Advanced Clinic at Saddleback Lanes

Missy conducted an advanced bowling clinic on June 13th-14th at Saddleback Lanes in Mission Viejo, Calif. The clinic, targeting 175 and above average bowlers, was implemented as a training and educational tool to better techniques and learn higher-level skills.

The two-day clinic featured both classroom and on-the-lanes demonstrations and drills. Some of the topics discussed were lane adjustments, lane play, bowling ball dynamics and more.

Keep an eye out for future bowling clinics with Missy!

Fresno PBA Regional

This past weekend, I bowled in the PBA Sierra Open in Fresno, Calif. on the chameleon pattern.

Since we bowled in a bigger bowling center, everyone competed on one squad for qualifying. After the eight games of qualifying, I was in 9th place at +85. The pattern was pretty difficult. It only took +16 to make the cut to the top 1/3 of the field for the semis.

We then immediately bowled the 5 games of semis. The pattern played even tougher, with scores dropping, shot making and accuracy became a must. After the 5 games of semis, for a total of 13 games, I was at +135 and in 6th place. It only took +14 to make the top 16 match play finals.

All day, I played the lanes fairly straight and pretty far outside, which made transitions and adjustments a little easier. I think everyone would agree that they saw too many 2-8-10 combinations, which was really easy leave. I also went old-school and had drilled up two brand new "old" balls, which I ended up using the entire tournament. How many of you remember the old Columbia Ricochet Rebound and Blue Wicked???? Yep, those were the balls I had just drilled and used all weekend. See old balls can still work!

Then on Sunday, I bowled Mason Sherman in matchplay for the best 3 out of 5 Round of 16 finals. I lost the first game 164-236 and then came back to win the next two games 230-160 and 255-200 (I had the front 8 that game). Then I lost the 4th game189-234 to tie the match 2-2. So it all went down to the last game. I bowled well, but caught a few bad breaks and lost my shot on one lane and ended up losing 196-225.

Overall, it was a great weekend and good practice. The lane conditions were very demanding and shot making was at a premium.

Stay tuned for more news...

The Up-Side to Missing the Cut

This past weekend, I competed in a PBA Regional event - Battle at Black Oak Casino in Tuolumne, CA.

It was the first regional I had bowled in since February and the first tournament I had bowled in in almost a month. Well, I was definitely a little rusty, as I started off well - 212, 232, 198 but then faced some bad middle games during the transition - 145 and 177. I finally got lined up later in the block, but it was a little too late.

So needless to say, I missed the cut, which was a bit disappointing.

However, being that the PBA Regional event was really close to Yosemite National Park (and I had never been there before), my boyfriend and I decided to stop by there on our way home.

For those of you that have never had the privilege of going to this absolute natural wonder, I would HIGHLY recommend it. I had always heard of how beautiful the park was, but for some reason or another hadn't actually been there before myself. I was absolutely blown away!

From the first 10 minutes of being inside the park, we saw a small bear cub in one of the meadows. Then five minutes down the road were breath taking views of waterfalls and Half Dome. Many waterfalls, hiking trails and gorgeous views later, we were back on our way home.

Although I would have rather been bowling that day, it was a great alternative and an amazing experience.

Keeping Busy in the Off Season

Hello everyone!

I know it has been awhile since I've blogged and for that I sincerely apologize.

Since there are not any national PBA or women's events until August, here's an inside scoop as to what I've been up to so far since the USBC Queens tournament...

On May 10th, I was the special guest at a Make a Wish Foundation Bowling Tournament, which raised hundreds of dollars towards granting the wishes of sick children. The event was held at Brunswick Foothill Lanes in Fontana. Check out the picture above with event coordinator Joseph De La Torre.

Then on May 23rd and 24th, I held a beginning-intermediate clinic at Saddleback Lanes in Mission Viejo. The clinic featured both classroom and on-the-lanes tips and demonstrations. Participants ranged from junior to senior bowlers, with everyone averaging 175 or below. All of the feedback was positive and everyone seemed to really enjoy it. Be on the lookout for blogs regarding upcoming clinics at Saddleback Lanes.

Then on May 30th and 31st, I was the special guest, along with Tony Reyes for the PBA Regional event - Battle at Black Oak Casino in Tuolumne, CA. Tony and I bowled in the special pro am event and also met with the youth bowlers from Black Oak Lanes. See photos above.

On June 3rd, I visited the Kindergarten classes of John Muir Fundamental Elementary school. I talked to the kids about being a professional bowler and about the sport of bowling in general. I brought a few props with me - a bowling pin, a bowling ball, my shoes and a few accessories. Afterwards, all 60 kids and I went outside and bowled on the asphalt with a make-shift lane, pins and ball. See pictures above.

During June and July, I will be competing in PBA Regional events, so be sure to check out pba.com and view my blog for updated information.

Queens and USBC Women's Championships

I ventured to Reno for the USBC Queens and Women's Championships both held at bowling's premiere venue - the National Bowling Stadium. For those of you that have never had the privilege of bowling at the National Bowling Stadium, let me try and describe the experience.

As you take the escalator ride up to the main level of the stadium, you see the enormous Lane 81 bowling pro shop, full of merchandise from every bowling ball manufacturer out there. You may also catch a glimpse of the full-size bowling lane located inside the pro shop, where you can get your game video taped and fully analyzed on the C.A.T.S system.

Then, as you get off of the escalator and approach the bowling lanes, your jaw will drop at the sight of 80 lanes, giant score boards spanning 440 feet total (the longest video screen in the world) and stadium seating much like other sporting events. The ceiling is a measly 5 stories above the lanes, making the bowling center seem larger than life. So you can imagine that when you first step foot on the lanes, it may take a little while to get used to the environment not to mention that your name up on the huge scoreboard can bee seen from about 20 lanes away.

Enough about the venue, let's talk about the actual bowling. First I bowled in the USBC Women's Championships. I bowled team event first and shot 222, 246 and 216 for a 684 series and our team shot 3015 total. Then in doubles, I died. We hit a pretty tough pair and every adjustment I tried didn't work. I only shot 523! (See everyone has bad days!) And then for singles, I rebounded and shot 195, 267 and 233 for a 695 series, giving me 1902 for all-events. Right now, in the classic division I am in 15th in singles, 15th in team event and 47th in all-events.

Then in the Queens tournament, I shot +134 for the 10 games of qualifying and was in 31st going into the final 5 games of round 3 qualifying. I bowled a really good set, shooting +130 and moving up into 9th place. Then the tournament was cut to the top 63 women plus last year's defending champion Lynda Barnes.

That's when the real tournament began. In the three-game total pins, double elimination style match play finals, I first bowled Kristen Warzinski and won 677-610. The next match I faced Jodi Woessner and lost 614-684, knocking me into the loser's bracket.

In the loser's bracket, I faced one of the Japanese pros Reiko Kosuda and won 686-622. The next match I faced fellow Japanese pro Takiko Naganawa and also won shooting 707-588, after being down 30 pins and shooting 170 the first game. Then I hit a terrible pair (which there were a couple of) and I couldn't match up. I lost to Jamie Martin 569-536 and was knocked out of the tournament.

I finished in 17th place overall.

The USBC Queens marked my last tournament for a while. I'll be bowling PBA Regional tournaments throughout the summer until the Women's U.S. Open in August.

Missy Visits Lemoore Naval Air Station

In early April, Missy visited Lemoore Naval Air Station in Central, California for the second year-in-a-row. After a fun first year visit, Lemoore bowlers asked Missy to come back and requested an even larger field for the clinics. This time around, Missy brought father, Frank Bellinder to help out with the clinics and answer any questions parents may have in regards to helping Missy during her junior bowling years.

Missy first put on a clinic for 20 junior bowlers and then conducted an adult clinic for 15 adults.

If you are interested in having Missy conduct a clinic or make an appearance at your bowling center, please contact Missy at missy@missybellinder.com.

Enjoy the pics!

Missy on ESPN this Sunday, April 12 from 1-3pm EST

Missy Bellinder will be competing in the PBA Women's Series Showdown on ESPN this Sunday, April 12th from 1-3pm EST. Missy was one of six women to qualify for this special bonus event. The event takes place in Lake Wales, FL at the kegel training center. Be sure to tune in!