Hat-Trick of Perfection Hayward Rolls 300 Ahead of Worlds
IslandStats.com
The Bermuda National Bowling team is hitting a remarkable run of form just days before departing for the International Bowling Federation (IBF) World Bowling Championships in Hong Kong, China, with Anthony Hayward becoming the third national team member to roll a perfect 300 game in the build-up.
Hayward, one of the six players selected for the prestigious tournament, achieved his fifth career 300 game just two days before the squad is scheduled to travel.
Anthony Hayward Jr
Right-Handed Bowler:
Q.On the highly technical oil patterns at international events like the World Championships, what specific adjustments have you focused on in training—both individually and in the Baker format—to ensure ball reaction and pin carry remain consistent on foreign lanes?
A. When encountering tough lane conditions, firstly choosing the right ball is very important, knowing which cover stocks and cores of a ball that matches up best with the conditions you are bowling on can give you an advantage over an opponent.
To the average person, they just see a shine ball with three holes in it for their fingers, but to the person that takes this sport a little bit more serious knows that it’s more complex than that. There are three types of balls, 1. Polyester(plastic) 2. Reactive resin 3. Urethane
In training we try different balls and alter the surface of them to get the right reaction we are looking for and depending on the condition, a Dull ball may be preferred to a shiny one and vise versa.
With this 46ft oil pattern that we will be bowling on, the key thing will be to try and play from straighter angles to start.
Q. How have you balanced with the energy of the squad to build team chemistry heading into the Singles, Doubles, and Team events?
A. We have a great bunch of guys within the national training program, most of us have know each other coming straight up through the Jr league together so the chemistry is already there, but for the guys that I will be traveling with, I have been there once before, and we know what’s expected of us. During league nights we all have our friendly rivalries but once we put on our national colors, we all are one.
Q. Hong Kong's Queen Elizabeth Stadium will host the event. What preparation have you done to simulate the unique conditions, atmosphere, and time difference of competing in a high-pressure Asian venue that is vastly different from Warwick Lanes?
A. As far as preparing for the change in time zone, I’m not entirely sure if you can prepare for that, I will have to take it as it comes, but I know the faster I can adjust the better off I’ll be.
Q. Team Bermuda achieved a significant milestone by reaching the Round of 16 in the IBF World Cup earlier this year; what specific, measurable team and individual performance goals have you set for the World Championships to build on that success?
A. Hopefully the preparation we have had can set us up for another successful run in the tournament, we know with the likes of Team USA, Canada, Maylasia and Sweden it will be very Challenging but we have to put our best foot forward and grid, obviously our main goal will be to medal but if we can secure more positions in the round of 16 or better the world will be looking at us.
Q. Given the comprehensive schedule, which includes Singles, Doubles, Trios, and the Team of 5 event, how are you planning to manage the physical and mental workload to ensure you are sharp and peaking for the crucial final rounds, especially the demanding Baker Format match-play?
A. We know that we must take it ball by ball and not get too far ahead of ourselves, looking around at other scores will only add more pressure on us, we must stick to our game plan, and everything will be fine. It’s a saying in bowling: Make your spares, the strikes will come. So, if we can keep games clean and minimize mistakes, we know we could be in contention.
