Becoming a Great Bowler

            I am going to talk about something that means a lot to me, my passion, and that is bowling. I have bowled for the last 21 years of my life; I started bowling when I was just three years old. To be a great bowler you have to have confidence, a great mental game, and you have to be good at repetition. In this essay I will give you a little bit of an inside view of what the bowling community go through to get as good as we possibly can.
             The very first thing I was taught in this sport is confidence. Being confident comes from more than just your achievements - it comes from within; it has to be heartfelt too. You have to know that when the ball leaves your hand that you have taken all of the possible steps to make it the best shot you can. You have to have confidence in your game, your equipment of choice and in the physical aspect as well. You have to have confidence to win. To be the best you have to know you can beat the best. Confidence can make the difference between the guy that wins first and the first loser, you must be mentally stable to have that amount of pressure.
             I can hang, can you? To answer your question no I am not talking about partying, which I can do, I am talking about mentally. Bowling is 80 percent mental. You go through so much in that small 75 feet long 40 inches wide area. During that time span you can't imagine what goes through your head; you can only experience it when your mental focus is truly needed. The amount of pressure that we go through, you have to be mentally strong to withstand it. During a competitive game of bowling you have to know the lanes, the ball you are throwing, the ball motion, and the correct shape that is needed to knock down all the pins the proper way. Bowling when you are on a team and you have to make a shot not just yourself but for the betterment of your teammates will test your mental strength. I have been in moments where I have lost a match for my team by not being mentally strong.