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TV Day
 

Brian Kretzer	Ritchie Allen	Mike DeVaney	Del Ballard Jr.

Game 1

Game 2

Championship

Brian Struck a lot during practice that is why I thought he was the underdog. Too good of a look for the 10 minutes before the end of practice should worry every bowler. That is how quick the lanes transition. This was a match where Brian got caught with the wrong ball. Hard to blame him for choosing it considering how much he was striking in practice.

Ritchie didn't get pushed much during the match and by the time Brian made the ball change it was too late. Brian did manage to throw the last 6 for 190 something forcing Ritchie to get 9 or better in two shots. Obviously Ritchie got 9 or better.

Here are pictures of the balls Brian used during the week.

Ritchie Allen balls used during the week

Ballard's Ball

Believe it or not I did not get a photo of Del's Vapor Zone.

The one he used on TV was the same one he used during the week.

The layout was a 4 3/8 pin to axis distance. Del's axis point is 5 1/2 over and 1/2 up. The secondary pin or Mass Bias was at 30 degrees from his PAP to primary pin. There is a small hole on his axis.

Del had two balls in the wings to go to as soon as he felt the lanes were breaking down in the front. He had another Vapor Zone with a 5 1/4 inch pin below his fingers. The secondary pin was at 55 degrees from his PAP to Primary pin. There was a small hole on his axis point. He also had a Classic Zone at 5 inches from his PAP (above the fingers) The mass was at 55 degrees and there was no hole. You saw him throw this ball one shot on the left lane. The reason he did not stick with it was because he had not used the ball all week and was not confident in how to move with it. Del chose to use the ball he used much of the week.

In preparing for this match I was confident Del was as prepared as he could be. My biggest concern was if the lanes broke down faster than Del was prepared for. The field chose to break the middle part of the lane down during practice, which was not real surprise considering the bowlers on the show. It isn't about raising the scoring pace it is about winning and we were not surprised to see what took place.

I do think Mike got caught a little by his ball choice. Mike is on MoRich's staff and is allowed to use Brunswick balls as well since their line does not have any symmetric core balls. It had to be a tough decision based on what he used most of the week. Not that Mike couldn't compete with what he used, but anytime a bowler uses something they did not use all week there is a big question mark with each transitional move during the show. If the ball they used all week doesn't look close than it is a different story. It may sound like 20 minutes is a lot of practice time but that is only if you don't understand how different the lanes are during the match than practice. I did notice one thing about this weeks show and that was the down lane lights were not as hot. There seemed to be fewer lights. So overall I would say the transition was not near as quick or drastic as usual.

Layout of Ballard's
Vapor Zone

At the end of practice you could tell the fronts were going and both bowlers were going to have to deal with some transition early in the match. I really think the TV set effected the transition differently than usual. Yes the lane transitioned but not near as fast as usual. Del got the early lead and maintained it late into the match. He had a couple opportunities to really apply pressure to Ritchie but one bad shot and a couple bad breaks kept that from happening.

I was sitting beside Mike DeVaney when Ritchie got up in the 8th and said to Mike "How big is this shot?" Ritchie was on the right lane on a double. It was he tough lane and he had just changed balls to strike on it in the 6th frame. Almost every match is determined by the mental game. Whether it be Mental strategy, emotional control or confidence. Ritchie used all three to overcome a very challenging moment in the match. The great shot, the great break and Ritchie took control of the match.

Del got up in the 9th, on the right lane, needing to apply pressure on Ritchie. Del made a great shot but was not to be the fortunate bowler of the day. As expected the right lane proved to be the difference in the match. Ritchie made the right ball change just in time to gain his second title and the most coveted exemption for next season, not to mention an invitation to the Tournament of Champions. In the process he knocked Mike DeVaney out of the TOC.

Post match thoughts

I can not find fault in anything Del did. Would a ball change have made a difference? Possibly but that doesn't mean it would have been for the better. Do I think Del bowled well. The answer is a definite yes.