Bowling, The Wright Way - December 16, 1998 by Don Wright
Technology. Is it Worth Five Bucks?

Recently I did a column on technology and wrote about the "electronic bat" developed for baseball. Many people thought I made that up, but it was in fact an actual invention being marketed today.

Well I read another article on technology, this time with golf carts. It seems that a company is marketing a golf cart with a computer on board that allows the player to punch in data and receive coaching guidelines. You go up to the tee and there is a map of the hole on the screen. Once you hit the ball it tells you how far you are from the green. A push of the button tells you how to play the hole from where your ball is. It goes on from hole to hole and costs between $350,000 and $400,000 to add the computers to 80 carts, which is average for an 18-hole course. It would cost each golfer about $5. Per cart rental. So you don't think I am making this up the company is Leading Edge Technologies, Inc.

Okay, let's hire them to do the same for us bowlers. How about a computer on each lane so when you arrive you can push a button and it tells you the current lane condition. It defines the oil pattern used and tells you if it's dry outside, heavy oil inside, Christmas tree pattern and the conditions of the heads and back-ends.

It then tells you what ball to use for your strike shot and what ball to use for your spare. For those of us that like to use the same ball for both shots, it will tell you where to stand and what spot to shoot. It will be a continuous monitor so as the lanes break down and carry down affects the shot the computer will tell you exactly how to adjust.

You could eliminate standing in line for ball inspection at national events because you could have an indentation and scanner on the ball return that weighs, checks balance and accepts or rejects your ball. If it rejects it, the indentation opens up and sucks the ball off the rack to an ABC official who promptly puts it into a computerized, mechanical pro shop that brings the ball to specifications and returns it to you like the gadgets at the drive-in banking facilities. Now I'd pay five bucks for that.

From the Wright house to your house we wish you a very Merry Christmas and a Joyous and Prosperous New Year.

See you on the lanes.