Starting with your right foot on the middle dot on the approach is a good way to test how much the lanes are hooking. It is important to keep your feet closely together to maintain alignment.
For this tutorial, you should start off aiming somewhere around the second arrow on the right, allowing the ball to roll over this arrow, move out to only a few boards from the gutter, and then hook from the dry spot of the lane (about 38 to 40 feet down on a house shot) all the way back to the 1-3 pocket. For a left-hander, this would be the 2nd arrow on the left, and the ball would hook to the 1-2 pocket.
Push off the ball on your first step, stepping with your right foot first for right-handed players Have the ball be parallel to your ankle at the 2nd step, and start to bend at your knees Be at the top of your backswing by your third step Bring the ball back through and release by the end of your slide. With 5 steps, it’s basically the same thing, only you’ll start with your left foot instead, and the ball won’t move for that first step.
There are many different styles, like bending at the waist (a la Walter Ray Williams Jr. or Wes Malott) or opening your shoulders (a la Tommy Jones or Chris Barnes) when you bring your arm up for the backswing, but sticking to the basics is a good idea when first learning how to do this. Remember, you want the ball to hook when it gets to the dry area at the back of the lane, but until it gets there, the ball should be traveling a relatively straight path, varying only a few boards at most. Again, everyone has a different style, and you can adjust this as you feel comfortable.
A good way to practice this technique is to actually throw an underhand spiral with a football; similar physics are involved. You can also practice with a tennis ball. If you get it right, it’ll go straight and then bounce drastically to the side.
A good way to practice this technique is to actually throw an underhand spiral with a football; similar physics are involved. You can also practice with a tennis ball. If you get it right, it’ll go straight and then bounce drastically to the side.
A good way to practice this technique is to actually throw an underhand spiral with a football; similar physics are involved. You can also practice with a tennis ball. If you get it right, it’ll go straight and then bounce drastically to the side.
An easy way to remember this is the old ESPN advert: “Roll the ball, then answer the phone. " Though, hopefully you have better form than the guy in that commercial. And remember, fluidity here is essential: don’t do the hand-shake, pause slightly, and then do the follow through – it must all be one smooth motion. A good follow through is crucial to maintaining consistent ball speed and accuracy.
For a right-hander, if your ball hits high (to the left of the headpin), then try moving your feet a couple of boards to the left and keeping your target on the lane the same as before. If you hit the pocket light (to the right of the 3 pin), try moving your feet a couple of boards to the right and keep your target the same. It is important to move your target on the lane when you move your feet. Otherwise you may end up playing very weird angles. Once you become more advanced and start playing on more challenging sport lane conditions, the left and right moves become more complicated and sometimes speed and hand adjustments are required.
Though most bowling centers do offer “house balls,” they are generally plastic (polyester) and won’t hook very much, though they are good for most spares since they will travel very straight. Having your own plastic ball for spares (spare ball), and a resin ball for strikes and some spares (spare ball) is a good idea for any level of bowler as house balls don’t usually fit your hand perfectly and won’t carry pins very well.
Conventional: the middle and ring fingers are inserted up to the second knuckle (this is seen in most house balls) Fingertip grip: the same fingers are inserted only up to the first knuckle (fingertip grips will give you more revs than a conventional grip and are easier to hook) A new thing out these days in the bowling community are Vacu-Grips. These grips will expand and contract to your finger width; this helps if you are going to bowl a lot. You will find that most of the pros use a fingertip grip as it allows you to get your thumb out of the ball first allowing you to “lift” with your fingers creating revs on the ball.
Talk to your pro-shop guy about your wants – he may be able to recommend things you don’t realize you need. Maybe a fingertip grip? A lower or higher RP differential (lower differential hooks on pearl or matte coverstock, higher on resin)? Or even a different ball or different weight completely!
