Finding the Right Bowling Coach

I can remember when I took my very first paid lesson with world-renowned USBC Gold coach Susie Minshew. After she told me to never show up in jeans again, we got started. I was both nervous and thought I knew everything. In reality, I knew nothing. She only made a couple of small changes in the two hours we spent together, and I left questioning everything she had said. I felt so bad I swore I would never come back. The next day, I shot my highest series to date in our sport league and had the highest of emotional highs.

Good coaching doesn’t always feel good, but you’ll know when it’s right. For this article, I’d like to focus on how to find the right coach for you.

As a Bowling This Month subscriber, you are a student of the game and are always looking to improve your abilities and skills. This involves working with a coach—or at least it should! Coaching is by far the best way to improve, both quickly and efficiently, though the process doesn’t always feel quick or efficient. For some, it can even be a step backward without even knowing, and sadly, this happens far too often. It all starts with making sure you’ve found the right coach for you. Sometimes you luck into it, sometimes it takes some work.

Before we begin, it should be mentioned that the best coaches in the world, in any sport, are often not the best players. I have worked with elite bowling coaches who don’t average 150, and that is perfectly okay. Do you think any of Tiger Woods’ coaches would beat him on the golf course? Of course not. Yet he has employed several full-time ...