I was out of town for work for a good bit and didn't have any gear.  I've been eyeing a cell pearl for a bit and took the opportunity to buy one and had it drilled stacked from this little bowling alley in Rolla Missouri.

On it's first roll on real wood my thought was, "is that it?"  Ball looked funny going through the heads, never made a sharp turn and never hit hard.  Tried it at another house that was shorter and drier and still had the similar same problem.  Ball would hook and turn but was just very unpredictable and still never rolled properly.  Just never got a good attitude on it.  Finally got it back to my local house and bowled a mens league with it.  Freshly heavily oiled lanes, threw my normal shot standing about 20, rolling out to 15 and I was just waiting for it to turn and it never did.  Stood at 25 trying to get it into the dry with less speed and even more revs, still never never came back.  Stood at 30 and threw it 20 and it barely turned hitting inbetween the 3-6.  I hadn't bowled that bad in I don't know how long, I fought it and fought thinking there was something seriously wrong with my game that day.  Switched to my black widow venom and I was good from the 2nd game.  Tried the cell again in the 3rd game after the lanes had burned up a bit but it still wasn't any good.

I talked to some of the other bowlere there and asked why it wouldn't hook and if they knew.  They said I threw a really good ball and the cell was good too and I wasn't playing the right line.  I didn't believe that, I've been bowling for a good bit and have had quite a share of gear.  I couldn't figure out what was wrong with it and felt like I just wasted alot of money.  It was really bothering me for a bit. It was like the ball was dead.  I could have got more reaction from a plastic ball.

Finally got it to my local proshop and it was as I suspected after looking at some of my other layouts.  I asked the guy if it needed a balance hole.  He marked it, measured and weighed it and sure enough it needed 1.5 oz. drilled out for balance.  The guy who drilled it seemed to know what he was doing and I talked to some people in the shop about his skills.  He even watched me roll it a few times.  He didn't say anything but seemed a bit perplexed.

All is good now though, it's a different ball, rolls very nice, and can come back from way out there.

Just thought I would post that.