Three Quick Things: Distraction, Environmental Response Time, and Defining Good Timing

In this recurring feature, I’ll be digging into three quick things to help you improve your game. In each installment, I’ll cover one aspect of the mental game, a lane play/tactical issue, and an element of the physical game.

Remember to allow distraction

One of the most common things I see at youth events is a parent or coach reminding their child to focus. My question is: focus on what? The bowling shot cycle has several key components:

• Pre-shot routine
• Execution
• Watching ball motion
• Adjustment decision

Each one requires a different sort of focus, but each also needs your attention at a specific time. For example, thinking about your adjustment while executing your shot is usually a recipe for some bad execution.

Bowling is a sport of constantly shifting your focus, but it usually plays out as a cycle, going frame by frame. However, one of the most important elements of maintaining a long-term focus happens between the adjustment decision and the pre-shot routine.

The importance of distraction

No one can stay focused on bowling forever. Focus requires energy. When you combine that with the emotional stress of bowling, your brain does need a break. If you try to stay focused on bowling 100 percent of the time, you’ll end up frying out or trapped in the analysis paralysis loop.

For bowlers who tend to overthink their adjustments, this is especially true. What you want to do is understand the rhythm and timing that your mind needs in order to balance thinking and rest. For example, when you are bowling well, you probably don’t think about your adjustment decisions for longer than 15 to 20 seconds. In many cases, for elite bowlers, it’s actually much less than ...