Now that you have practiced your timing (the walking and arm movements together) and you feel comfortable on where to stand for your strike ball, it is time to discuss the “BALL RELEASE”. But first, insert your fingers into the ball and make sure it doesn't feel too loose or too tight. if it's not comfortable, take tape out of the hole or insert tape as I spoke about in Blog Post on April 26, 2021 all about Equipment.
Walk up to the foul line with your ball and assume the position as if you just finished your slide. Swing the ball back and forth a few times and then just let it go. Do this several times until you have a feel of the swing. Then do it again but let the ball go. To begin, now take your ball and step onto the approach. Insert the fingers into the bowling ball first, and then the thumb last and place your non-bowling hand under the ball to help support its weight, or as I do, rest the elbow on the hip to help support the weight of the ball with the non-bowling hand underneath the ball. As you walk on the approach, remember on the slide to try to get LOW with a deep knee bend and have the body UPRIGHT and shoulders mostly SQUARE to the target (use the 2nd arrow as a starting point). To RELEASE the ball, release it smoothly onto the lane as you get to the end of the slide and on the DOWNSWING when the ball is down by your left ankle. Pretend you are landing a plane and loft out onto the lane, NOT into it, as the ball will lose power if it hits the lane too hard. Think of pushing the ball onto the lane rather than throwing it. The THUMB needs to come out first, and then LIFT with the fingers which help rotate the ball. Keep the arm close to the body and bring it upward toward the ceiling so your hand can come up and touch your right shoulder to insure a good Lift. Remember to place the trailing foot out behind you or just SLIGHTLY out to the left. The left arm needs to go out to the side to assist with your balance (do the opposite for left-handed bowlers).
The idea is to try these different hand positions on the down swing and release to see what works best for you during your practice sessions. When lanes change from oily to dry after a game or two, you may want to use the straight hand position if the ball starts hooking too much, so you’ll have more control and more accuracy. Take notes in your notebook during your practice sessions to help you recall what you did just before you start bowling on your league night. There’s lots to remember and easier to just review your notes from time to time. Check out my book that's available on Amazon/Kindle--"Let's Rev Up Those Bowling Scores". https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09ZSMB99G/ref=sr_1_2?crid=P3PQWHFB1WYS&keywords=lets+rev+up+those+bowling+scores&qid=1652035291&sprefix=lets+rev+up+those+bowling+scores%2Caps%2C76&sr=8-2 Join me next week when I'll be discussing "What Exercises are Good For Bowling" Good Luck and High Scoring!
1 Comment
10/5/2021 03:14:34 pm
You make a great point about making sure your hands don't get oily. I have a goal to bowl a strike at least once this year. I should hire a trainer to help me with my release.
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AuthorHello!! My name is Joanie. Although I'm not a professional bowler, I have loved the sport for more than 45 years, averaged over 200 for several seasons, and learned quite a bit with research and experience. Archives
August 2022
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