start and I catch a couple of breaks to go up 30 pins and he is steaming. He goes through the motions but shoots 149 and gives me the last game. Not sure if he will come back out on tour next year or not. He bowled his way on Tour last week in Grand Rapids, but also skipped the week before knowing he was on the bubble. I have no idea......

Dougie Fresh goes down in this round in a seven-gamer to Tommy Jones. He has put on a nice run to finish off the year and has to be one of candidates for POY. Norm looked to be in trouble down 2-0 to Amleto but Norm is Norm in grinding out the next four games in a low-scoring match.

Saturday we move to the Mohegan Sun to a magnificent arena south of Hartford. We are changing from an AMF surface to Brunswick and from 20 foot ceilings to 60 foot. We have an early practice and there is much more hook at one, two and three than in Hartford but it doesn't really make it any easier as there still is 40 feet of oil after that. I bowl my friend and one time roommate Mike Wolfe. Mike has had one of the best looks in the tournament in Hartford, but the extra hook seems to have affected his ball reaction more than anyone else's. I would have considered myself the underdog in this match based on ball reaction up to this point, but I move right to the same area as him and his ball struggled to catch the extra hit and I was able to trip the 4-pins and stay out of trouble.

I felt bad for Mike as he has bowled really well this year and should have probably made three or four shows, but has caught the hottest guy in the tournament (Rash in Baltimore, Couch in Reno, Walter Ray in Parkersburg) during the matches. I have no doubt he will rebound and have his best year in the upcoming season. My POY hopes are still alive and Duke rebounds again from an early deficit to beat Kong Cable (Robert Smith) 4-2. With Tommy stepping it up and Reyes making his third straight show and living up to all the promise he has shown out here, tomorrow will be a heck of a show.

Sunday - up early to iron the show shirt, check out, get the car and drive it around to the loading docks so after the show I can load up and get on the road back to the airport. My flight is at 5:30 and the show will end at 2:30. It’s about 45 minutes to the airport so if I win, this will give me enough time to do media, autographs and still catch my flight. No surprises on the show. They are similar to the night before and there is less tension than usual. Odd considering all that is on the line: POY, Roll to Riches, and a Major title. But then Norm hasn't lost on TV in a year, Reyes and I are back on from the week before which always raises your comfort level, and Tommy Horseshoe knows nothing bad will ever happen to him on TV, why should he be uptight??! There is the usual banter in the locker room and we all have to listen to Tommy whine about how lucky he will have to get to break
175 today. Poor guy.....

The lanes start out the same, but with four guys practicing they break down very quick and the line right of second arrow is useless by the time the show starts. This forces Duke to move in and he struggles early, rallies late, but is derailed by a 10-pin in the 10th and Reyes wins. We come on and I am surprised by how much more they are hooking since practice. I am forced deeper and I start to lose carry. With two minutes before we are out of commercial I grab a Big Shot out of my bag that is stronger than what I have been using and it knocks the 10-pin out the last two shots before we start. The key now is to commit to it and I do a good job starting with a four-bagger.

"Poor" Tommy also starts with four strikes but keeps going after I 4-pin. I strike again and move a half off the four and get it a little further right and flat 10. Tommy gets seven before a ring-10 and I double making him double to shut me out. He finally gets his ball out of the "splash zone" that the rest of us mortals flat-10 from and throws a couple flush to seal the deal. The championship match is Groundhog Day as Tommy starts out stringing them again and with an early Reyes open, Tommy Gun has title number 10 in the shortest span in history. (Pssst - Tommy, Walter wants his horseshoe back. What??? It won't come out???....... )

It’s time to head back to Hartford and get on a plane. No POY for me this year, but I can look forward to spending time watching my boys’ baseball games and some time at home. I love the competition but it will great to have a break. My wife will be happy too as she has moved, basically been the general contractor on our remodel, and has done the taxes in the last few weeks. I am not sure how I fooled her, but I got a great one with her. I have about the best supportive situation a guy could have being on tour.

She understands the whole thing and takes care of a lot to enable me to do my best out here. Now it will be my turn to pitch in as the Team USA schedule kicks in a bit.

Unfortunately I was not voted back into the Roll to Riches. I am very disappointed to say the least. After winning my way in the last two years and then having so much (luck) success in it, I was hoping to get a chance to 3-peat ala "tater" (Couch.... potato....get it??). But it will be a great event as there are six great players there and nobody is bigger than the game (psssst....Tommy..... I didn't mean you!!!)

Have a great summer and don't forget to look for us in a special summer
event!!!! :)

See you on the lanes!

Chris Barnes
Columbia 300

By Del Ballard Jr.

I want to start off by saying it is a privilege to be asked to do the Life on Tour because I know there are MANY people they could have asked to do this! First off, I want to let everyone know why I am driving out the last two weeks. My wife is flying out to Indy with my little girlie Alyssa on Friday. I will have our van out the last two weeks to be able to bring home our bowling equipment after the World Championship. Of course my wife and daughter are flying home so I can drive by myself!!!!!

Monday
I left my pro shop at 4 p.m. and had to go back home for my lucky horseshoe. My wife gave it to me at the beginning of the year. She had that in her purse when she bowled on Tour. And trust me, it worked for her! Well, I got out of town around 5 p.m. and headed towards Indianapolis. I tried to avoid traffic leaving home and decided I would go north toward Oklahoma City to get there. Well, I went the long way and took a short cut through OK. Typical Del, I took the long way! The only thing I will say nice about Oklahoma is, I got pulled over for doing 82 in a 70 and got a warning!!! CAN YOU BELIEVE IT? My brother-in-law Jeff was hot! He swears he never gets off for a ticket.

Well, after eight hours I made it to Little Rock, Ark. It is normally a five-hour drive. I wasn’t tired so I thought to myself, 'I can make it farther' and continued. I made it to Forest City by 1 a.m. and the hotels were full. So on I went. All the hotels were full until I made it to Missouri at 3 a.m. There was bad weather in eastern Arkansas two weeks earlier and there were work crews all through the area.

Tuesday
I woke up at 8 a.m. because I’m old, and then got on the road around 9. I called Corey Kistner to ask what time practice pairs would be available. He said around 1 p.m. Well I hauled trying to make it there to practice but wound up at the hotel at 3:15 p.m. Oh well, went to dinner with my brother in law Jeff Lizzi at Maggiano’s. Then I went to bed because the old man was tired.

Wednesday
I woke up at 7 a.m. when Jeff’s alarm went off. He got ready in an hour so I watched TV until 9. I have to get my Jag and Charmed fix in the mornings. Then I got ready and went to the bowl to watch. It is a requirement to let the family know how we bowl after each game so I text Cathy, Jeff’s wife, after each game. He wound up not making the cut, so he went to eat and I got ready for practice session. We had a player meeting after practice. I know that I might not be exempt next year, but I am a proud member of the PBA Tour and wanted to be a part of it. I came back to the room and watched two episodes of SVU, my third favorite show.

Thursday
Woke up at 7 a.m. and watched two episodes of JAG and Charmed. Received a call from Paul Fleming wondering why I was running a little late. I told Paul I would be ready by 9. Sorry, Alyssa Milano and Catherine Bell were a must see! And if you didn’t know it, my daughter's name is Alyssa Catherine. Go figure.

I bowled okay the first round at plus 172. I just tried to keep up as the scoring pace has been high out here for a while. I talked to my tour rep Rick Benoit about a game plan for the night block. Went back to the bowl at 5 p.m. and bowled the night block. Well, as anyone can see, I missed another cut. I have missed the cut SO many times after being in the number that I am ready to quit. Well, we had our player meeting with Fred and hope a lot of good things come out of it.

Friday
I got up and drove to the airport to pick up my family. They flew in to hopefully watch me bowl, but we know how that turned out. Carolyn is going to bowl next week and wanted to come here early to practice. I got to spend the whole day with my daughter and had a great time.

Saturday
Saturday means Pro-Ams. I had to bowl at 3 p.m. to make up for a Pro-Am for Mike Wolfe, and bowled the 6 p.m. squad also. It was St. Patrick’s Day and the wife and I went to Chili’s and had one beer.

Sunday
We woke up early to drive to Grand Rapids as practice session was from 4 p.m. until 6 and it is a four and a half hour drive. We are sharing a room with my brother in law, Jeff, this week. It really made my day when Jeff calls and tells me he pulled a Del. He ran out of gas as he was driving through Toledo. We have this thing that when I need gas, I say, ‘I have plenty,’ and he always tell me that he hopes I run out. Arrived in Grand Rapids with just enough time to shower and get ready for practice. I dropped off my daughter with my long time friend Chris Warren and his wife Michelle so that we can practice. And that is the week of Del Ballard.

By Chris Schlemer

Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, fans of all ages: Are you ready to spend the next 10 minutes of your day reading, learning and laughing? Lord I hope so, because I have a lot to talk about. In fact there is so much going through my brain I don't even know where to begin. Can someone please give me a sense of direction? Anyone? Can someone take control? My brain hurts from last week.

Yes, I know the bowlers were the ones physically and mentally exerting themselves for seven days. But let's just say that it was no cake walk for me last week either. After the show in Parkersburg, W.Va., I had to make the two-hour drive to catch a flight from Columbus, Ohio, to Newark, N.J. I made it into my hotel around midnight. Just in time to unpack and go to bed so I could be at Carolier Lanes at 8 a.m. for practice session.

Monday wasn't so bad. I was only at the bowl until 3:30 p.m. which happened to be my short day. The next three days were 7:15 a.m. to 10:30 p.m. with a 40-minute lunch between squads B and C. Not to worry though. I got to sleep in on Friday though, as I worked from 8:15 a.m. to 10 p.m. Saturday was easier yet, 9:15 a.m to 10 p.m. A total of around 72 hours which seems like a lot, but when it comes to the U.S. Open, every minute is worth it… especially when you end up with three chances out of four at a major title.

I just thank god that we don't have this format every week. I don't know if I could keep up, let alone the bowlers. I can't tell you how nice it was to sleep in Monday morning. Much needed let me tell you! Enough about me, let's talk about bowling shall we?

So many things to share I don't know where to begin. I know, Monday morning I woke up. Then I got out of bed. Then I took a shower. HA HA HA! Sorry, just goofing around. On a serious note, from day one I knew it was going to be a long battle. Every aspect of the tournament is a strain, from the length of the tournament to the mental aspect of bowling the world's largest pro-am. The reason I say that is reality.

The field consists of 492 participants with bowlers from all over the world. Let's just say that bowlers are not going to travel from another country to compete in a professional event if they didn't feel they could compete, which is totally different from the mindset of people in America. Some participants view this event as an opportunity to bowl alongside the best bowlers in the world for three days. This is the only professional sport in which this happens. Let me tell you, I'm a golfer (well, at least I like to think I am) and I shoot in the 90s. Not good, but better than most. First off, I know I can't compete on the PGA Tour. I wouldn't even pretend to. The point I'm trying to make is that even if I had the nerve to, I can't even enter golf's U.S. Open, nor do I have the qualifications or credentials to do so. I think you can smell what Schlem is cooking here folks.

Some of the people I helped this week were 400 pins ahead of the next person on their cross and that was only for 18 games. I think you get my point. I could go on for days on this subject. But I won't, I just want ya'll to get a feel for what's going on around us while we are trying to figure out the best way to conquer the pattern. Mix a tough condition with people who average 150 and look out. The only thing missing is the elephants and Volkswagen full of clowns. It is a full blown circus until we get through the first cut.

This year they cut to the top 123, taking a score of minus 65, which is actually around the same year-in and year-out. Let me tell you, there are some good bowlers that didn't make the cut. It happens. Even the best in the world have a bad day or week.

What can I say about the U.S. Open pattern? Well for starters it's 40-feet long and flat. Okay, so maybe not totally flat, but close. Now place that pattern on a proanvilane surface, and you, my friend, have a tough pattern. Not tough like you can't get to the head pin tough. But tough in the aspect that you have to repeat shots and fill frames. If you watched the show that was exactly how the lanes broke down all week. You could start just left of the track and then make small moves left as the pattern continued to break down. You see, there was a little friction toward the end of the pattern which if you ask me, made the pattern easier than normal. Anytime bowlers see friction down-lane their swing loosens up. But if you didn't use the friction the right way, you had no chance. Any good bowler knows that a flat pattern means you need a smooth continuous ball motion which is exactly what I preached to my players all week. All the layouts we used either had no extra hole or a layout that provided them with less change in direction.

The key to my players' success was a result of two things. One, our cover stocks are cleaner so our balls didn't read early friction. The other reason was because of me. I preached to my players everyday that we had to use the friction down lane as a bumper instead of recovery. The last thing you want on a long, flat pattern is a hard change of direction because if you get forced left too fast your angle through the front part of the lane creates even more over-under down lane. These simple factors are the reason why we had nine players in the top 24, not to mention finishing 1st, 3rd, 4th and 5th. I think the numbers speak for themselves, if you ask me.

Storm staffer Jeff Carter found himself in unchartered territory all week. From day one he was either the tournament leader or in the top four. He was never below the fourth spot all week. Now he has won regionals from start to finish, he led some TQRs start to finish, but never in his wildest dreams did he ever think he would lead a U.S. Open for most of the week and make his first-ever career telecast. It was only a matter of time, honestly. Jeff is a prime example of hard work and dedication to the game. If you watched the telecast, you may have heard mention on how we have been overhauling his game to make him more of a factor on the PBA Tour. You see when Jeff is lined up and repeating shots, he strikes more than anyone in the business. You don't have the most career 300s, 800s and highest-ever average by not striking. No matter what the condition, you have to still throw the shot and make it happen.

Unfortunately, Jeff's game was close on the Tour level but not effective enough. There is a reason guys like Wes Malott and Tommy Jones have had great success the last couple years. So, we have been working hard on Jeff's game from release to spine tilt and everything in-between in order to make him one of the guys who is a factor week in and week out. Don't be fooled, you just can't change a few things and POOF there it is. Doing it well in practice and then being able to implement it into your game is a tall order. I don't care who you are. Then try and make all those changes and compete at the highest possible level of our sport. Yeah, not so easy, let me tell you. All I can say is my boy has come a long way and nothing is more pleasing than when you see hard work and dedication finally pay off. Not to mention that it just happened to be during one of the biggest events of the season which also happened to be a week where the point value is almost doubled.

This past week moved Jeff from 43rd in points to 28th, all but securing a spot for him on next season's PBA Tour. Like I said, it's been a long road for JC, earning this year's exemption via the regional circuit, and now earning the right to stay exempt via points on Tour. Good things come to those who work hard and don't give up.

Which leads me to the superstar, none other than the champ himself PDW. Now I'm not going to bust his chops too hard, but I am going to give you a prelude to last week’s win. If you remember back in the beginning of the season Pete came out guns a blazing. He won early on in Buffalo. He finished in the top-8 four of the first eight weeks. He was leading the Player of the Year race. All was good. Then we hit the break, come out the first week of 2007 in Reno and he makes another show. Then it happened, the next week in Medford he gets ill and misses match play for the first time all season.

The next few weeks were brutal. He was still ill and not able to compete at his best and even took the week of El Paso off to get healthy. When he came back in Dallas he was good to go. He made the cut and was bounced in the first round. No big deal, just getting back in the swing of things and then it happened. In West Virginia he wasn't throwing it so well and was having an issue with his hip. He gave up in game six of qualifying and used his spare ball the seventh game to shoot 128. Done, no effort, not trying, he just didn't want to be there. Then out of nowhere, he was able to leap small buildings in a single bound. Reason being is that he is not a very big fella, HA HA!

Anyway, he comes into the U.S. Open and he is a totally different PDW. He has that ability that no one else has. It's like he flips a switch and voila, Super PDW is here. I'm still amazed. Yes, he qualified 20th and yes I drilled him a really good ball reaction. But he still had to go out and bowl the 24 games of match play during which he went from 20th to fourth in one round. He already knew he flipped the switch and then he just kicked it up another notch. I'm still shaking my head as I type this report. He is undoubtedly the best to ever put on a pair of bowling shoes. The rest of the guys on Tour agree. There is no other bowler out there that has the power Pete has. No one, from Walter Ray to Parker. There isn't one other player that can make it happen like PDW. Let's put it like this, they all know when they see the look in his eye to get out of the way because he is about to run them over! The only one that can stop Pete is Pete. Sometimes he is his own worst enemy. But aren't we all in some way, shape or form?

Well my friends I believe it's time for me to chill to the next episode. I'm still in recovery mode from last week. I'm going to try and get my batteries recharged before next week in Indy!