WTBA Stockholm - 34 ft

Again, I played three games on a freshly oily Stockholm pattern.

As one might expect, this shot played similarly to the Sydney - 33 ft pattern of the previous week. After learning some valuable lessons on that pattern, I began my practice this week the way that I ended last week.

The Set Up
- Sliding 19, Targeting 10
- Moderate Hand Position
- Ball Layout - Even-arcing action and skid
- Ball core - Low Flare Ellipse
- Coverstock - Reactive Resin

The Lane Play
In the first ten frames, (in cross-lane, league-style play) I got a very nice, predictable roll out of my ball. I would categorize it as smooth, arcing roll with plenty of punch and carry in the pocket. I had the most room missing left of target as my ball would catch some of the heavy early oil and just sit and skid. Missing right was, again, not a good option and I got very little recovery. However, I left far fewer washouts and splits. (In other fun news, I did take the 3 pin cleanly out of the 1-3-6.)

In the second ten frames, the lanes remained fairly open, and I was able to string many strikes together. Any shots that missed the pocket were clearly my error and I did not feel the need to move my feet at all.

By the last ten frames, the oil had moved down the lane, and my area got much tighter. I experienced the same two boards of room that I had the previous week on the Sydney pattern. I could not buy a pocket shot and in retrospect, I wish that I would have tried to move my feet right to take advantage of the lighter oil and get my ball into a better roll. All shots left of target went left - although not nearly as left as on the Sydney pattern. All shots right of target left me multiple pin combination spares on the left side. Throwing a ball with a nice even-arc reaction, though, gave me make-able spares and no splits. 

Things I Learned 
STRAIGHTER IS GREATER at spares. The movement of the oil down the lane from frame to frame will leave you scratching your head at your ball movement as you try to guess how to pick up any multiple pin spares.

I suspect that any player willing to throw a little more aggressive ball will benefit in the long run in terms of favorable ball reaction - IF AND ONLY IF - they are able to make a consistent release.

When I did NOTHING with my release, (in other words, I did not try to hook the ball at all) I got the most consistent reaction down the lane. When I got more aggressive with my release, my ball struggled in the oily heads and suffered down lane. I am, however, only 5'7" and my arm span can be  a disadvantage on these lane conditions. Taller players with arm spans long enough to miss most of the heads will experience fewer headaches with the early oil.

I will amend this post with any post-league play thoughts, when I experience the condition with 6 players on the pair.