There’s No “I” in League

When you make the move to join a ten pin bowling league either with some good friends, or end up on a team with new people that you now get to make new friends with, keep in mind that you are joining up as a team.  The better your overall team is, the higher in the rankings you can find yourselves – also, everyone benefits in improvement on averages and handicaps.

Oddly enough, I seem to run into the same scenario over and over again when bowling with other teams and members where they are not really helping or motivating each other.  You are practically guaranteed to meet some new people that have never been on a league before, and that opens the doors to those same folks not necessarily knowing some of the unwritten rules or proper bowling etiquette.

You are a Reflection of Your Team

Having fun is the priority of any bowling game and when it comes to league night, the premise is no different.  Sure, it’s nice to win here and there, but that should just be a by-product of a fun night out.  More importantly, you are there to support and motivate your team!  I’m not talking about trash-talking or being obnoxious (again, don’t be that guy or girl), but push your teammates and praise them for their contribution.

There are no doubts that you will run into a bad night and may toss well below your average.  It happens, but if you or a member of your team runs into the brick wall, work on keeping the spirits up as the mental game of bowling can make a huge difference at the end of the series.

Step in When Needed to Educate Your Team

As I had touched on, many leagues are peppered with people that have either never bowled on a league before, or have not learned basic lane courtesy.  Don’t be hesitant to step in and educate your team members if there is an opportunity to do so.  I can’t count how many times I’ve gone to setup for my throw, only to have the individual on the next lane grab and ball and fire off a shot without looking to see if anybody is already up.  Educate your team members so they don’t become your team’s least favorite member.

League night is not necessarily a time to ‘forget’ about practice.  In fact, every game that you bowl should be counted as practice since you should be working to improve your game one way or another anyway.  I’m not saying to get right up there with your teammates and have a full on coaching session on the approach, if you want to get the collective evil eye, go ahead and try it if you’re brave.

Between frames, however, go ahead and discuss the game and offer tips (or accept them) and help each other along.  Remember that league bowling is a team based effort and it takes the total score of all members to get the points at the end of the night.  But, sharing the knowledge with the newer folks on the league can make the entire league that much more rewarding and fun.

What Say You?

Have you learned anything new from listening to or watching other, experienced bowlers on your league?  Do you notice other teams encouraging each other or are they simply there for the beer?