Monte Carlo

Monte Carlo Pins at Paddock Bowl

Sharon and I met Kris & Chris Kiiskinen at Paddock Bowl tonight to play their Monte Carlo game. Kate was in charge tonight which is always good for some extra games on the side and a lot more fun. None of us won any big money but each of us hit a few small winners. Dave, on the lanes next to us, hit the dollar strike pot which I think was good for $240+.

Paddock Bowl hosted a six-game tournament in the afternoon and it seems the lanes weren't dressed after the tournament's conclusion. They were as dry as the Mojave Desert. At one point, Sharon resorted to shooting for strikes with the Columbia White Dot (plastic ball) she normally uses to pick up the 6 or 10 pin. I struggled early but after switching to my Black Widow Pearl, I scored games of 219 and 226. Chris came close to breaking 200 with a 196 (or was it 198?) score in the final game.

Even though we didn't score any big winners, the three games and the "bowling for dollars" action were a lot of fun.

Reno Trip

We're at the Grand Sierra Resort in Reno for......well, we're not exactly certain. With anything involving a league at Pinole Valley Lanes, information is scarce. When the league started we were told we would travel to Reno at the end of the season to bowl in a tournament.

Later we were told our league's sweeper would be held in Reno at the end of the season. The latter would seem unlikely since only seven members of our league made the trip. (We came to Reno on a bus with members of two other leagues from Pinole Valley Lanes.) So as I said earlier, we don't really know what we're doing here except that we will do some bowling.

MONTE CARLO - A $231 STRIKE

I was expeting a big turnout since the dollar prize pot was growing so big but only about ten people showed up to bowl Monte Carlo at Paddock Bowl. As a result, the pot increased only $20.00 to $231.00. Of course, $231.00 is still a pretty nice prize. Cleo Robles's ticket was drawn and she excitedly stepped up to the approach for her shot. She didn't show any signs of nervousness as she buried a perfect hook into the 1-3 pocket. All ten pins were sent flying into the pit and the money was hers!

More Monte Carlo

Saturday night was another Monte Carlo night at Paddock Bowl. Our usual hostess, Kate, had the night off and the man who replaced her was about as electric as Ben Stein. I'm sure everyone would like to see Kate back at the microphone next week. Olivia, Sharon, The Coach, and I enjoyed ourselves even though the atmosphere was lacking without Kate. The bowling was good even though the money shots weren't so plentiful. I think Sharon was the only one in our group who won any more than a few dollars. Olivia had a shot at the dollar pot worth $211.00 but she didn't strike. That money will roll over to next week and I expect it will be worth at least $250.00. I suspect we'll have a big turnout next week with the pot getting so big.

Monte Carlo Night at Paddock Bowl

The Blockheads minus Olivia rode out to Paddock Bowl Saturday for another night of Monte Carlo bowling. Olivia wasn't able to join us this time because she had relatives visiting for Easter. Though Olivia was absent we have a group of six from the office. The Coach and I were joined by Sharon and first-timers Cleo, Aline, and Jeff. Brandon was along for the ride but because of his recent knee surgery, he was limited to spectating and helping us with the automatic scorekeeper.

Monte Carlo Night at Paddock Bowl - Part IV

We had a group of five out for Monte Carlo last night. Sharon Connally was back to strike some more gold. Olivia and her sister, Yolanda, came out. (Yolanda bowled with a broken foot -- what a trooper!) Yolanda had her daughter along, too but she couldn't bowl because you have to be at least age 18 for Monte Carlo. Even The Coach made it as he was able to pry himself away from the March Madness for a few hours.

Catching Up

I apologize for going over a week without any new entries. I was preparing for my fantasy baseball league draft when I wasn't bowling. Now it's out of the way, so it's time to get back to bowling.

Last week we swept all four points to improve our record to 21-11. I know it puts us ahead of the Icemen who went 1-3. I don't know the other outcomes but we should be no more than a game out of first place now.

Monte Carlo Night - Part II

We had a group of four at Paddock Bowl for their Saturday night Monte Carlo game. The Coach couldn't make it but Olivia and I were joined by Sharon Connally and Leretha Farley. My daughter, Shannon, tagged along to sample the shrimp tempura special at the cafe and grab any money I won. I covered the format of the Monte Carlo games in an earlier post which you can find here.

Monte Carlo Night Coming Up Soon

It's almost time for another Monte Carlo night at Paddock Bowl in Pacheco. The next one will be held Saturday night (February 27th) at 7:00. I wrote about the experience Olivia and I had at the last one here. They recommend we arrive by 6:30 to sign in and guarantee a spot in the game.

AMF $500,000 National In-League Tournament

All three of us entered the AMF $500,000 National In-League Tournament. The qualifying round ended February 14th. In Division C, Olivia finished 8th and The Coach finished 26th. In Division B, I finished 8th. As the top 50 scores in each division advance to the center finals, all three of us made the cut!

Monte Carlo Night at Paddock Bowl

Olivia and I ventured out to Paddock Bowl in Pacheco Saturday night for their Monte Carlo Night special. We thought The Coach and Sharon Connally would be there but they weren't able to make it. Paddock's Monte Carlo night event involves bowling three games with pins of different colors that are mixed in with the regular pins. If you roll a strike with the colored pins in certain places, you win cash prizes. Here are the pin combinations and payouts. If you fail to get a strike but leave a colored pin on the deck, you can still win 50 cents by picking up the spare.