n Sunday, March 20, 2005, Liz Johnson proved to the world that "bowling like a girl" is a compliment, not an insult.

Bowling for a Professional Bowlers Association title in the Banquet Open in Wyoming, Mich., Johnson came within two frames of upsetting Tommy Jones, one of the PBA's most talented young mega-hook power players.

Diandra Asbaty

No woman in bowling history has come closer to winning a title in the male-dominated PBA. And it wasn't a fluke.

Beyond the score was a profound message: In an era where "power bowling" is the game of choice, the fundamentally sound game most women play remains invaluable. Any bowler - man, woman, child, senior - can become a better player by observing the techniques of top female bowlers.

"Women rely on accuracy. They make the game look easier because they don't do anything too complex." - Cathy Dorin-Lizzi PWBA Titlist

"Everyone - especially young people - wants to bowl like the guys who throw the big, powerful hook balls, and most bowlers physically can't do it," said seven-time Team USA star Diandra Asbaty. "What happens is, many of them become bad bowlers because they miss out on the fundamentals.

"All the guys want to do is strike," Asbaty continued. "Women realize they can't always do that."

Important lessons can be learned, simply by observing how skilled women play the game. Not many people can hook the ball 40 boards like Jones and friends. The vast majority more easily relate to Johnson's straight-to-the-pocket approach to the game.


"People have always told me they like to watch me because my game's simple," Johnson confessed. "I try to stay out of trouble. When I have a low game, I want it to be not so low, and throw a big game here and there to make up for it. I want to keep the ball in play and be accurate."

Johnson has never hooked the ball much and really doesn't want to.

"When I bowl on tour, I'll talk to players who say they had to adjust 10, 15 boards," she grinned. "I don't want to tell them I had to move maybe two boards, or make a ball change or some minor hand position change.

"When you have to make a big move, you may have to change your game," Johnson added. "I want to stay within my element. When you introduce new physical elements that aren't natural to your game, it takes away from what you do best."

Johnson's simple strike game also translates into one of the sport's best spare-shooting games because accuracy and keeping the ball on line are keys to both types of game.

"I always work on spares. The day I qualified for the match-play eliminations in Michigan, I filled 88 of 90 frames just to make it into the finals. Every pin counts." - Liz Johnson PBA Banquet Open runnerup

"I always work on spares," she said. "The day I qualified for the match-play eliminations in Michigan, I filled 88 of 90 frames just to make it into the finals. Every pin counts. Spares are always crucial, no matter how much you strike. I kick myself harder when I miss a spare than when I fail to get a strike."

Former Team USA and current PBA Tour competitor Brad Angelo, who grew up bowling with and against Johnson in the Buffalo, N.Y. area, has enormous admiration for her skills.

"Liz keeps it simple. She doesn't do a lot to the ball, but what she does, she does very, very well. She's as good at repeating what she does as Walter Ray Williams Jr. is at doing what he does best," Angelo said. "One of the things I emphasize at my coaching clinics is that it doesn't matter what you do to the ball as long as you can repeat the same thing. When you get the ball to strike, you have to remember what you did and do it over and over. Bowling is that simple."

Carolyn Dorin-Ballard's technique is another great example of how to successfully use fundamentals vs. power. A twotime Professional Women's Bowling Association champion in her first seven years on tour, she won 17 times in the next six years. The difference wasn't in becoming a big, strong power player.

"Carolyn doesn't try to do more than she can do," noted husband Del Ballard Jr., a 12-time PBA champion. "She has a nice, loose arm swing. She doesn't try to muscle the ball, because she can't."


"What Carolyn does best is she gets her hand behind the ball and she rolls it," Del continued. "You need to roll the ball, not hook it. The public wants to see the big hook, but in bowling, less is more. Less effort means more strikes. That's what Carolyn does really well.

"She's extremely accurate and she can repeat her shots."

Dorin-Ballard's younger sister, Cathy Dorin-Lizzi, agrees.

"Women rely on accuracy. They make the game look easier because they don't do anything too complex," Dorin-Lizzi said.

"Accuracy is the real key and that's where women have an advantage. The really good women players are smooth and have a nice, straight arm swing. They are always in balance when they release the ball because they won't rely on power.

"The ideal arm swing occurs when you let the ball swing the arm, not the other way around. Tish Johnson has one of the most fluid arm swings I have ever seen - man or woman. It's just a solid, one-piece swing from start to finish." - John Jowdy USBC Hall of Famer and bowling coach

"Women aren't built like men, so you shouldn't try to do things that aren't natural," Dorin-Lizzi added. "When you learn good fundamentals and can execute consistently, then you can learn some tricks like changing hand positions when you release the ball, adjust ball surfaces, just playing smarter."

Asbaty, an international amateur champion, has a solid record bowling with and against men during the American Bowling Congress' 2005 Miller High Life Masters and numerous other events. Some of the secrets to her success are apparent, others aren't.

"One of the reasons I'm competitive with most guys," Asbaty noted, "is that my game is fundamentally sound. I have good balance and leverage at the foul line, but my release is different than most girls. I've had great coaching, and I've learned how to break down my wrist action (less hook), load it up (more hook), get around the ball. But the best answer is to learn the basics first and the tricks come along later."


One less apparent asset in Asbaty's game is her mental approach.

"When I was 12 or 13, I learned that when you make a bad shot, be patient or you'll make more bad shots. Take a shot for what it is - good, bad, doesn't matter - and move on. Just pay attention to the next shot and forget the last one.

"So I rely on whatever strikes I can throw, try to make good ball decisions, execute my next shot, and make my spares."

Liz Johnson couldn't agree more.

"I've always prided myself on my mental game," Johnson said. "You have to keep your focus. Don't get too down if you have a bad frame or a bad game, and don't get too excited if you have a good one."

"Carolyn doesn't try to do more than she can do. She doesn't try to muscle the ball." - Del Ballard Jr. 12-time PBA champion and Carolyn Ballard's husband

Long-time Team USA star and current PBA champion Chris Barnes also is married to a world-class woman bowler, Lynda Norry-Barnes. Lynda has been successful as both a Team USA and professional player.

"Most good women bowlers are more accurate because it's a requirement if they want to compete," Chris Barnes said. "It's no different than guys on the PBA Tour who don't have as much power. You become more accurate because you have to be.

"Women probably get to the foul line better because their leverage at the point of release has to be better," he added. "The stronger a person is, the less attention they tend to pay to a fundamentally sound approach. You won't see Carolyn Dorin-Ballard lose her balance at the foul line."

USBC Hall of Famer John Jowdy, one of the sport's most respected coaches, agrees. In his opinion, every bowler can learn something by watching long-time women's star Tish Johnson deliver a bowling ball.

"The ideal arm swing occurs when you let the ball swing the arm, not the other way around. Women are not as prone to muscling the ball as men," Jowdy said. "Tish Johnson has one of the most fluid arm swings I have ever seen - man or woman. It's just a solid, one-piece swing from start to finish.

"Most bowlers can get the swing to the top of the arc okay, but then they want to yank the ball down and forward to get something on it when they let go. You will never, ever see Tish Johnson do that. I don't think I've ever seen her pull a shot inside of her target."


Every bowling champion agrees on two additional points: If you want to improve, you need to practice and you should bowl with/against bowlers who are better than you.

"We're all products of our environment," Barnes said. "Growing up, you learn that if you want to challenge yourself, you have to compete against the best you can find. That's the thing that makes Liz Johnson so tough. She grew up bowling with and against the best male bowlers in Buffalo, and her TV appearance was a part of her payoff."

"I've bowled against guys since I was 10," Liz Johnson confirmed. "I've always loved it. Bowling against better bowlers makes you better."

"I've bowled with and against Liz for more than 20 years," Angelo noted. "I don't look at her as a female bowler. She's just another bowler. Bowling isn't necessarily a sport where girls bowl that much different than men, although they don't have as much power.

"Annika Sorenstam is technically as good as any male pro golfer, but she can't compete because of the strength factor. The same is not true of women in bowling. What Liz Johnson did in Michigan was no fluke. I know," Angelo grinned. "I've lost to her three, four, 10 times over the years."

Gender and strength aside, the desire to become a better bowler is driven by incentive.

"Every bowler who wants to improve needs a carrot to go after," Barnes added. "It might be a high school letter, a college scholarship, a league title or a pro title. Whatever goal you set provides you with the desire to perform at a higher level."