"J" approached me last week with a "technical" question. She had gone to a nearby pro shop because they had the capability to put in adjustable thumb inserts. Her thumb has a "lot of mood swings and it can swell a lot depending on the temperature and what she eats." She'll start out okay, but by the second or third game, she has a difficult time releasing the ball.

She wanted to try the new technology despite the fact that this shop is not where she normally has work done on her bowling balls. She said that when she went to pick up her ball, the guy who did the work on for her made a comment to the effect of, "I noticed that your thumb had reverse pitch on it so I made it zero pitch (because reverse pitch is not good for current conditions.)"

For the past several weeks, she has bowled "worse than she has ever bowled in her life." Her average has dropped from 177 to 155 in one league and she even posted a 397 series two Wednesdays ago. "J" has had quite a bowling career and in her younger days, was a 180-190 bowler. Now in her mid-70's, still packs a 175+ so this lady is no slouch.

First, I told her that a good ball driller should never have done what was done to her; second I advised her to take the ball back and ask that he fix the problem. She is adamant that she will never have him touch a ball of hers ever again. She may have to go away from the adjustable thumb holes but at least she "won't bowl so terribly."

The "Choc-List" for lessons learned about pro shops is:

1) A good pro shop will never make changes based on what the ball driller "thinks" or "feels" would be better for you; especially if they haven't seen you bowl or if they haven't asked you first.

2) A good pro shop should never presume to know all about ball drilling just because they have certifications.

3) A good pro shop may lose many customers for life. "J" is active in the local women's bowling club and has a lot of influence with the women bowler's in the area.

4) A good pro shop will never purport to know what is "the best thing" for their customer without having a solid discussion with that customer.

Too many bowling pro shops nowadays have ball drillers who think they can get away with drilling to their opinionated specifications rather than to their customer's.

A Hui Hou! (See You Again!)