| Mental Game | ||
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Mental Q&A [1-20] [41-60] [61-80] [81-100] [101-120]
 Ken February 5, 2003 Landenberg PA Hello Walter Ray: Congratulations on a great year! I see a lot of people have asked you what you think about on the approach...my question is what do you think about off the approach - between shots? Good luck the rest of the season! Thanks, Ken Hi Ken, Off the approach it depends on what is going on and how I am bowling. When I am struggling I am trying to figure out what I need to be doing. Other times I am kind of hanging out watching the other guys bowling around me and maybe talking with one of the guys. Dana February 1, 2003 Rockland MA Dear Walter-Ray, I've been bowling since I was 3, I'm now 24. When I was 18 I was planning on traveling the country and bowl in bowling tournaments all over, and eventually make it in nationals, and then the pba. I had goals of becoming a young star in the pba, but in 96 when I was 18, I had two heart operations, I guess I should tell you that I came from the same house as ricky ward, I was probably averaging 210-215. Now ever since I cant avg more than 200, cant win any tournament, I love bowling but I'm ready to give it up, I m tired of embarassing myself, what happened to my mental game, can you please help me find it again. Hi Dana, 2 heart operations at age 18! Wow, I am not sure how I would deal with that at age 43. I don't know if the operations did something else to you physically, but they may have. If you love bowling, then it should only matter a little bit on how well you bowl. Try to have fun when you bowl. I can't say what has happened to your mental game because I don't know what it was like before. I would say hang in there and if it really is that important to you to do well, then look for a coach and practice. I hope it comes back to you Patty January 30, 2003 Lockport NY Hello Walter Ray, I thoroughly enjoyed your visit to Lockport, NY in August. Thanks again for allowing a picture with you. I would like to ask which of your two sports do you find more mentally challenging. And how is the mental preparation for each sport different? Also, do you use the services of a professional psychologist in preparing the "mental game"? I see spectators on TV holding a picture of you that seems to be attached to a wooden handle. How can I get one? I truly am a Walter Ray "fan". Hi Patty, Lately I have had more of a mental problem with horseshoes. And it has now carried over to my physical game. Part of that might be that I don't practice as much in horseshoes as I used to. I don't really do any structured mental preparation, but sometimes (not very often) when I am in bed the night before a competition I will try to think positive thoughts. I don't use a psychologist, but I have attended a couple of seminars which the ball companies I was with had its staff attend. You should be able to order the 'face on a stick' on the website. There are other items as well such as T-shirts. John January 20, 2003 Lima OH Walter Ray: I am curious as to your thoughts on completely dominating a tournament (such as the ABC Masters) and not coming out on top. I don't have the figures but I am sure your average for the complete tournament dwarfs everyone else. However, $50,000 ain't bad! Hi John, I bowled extremely well in the ABC Masters this last year except for my last couple of matches. That is one of the reasons why I don't care for elimination formats. I was fortunate to finish 2nd at the ABC Masters even though I bowled as well as I did. If I had a bad set or an opponent had a good set early on I would have been put into the losers bracket or worse in our new formats. I have done very well with the new formats in the PBA even though I don't care for them. You have to take the good with the bad and so far I think I am in the plus as far as that goes. It was disappointing to finish 2nd, but I didn't bowl as good in the championship game as I needed to. You are correct, the 2nd place money wasn't bad. Chuck January 27, 2003 Monroeville PA My friend and I are competitive. Even though we are on the same team, we compete between ourselves. It seems to improve our game because we want to do well. However, when he begins to bowl extremely well, i.e., starting off a game with 7 in row, I seem to try to hard to keep up, and little mistakes send me over the edge. How do YOU keep your composure when you know you are better than anyone out there and they seem to be bowling a great game against you? Thanks and Good Luck next week. A friend in Pittsburgh, PA Hi Chuck, It is a great thing to be competitive, but it helps to keep things in prospective. I know that I can't win all of the time, especially in bowling. Even if I am feel that I am better than my opponent, I know that I won't always win the game. I take comfort in knowing that I perform well. Stan December 16, 2002 Oregonia Ohio I've noticed by looking at your scoresheets that you have missed some spares that were not splits. Is this do to lack of concentration or lane conditions? By looking at the scoresheets, I can see it cost you a spot in the TV finals at the T of C tournament. Hi Stan, I did miss a very important spare in my match against Robert Smith in the first game which may very well have helped me win the match had I spared. The spare was a 2-8 which is not the easiest of spares to shoot. With the lane conditions being a little confusing to me at the time I decided to go with a straight spare shot, but threw it bad. That happens from time to time. I don't think my concentration was lacking on that particular shot, but it does from time to time on easy spares such as the 7 pin I missed against Patrick Allen. Jay December 11, 2002 Lake Elmo MN Walter Ray, I was so dissapointed that you were distracted by the camera flash last Sunday (12/8). As you know it cost you the game and possibly the championship. Was it a fan or a professional photographer? I am assuming that the fans are aware that flash photography is not allowed? On a positive note, it is very refreshing to see that you don't employ the in the face type tactics that the PBA is pushing for. I can see getting fired-up over a shot or a situation but it is disturbing to see the way many of the bowlers direct their comments at their opponents. Are any of the professionals who these comments are directed to offended or do they just take pleasure in letting their bowling do the talking.? I was pleased to see Norm Duke win the tournament a couple of weeks ago after Traber got in his face. Finally, how do you think the new format is going? Continued success Walter Ray, my son (10)and I enjoy following you each week and you conduct yourself the way I would want my son to conduct himself on the lanes. Hi Jay, That was a fan that took the picture. My understanding is that he isn't as big of a fan of bowling and maybe didn't understand about taking flash pictures even though the PBA always mentions no flash photography and turning off cell phones. It is hard to comment on how other players feel about an opponent getting in their face. I know that I try not to let it bother me, and throw strikes, but that doesn't always happen. The new elimination format is tough and seems to have a bit more drama than the old format. And even though I have done very well with it, I prefer the old "boring" method. I don't always conduct myself in a 'perfect' manner, but I do try to act in a professional manner as best I can. Thomas December 10, 2002 Holtsville NY Dear Duke of Deadeye: As a freshman in college and bowling, I am admittedly having trouble with my game right now and I'm pretty sure it lies between the ears. I actually tried writing something to myself to see if it would work, sort of theraputic but I'm not sure if I helped the problem or caused more trouble to it. wWhat would you consider to be the best mental to approach to when things aren't going smoothly? After what happened with that fan and the flash going off, I wondered where your mind would be and I saw you rebound immediately although lose the match. I never ask for advice but you seem like the perfect person for this type of situation because of what just happened. Good luck at the TOC, I hope to be there. Tom Scherrer Hi Tom, I was very upset after the flash incident. It took at least until the next time I was on the right lane for me to be a little closer to normal. They say when life throws you lemons to make lemonade. When you are bowling poorly, you need to figure out why and see if there is anything you can do about it. Try to learn from those tough experiences. Mike December 9, 2002 Monroeville PA Congrats walter on Showing the Best Class of anyone so far this yr on tv ! After what happened Yesterday on tv I dont Blame you for your reaction or remarks ! I do beleive that Kurt should of instantly gave you the shot over. As far as I know and read the rule The Director has the right to over rule any rule and give you the shot over ! I also understand that after the match you went over and apologized to everyone there Why ? You didnt do anything that anyone else would of done if anything they cost you a TITLE ! This is how you earn a livin ! Keep up the Great Bowling and win the T of C this week ! Mike Hi Mike, I don't know the rule book front to back, but I am unaware of any rule which gives the tournament director to change the rules of bowling. Distraction is an ABC rule. I talked to the fan who took the picture because I felt that he didn't do it on purpose and I told him just that. He apologized to me about taking the flash picture. It was a very unfortunate event and is over and done with. Dan November 26, 2002 New York City NY Hi Walter Ray: comment: First of all: you are my absolute favorite bowler of all time. I loved Earl Anthony, but I really look forward to the day you win your 42nd title! My question is: when you bowl in match play, does that make you play better or approach the game differently, as opposed to qualifying rounds when you're going for pin total but not head-to-head. Thanks, and I really hope you win Player of the Year (to tie Earl with six)! -- Dan Barrish-Flood, New York City Hi Dan, I don't know if I necessarily bowl better in match play, but usually my average is a bit higher. But I believe that is more due to the way I practice on the pair before the match and the way most of the guys play the lanes during the qualifying. A player does have to play match play a bit differently. During qualifying making a move in the middle of a game isn't such a big deal, but in match play you are either out of the game and trying to get back in the match or your current reaction is really bad. Also in match play (more than one game matches), a player might miss spares in an effort to get better lined up which you wouldn't normally do in qualifying. Jake November 12, 2002 Carroll IA This is my fourth year bowling in a junior league. I started when i was fourteen. I take my bowling very seriously. Extremely serious. My goal in life is to bowl professionally. Which you probably hear all the time. I want to beat Earl Anthony's record of pba victories. But I'm sure by then it will be yours. I practice six days a week, and bowl about 15 games a day. And since i work at our local bowling alley, I have plenty of chances to learn about the game. Plus there are many people in my town that are extremely good bowlers. I'm trying to take the best attributes from all these people and make my own game. Except i am have a problem with my mental game. My coach says that i have the physical game down. But my mental game is what i need to work on. So my question to you is how do i stay motivated to keep going when i feel i can't go on? And how do you deal with losing streaks? How do you not get mad if you throw a bad shot? That is probably what i need to learn the most. I am a perfectionist, and when i miss my mark, sometimes i feel like im wasting my time. Please help me out if you can. This is my first letter to you, and probably not my last. And great job beating Voss last Sunday, I loved every second of it. Hi Jake, I do get mad when I make a bad shot or something bad happens to me. However for the TV matches I can usually shrug it off as I need to go on to the next shot and being upset doesn't do a player any good. As far as staying focused, you need to remember that if you want to be the best ever then you need to work on every shot of every game you bowl. Otherwise learn to enjoy the game and have a good time. It depends on what you call a losing streak. Is a losing streak not cashing, not making the top 32, not winning? Everybody has good streaks and bad streaks. When a player is a having a bad streak, it is very frustrating. That is when you need to work on your game to get out of it, because there is usually something you are doing wrong which is causing the bad streak. Trying to have a positive attitude is what you need, but difficult when things aren't going well. Hang in there. And good luck on your goals. But remember it is very difficult to be the absolute best at anything. So don't be to hard on yourself if it doesn't happen the way you want. Alex November 9, 2002 Philadelphia PA I actually have two questions... 1. What were you averaging in league prior to joining the tour and what in your mind told you that you were ready to give it a shot?? 2. I know that in the beginning of your career you threw more of a wide sweeping hook...now your famous for the "up-the-back" release. Why did you make the change? thank you and keep up the good bowling Hi Alex, 1. I was bowling in 1 league plus a sub in another league at a different house the year I went out on tour. They were both open leagues where you would get the best 4 players together with no average maximum. In the league I was in I was averaging 205 and had the highest right handed while in the sub league I was averaging 227 and was probably 2nd or 3rd high. As you can tell, the leagues bowled on different lane conditions. I had already bowled in regional tournaments for 2 years and just missed being the Western regional player of the year in 1982. Also I had made the top 24 in 2 of the 5 national tournaments in the previous year (1982) with an 8th place finish at one of them. I felt I was ready and fortunately I was able to make more money than I spent in my first years on tour. 2. When I first came out on tour I hooked the ball a fair amount. After a couple of years on tour I found out that I had trouble bowling on lanes that hooked a lot or when the straighter players bowled well. I also started having problems with my hand. I found out that I could throw the ball straighter and still strike. It took a while before I was truly comfortable with this straighter release and after a while I used it so much that I kind of lost my hook game. Nowadays, I might hook the ball as much as I used to when I do hook the ball, but the big difference is that most of the tour players hook the ball so much these days that my hook isn't that much compared to them. I try to figure out how I should play the lanes and play them that way whether that means going straight or hooking the ball. Dave October 25, 2002 Wauseon OH Hey Walter Ray you've heard from me before and this time i have a question on your mental game. what do you do to prepare yourself for a match against a player because our high school team is about to start soon and hopefully we can win some more matches this year and then we could prepare ourselves better this year as well. thanks again for your time hope to hear from you soon dave Hi Dave, I don't really do a whole lot to prepare for a match. If anything I might be a little bit unprepared. I do think about how I might play the lanes, but that often changes. Other than that I just go about my normal activities. I say I might be a bit unprepared in that I sometimes don't allow enough time to get everything prepared before I bowl a block, or match and even sometimes on TV. Jim September 30, 2002 http://www.thewritersedge.com Las Vegas NV Walter Ray, Jim Jobin here from Las Vegas. Hope you and Paige are enjoying the Bullet Space Pens that we had engraved for you! I've been reading over a replay that you gave me back in August and I'm confused. You said "Nobody hits within 10 pins of their average on half of their games". Can you elaborate on this. Being a new bowler (into my 6th month), I'm beginning to see some improvement, and want to remain emotionally balanced by my scores. Jim Hi Jim, Thanks for the pens. They are really cool. I may have overstepped myself on that comment, but what I was trying to say is that bowler's scores are not that consistent. If you were to keep track of all of your games in a year I would bet that more than half of your games would be outside of the 20 pin spread which is around your average, the +/- 10 pins. All I was saying was that most bowlers aren't that consistent. I would guess that in the league in which Jeff Carter averaged 261 he probably was within 10 pins of his average on half of his games, but I doubt that he was for the games he bowled on tour. I hope this helps explain myself. Keep practicing and try not to worry about your low and high games. Tariq September 22, 2002 www.wnt.150m.com Glasgow (Scotland) Hi! im a scottish lefty, 19 years ol,d only been bowling for 3 years and iv got about a 183-194 ave. I feel i an improve on this drastically, but need to work on my mental game on keeping my mind and focusd in connection to my action succesfully without loosing it and missing the spare. Is there something you can suggest for me to try and focus on or work on? Hi Tariq, Staying focused is a personal thing. Everybody has a little bit different way of focusing. I think it is better to concentrate on as few things as possible, preferably one. I like to concentrate on my follow through or my target. Keep practicing and good luck. Clarke August 26, 2002 Goldsboro NC Walter Ray, I e-mailed you in the guest book about the tournament in Cary, NC were I bowled with you. The question I had was getting caught in trans. I dont know if you remembered but after the first 4 games I started finding the pocket more that the first 4 games.. Why do you think my bowling was better at the end? Thanks, Clarke Hill PBA #021016 Hi Clarke, Typically on fresh oil the lanes can be a bit 'trickier', especially when the lanes are difficult as they were in Cary. Once the oil carries down and a track starts to be created the lanes usually become 'easier'. This seems to be more pronounced for the guys who really hook the ball. Learning how to play a more conservative game might come in handy especially when your 'A' game doesn't have a good look. It might also be that at the start of the tournament your nerves weren't quite settled down. I also struggled in Cary and what is easy for one player isn't always that way for another. Good luck in the future. Don August 9, 2002 Truxton NY Your mental game is second to none,any sugestions for strengthening mine? Hi Don, I don't know if my mental game is "2nd to none", but it normally gets me by. You need to have confidence in yourself. When you practice, imagine yourself in competition. Also the more competition you are in, the better chance you have to deal with pressure and increasing your confidence. Anthony April 9, 2002 Lackawanna NY Hi Walter Ray and Page! we'll walt your help has boosted my confidence and pride! i threw a couple of 700's and 1 299! but i get nervous and shake? how do i overcome this? love ya 's thanks ! Tony Hi Tony, Congratulations! I really don't know how to overcome nerves. But if you have confidence that helps. Try to remember that you got to that point because of good bowling. Good luck. Raymond March 31, 2002 Honey Brook PA Dear Walter Ray, It's Raymond the one you sent about the district tourtament I won and my team is going to states and the The State Final is in June 14-16 at Holiday Lanes in Pittaburgh and i wondering if you can come to it i did what you told me and i bowled pretty good my team bowled a 2478 a total of 4 people. And at the College USA when they attended The Palace of Downingtown I talked to Saginaw Valley Coach and he gave me some pointers right before i went to Disdricts and i did good. I hope u can be there. Your Friend Raymond Hi Raymond, I am glad that you did well at your district tournament. Unfortunately I will not be able to go to your state finals. At this moment I am planning on playing in a horseshoe tournament that weekend. Todd March 27, 2002 Klamath Falls OR Hey Walter Ray, I am a huge fan of yours. I have been for the last 14 years. My mom and dad use to bowl with you back in the 80's. Their names are Denis and Linda White! You might also know my uncle donnie moore and his son Ron moore. I got my first 700 series last night. 783. Boy, did it feel great. What is it like bowling on tv and bowling like a pro? My friend jason taylor just joined the tour, he was in medford oregan a few months ago. No big hurry! Please write Hi Todd, If I remember correctly, I bowled with your parents in an Eagles league when I first started to average 200. I do remember a Gary Moore who was a very good bowler but didn't bowl the PBA tournaments back then. Sometimes my memory is a bit marginal. It is kind of fun being a professional bowler. However it isn't always fun. I normally enjoy bowling on TV, but when I bowl poorly it isn't so as enjoyable. Great bowling and keep it up. Mental Q&A [1-20] [41-60] [61-80] [81-100] [101-120] | ||