I bowled. Nothing spectacular, 1830ish with an unacceptable number of missed spares holding back my score (and one gutterball on a spare when I lost the ball off my hand).
I think it’s pretty close to last year. Team Event has a lot of friction, I had to swing it a little more than I’d like to on a fresh sport shot. Doubles and singles plays heavy and will trick people into thinking it’s a longer pattern than it really is.
I obsessed over ball selection myself (its tough going as early as we go), so I’ll save everyone the hassle. Start with lots of surface, move to less surface, and finish with some polish. It’s really that obvious.
Pin up or down drillings?
Your results will vary.
I’m a speed dominant high rev/high speed bowler with higher axis rotation.
My nationals arsenal:
Brunswick Mastermind, pin over ring @ 1000
Hammer Gauntlet, pin under ring @ 1000
Roto Grip No Rules Pearl, pin over middle @ 2000 + some lane shine
Storm Drive, pin in ring @ OOB
Storm Soniq, pin in ring @ OOB
Mix
In both blocks, I went from 1000 grit (Mastermind/Gauntlet) to less surface (NRP) to polish (Soniq). Mastermind/Gauntlet both controlled the pocket on either pattern at 1000 grit - that decision was simply whether a pin up or pin down ball was going through the pins better on the fresh. I personally liked the roundness of the Gauntlet on the team shot and the sharper Mastermind on the D/S.
Gauntlet was especially good on team. I didn’t use NRP long on team because I had stuck with the Gauntlet so long.
Drive was there to give me a rounder and more continuous shape if needed in the middle slot, but it never came into play in the main event.