The Four Factor Framework for Better Lane Play

Every bowler wants to get better at lane play. While many will point to the need to understand what’s going on and to know which adjustment to make, these aren’t the only areas of concern. Sometimes, a bowler can have a clear picture of what to do and still be questioning themselves while on the approach. Others can clearly see what’s happening, but they blame themselves for several frames before even considering an adjustment on the lanes.

Lane play is impossible to separate from your mindset and your mental state. Your ability to focus, as well as what you focus on, dictates your ability to make good decisions on the lanes. Your ability to put aside different options and fully commit to your decision is also one of the key elements of successful lane play.

It’s for this reason that I’ve developed my Four Factor Framework for lane play. We’re going to blend the tactical side with the mental game and mindset shifts that you need to be able to make in order for your decision-making and lane play to improve.

The Four Factor Framework includes the following four elements that you must be able to do effectively:

• Observe
• Accept
• Decide
• Commit

I’ll be presenting these in chronological order, but they aren’t fixed. You can go back and forth between the first two steps—observe and accept—but once you reach the third step, it’s all about commitment, which is why I’ve highlighted it as a factor on its own.

Observe

The first part of good lane play is being aware of what’s going on with the lanes in front of you. Unfortunately, many bowlers can struggle in this area from both a mental and tactical point of view. What do I mean by this? Well, even if a bowler knows exactly what to look for in their ball motion, they’re not always great at keeping their focus where it needs to be to collect the right ...